Skip to main content
  • Online media
  • Tariffs
  • Epstein
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • RSS
  • Take Action
  • Search
  • Donate

Media Matters for America

  • News & Analysis
  • Research & Studies
  • Audio & Video
  • Archives

Media Matters for America

  • Nav
  • Search
  • News & Analysis
  • Research & Studies
  • Audio & Video
  • Archives
  • Online media
  • Tariffs
  • Epstein
  • Take Action
  • Search
  • Donate
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • RSS
Donald Trump and Twitter

Ceci Freed / Media Matters | Gage Skidmore via Creative Commons

Mainstream media organizations repeat Trump’s lie justifying new tariffs

Other reports debunk Trump’s claim that governments of Argentina and Brazil devalued their currencies

Written by Zachary Pleat

Published 12/02/19 12:36 PM EST

President Donald Trump on Monday announced on Twitter new tariffs targeting steel and aluminum shipments from Argentina and Brazil, claiming the countries “have been presiding over a massive devaluation of their currencies.” Twitter accounts of NBC News, CBS News, PBS, and CNN uncritically repeated Trump’s claim, even though other reporting contradicts it.

Trump’s announcement has not yet turned into formal policy and reportedly surprised Brazil’s president. Just as Trump’s invocation of national security to justify earlier tariffs was bogus, his latest claim also appears contrary to the facts. According to Axios’ coverage of the announcement, both countries’ currencies “are freely traded and have been for years” and “have weakened because of political upheavals and dwindling growth forecasts in the two countries — not government intervention.” The Washington Post’s article on Trump’s announcement pointed to the latest biannual Treasury Department report on currency manipulation that “did not allege Brazil or Argentina had done anything improper in handling their currencies.”

Yet tweets from four broadcast and cable news networks passed on Trump’s lie justifying his action, continuing a pattern of major news outlets repeating Trump’s misinformation to their audiences:

The Latest

  1. Daily Wire host: “Latin Americans have nothing to do with the NFL. Historically, they've contributed nothing to the NFL.”

    Video & Audio 02/09/26 4:15 PM EST

  2. Podcaster Shawn Ryan: If I interview Trump administration officials about the Epstein files “they're all just going to fucking lie”

    Video & Audio 02/09/26 4:03 PM EST

  3. Benny Johnson guest: “America is rebelling on Donald Trump”

    Video & Audio 02/09/26 12:38 PM EST

  4. Benny Johnson says the Bad Bunny performance at the Super Bowl looked “like a border invasion”: “Has anybody ever deported a whole halftime show?”

    Video & Audio 02/09/26 12:00 PM EST

  5. Fox News guest calls for Hunter Hess to be kicked off the United States Olympic team: “This guy is the absolute worst of America”

    Video & Audio 02/09/26 10:07 AM EST

Pagination

  • Previous page ‹‹
  • …
  • Current page 31
  • …
  • Next page ››

In This Article

  • Donald Trump

    Donald-Trump-MMFA-Tag.png
  • Tariffs / Trade

Related

  1. Media Matters weekly newsletter, February 27

    Narrative/Timeline 02/27/26 11:11 AM EST

  2. Fox & Friends really does not want viewers to understand that Trump’s tariffs are taxes paid by Americans

    Article 02/25/26 4:07 PM EST

  3. PBD Podcast panelist tells his mother to “never vote again” after she criticized Trump's State of the Union address

    Video & Audio 02/25/26 11:55 AM EST

Media Matters for America

Sign Up for Email Updates
  • About
  • Contact
  • Corrections
  • Submissions
  • Jobs
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • RSS

© 2026 Media Matters for America

RSS