Bill Maher: The Media Must Fight To Get Its Reputation Back

Bill Maher  says it’s time for the media to step up and prove its trustworthiness. 

On Friday’s broadcast of “Real Time ,” the host referenced the results of a Fox News poll this month , which suggests that more people currently think they can trust President Donald Trump  than they can the press.

Maher praised various outlets for already pushing back against the Trump administration’s falsehoods — such as NBC’s Chuck Todd for taking on the president’s adviser Kellyanne Conway over her “alternative facts ” and The New York Times for calling out Trump’s “lies” on its front page. 

But Maher said more needs to be done. “Can you imagine how this must make a reporter feel? To be losing a truthfulness contest to Donald Trump?” he said. “It’s like losing a rap battle to Mitt Romney .”

After criticizing some of the media for sometimes focusing on fluffy, lighthearted stories, Maher said that “for the sake of the republic” they “gotta get serious again.” 

“You have to win your respect back so Trump can’t say ‘the people don’t believe you, you’re a joke,’” he added.

Check out the full segment above.