Letter: If only former National Enquirer publisher’s testimony at Trump trial would spur the demise of the tabloids
FILE — David Pecker, chairman of American Media Inc. and publisher of The National Enquirer, poses for a photo at his office in New York on Feb. 25, 2010. Donald Trump had a dismal day in court on Tuesday, April 23, 2024, as the judge presiding over his criminal trial questioned a defense lawyer’s credibility and a key witness, Pecker, pulled back the curtain to expose what prosecutors called a conspiracy to influence the 2016 election. (Hiroko Masuike/The New York Times)
I’m not at all surprised by the tactics used by the National Enquirer as detailed by David Pecker during his testimony at Trump’s trial. Their “catch and kill” behaviors and knowingly publishing false stories are reprehensible, but something I always suspected.
It occurs to me, however, that these tactics would not affect the public’s opinions without a huge audience buying up these newspapers and believing what is reported in them.
It would be nice if Pecker’s testimony made people less likely to believe tabloid stories in the future, but I am not hopeful.
Nancy Cantor, Salt Lake City
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