Children's Media as a Conduit for 'Unbiased' News: Critical Reflections on the Coverage of Trump's Presidential Campaign

On 8 November 2016, Donald Trump was elected President of the United States. During his campaign, Trump put on display long held sexist, racist, and bigoted views on women; people of color; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning/queer, intersex peoples, and Others. Media coverage in the U.S. and around the world was not limited to news cycles intended for adult audiences only. "Scholastic News Kids Press Corps," a free online publication for and 'by kids' ages 10 to 14, joined the conversation in 2015. This article shares analysis of "Scholastic News Kids Press Corps"' coverage of Trump's campaign, theorized through a critical, women of color feminist lens. Major themes that emerged include teaching children how to be unbiased reporters; the importance of being part of the political process and voting; social and policy issues; and Trump's disposition/sexism. While news content broached issues from varying perspectives, it often stopped short of providing critical reflections and historical context of the issues being reported. Possibilities are discussed for expanding how news media for and by children can be conceptualized, in addition to how educators can engage in critical media literacy with children across multiple age groups, including the early years.