Freedom of speech according to Trump: either you are with us or you are disappearing from the air

This was expected to be a defence of “free speech”. In practice, it is increasingly like taking control of who has the right to talk at all.

Trump called for the White home chief Netflix and threatened with consequences in the fight to take over Warner Bros. Discovery. A stake? 1 of the world's largest media empires – including CNN, has for years been a symbol of "enemy media" for Trump.

The discussion was to cover 2 issues:
• acquisition of WBD,
• demanding the removal from the board of directors of erstwhile Barack Obama advisor Susan Rice.

This is no longer a political dispute. This is simply a signal: people associated with Democrats should vanish from key media positions.

Warner Bros. Discovery is not only CNN – a peculiar eye in Trump's head – but besides Polish TVN, long-standing subject of criticism from nationalist groups in Poland.

According to reports, the board of WBD indicated its willingness to accept a competitive bid against Netflix, made by Paramount Skydance. It is headed by David Ellison, the boy of Trump-supporting billionaire Larry Ellison, who demonstrably appeared on the president's message in Congress.

Trump is to request that possible sales of WBD lead to a change of ownership of CNN. It is hard to interpret this differently than as an effort to reformulate the editorial board.

The Ellison household took control of Paramount Global, which includes CBS. The American TikToka section was besides taken over. In both cases, there are allegations of interference in Trump's favour. If this is confirmed, it will mean more than just a business move. It is the construction of a media political base – with access to millions of recipients.

‘Freedom of word’ in selective form

Trump has been portraying himself as a protector of free speech for years. The problem is, his imagination of freedom ends where criticism begins.

Threats to a private media company. Personnel pressure. Waiting to change the owner of the news station. These are not elements of the free marketplace or media pluralism. They're force mechanisms.

If the power starts to decide who can sit on the board of directors and who should own the editorial board, we halt talking about political dispute. We're starting to talk about transmission control.

And then “freedom of speech” becomes a slogan – not a rule.