Clooney calls out Trump media vilification at press freedom gathering

Jul 10, 2019 | 10:41 AM

OTTAWA — Human-rights lawyer Amal Clooney says U.S. President Donald Trump’s vilification of the media makes journalists more vulnerable to abuse around the world.

Clooney didn’t mention Trump by name but singled out the phenomenon as happening in the country of James Madison, a Founding Father who became the fourth U.S. president.

She says foreign ministers such as Britain’s Jeremy Hunt and Canada’s Chrystia Freeland need to pay more than “lip service” to media freedom.

The two countries are hosting an international conference on media freedom in London.