The announcement this week from General John Kelly, Chief of Staff to President Donald Trump, that he has agreed to keep his job until 2020, must have come as a shock to the anonymous sources who told a number of news agencies that Kelly would be replaced.

 

On June 29, citing “people familiar with the matter,” The Wall Street Journal reported that General Kelly was out this summer.

 

“Sources” told CNN’s Jim Sciutto that Kelly would not be around much longer.

 

“Sources say Chief of Staff John Kelly May also be on the way out,” CBS News headlined.

 

“Eight current and former White House officials tell Stephanie Ruhle and her colleagues there is eroding support for White House Chief of Staff John Kelly ...”

 

Wow!  Eight unidentified White House sources talking to MSNBC!  Isn’t that something?

 

Again at CBS News, “sources say” a (White House) purge is coming.

 

The always reliable New York Times also predicted Kelly’s demise based on nothing but hatred for Donald Trump.

 

The deal in journalism is that if you get a story wrong, you apologize.  And if an anonymous source misleads you - you can identify that source.

 

Does anyone think the news organizations that falsely reported Kelly’s departure will apologize?

 

Anyone?

 

That’s why reporting about the Trump White House is a corrupt joke.  

 

Protecting sources who disseminate false information is against the rules of journalism.  Printing and broadcasting erroneous information is a betrayal of the public trust.  

 

No wonder just 32% of Americans trust the media, according to a recent Gallup Poll.

 

Folks ask me all the time what can be done about press dishonesty.  I tell them to walk away from media that deceives them.  Sometimes that works.  The despicable New York Daily News is collapsing, and many other newspapers are in dire trouble.

 

On television, once President Trump leaves the stage, look out below for falling news ratings.  

 

Finally, every journalism school in the country should show their students this column.  But that will not happen because many J-School teachers sympathize with the hate-Trump press and have no problem with bogus hidden sources brutalizing the administration.  The truth be damned.

 

So that’s where America is vis-à-vis freedom of the press.  

 

The media is now playing a game called “Get Trump.”

 

But there is no Maxwell Smart involved with this fiasco. Nope.  

 

Only lame anonymous sources who can say pretty much anything that makes Donald Trump look bad and get it distributed.

 

Dishonest and disturbing.