Amal Clooney Issues Stark Warning About Donald Trump's Attacks On The Press

Amal Clooney has once again called out President Donald Trump for vilifying the media with a warning about the consequences of attacking press freedom.

Clooney, a human rights lawyer and the U.K. governments special envoy on media freedom, said in a speech at the Global Conference for Media Freedom in London on Wednesday that Trumps repeated attacks on the media put reporters around the world at risk.

Today, the country of [former President] James Madison has a leader who vilifies the media, making honest journalists all over the world more vulnerable to abuse, said Clooney, who is married to the actor George Clooney .

Amal Clooney slams Trump for vilifying press pic.twitter.com/D60hGzhi1s

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Amal Clooney slams Trump for vilifying press pic.twitter.com/D60hGzhi1s
Reuters Top News (@Reuters) July 11, 2019

Trump regularly describes news organizations that report critically on his administration as fake news and the enemy of the people. Last month, he was condemned for accusing The New York Times of conducting a virtual act of Treason with its report on U.S. cyberattacks on Russias power grid.

A.G. Sulzberger, the publisher of the Times , fired back and said this new attack crosses a dangerous line in the presidents campaign against a free and independent press.

Clooney also used her speech on Wednesday to criticize world leaders for what she described as their collective shrug over the 2018 murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, at the reported behest of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

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Her comments echoed those she made at the United Nations Correspondent Association Awards in New York in December.

The U.S. president has given such regimes a green light and labeled the press in this country the enemy of the people, Clooney said at the time.

At #UNCA70 dinner in New York, human rights lawyer Amal Clooney speaks about #Myanmar case of @Reuters #FreeWaLoneKyawSoeOo

The chilling effect is real.

She also talks about the effect of #US President @realDonaldTrumps description of press as an enemy of the people. pic.twitter.com/m0rE7XCz0R

Michelle Nichols (@michellenichols) December 6, 2018","type":"rich","meta":{"author":"Michelle Nichols","author_url":"https://twitter.com/michellenichols","cache_age":86400,"description":"At #UNCA70 dinner in New York, human rights lawyer Amal Clooney speaks about #Myanmar case of @Reuters #FreeWaLoneKyawSoeOo The chilling effect is real.She also talks about the effect of #US President @realDonaldTrumps description of press as an enemy of the people. pic.twitter.com/m0rE7XCz0R Michelle Nichols (@michellenichols) December 6, 2018\n\n","options":{"_hide_media":{"label":"Hide photos, videos, and cards","value":false}},"provider_name":"Twitter","thumbnail_height":480,"thumbnail_url":"https://pbs.twimg.com/ext_tw_video_thumb/1070594778402832384/pu/img/xH0e-d2CuUDpWU09.jpg","thumbnail_width":848,"title":"Michelle Nichols on 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At #UNCA70 dinner in New York, human rights lawyer Amal Clooney speaks about #Myanmar case of @Reuters #FreeWaLoneKyawSoeOo

The chilling effect is real.

She also talks about the effect of #US President @realDonaldTrump s description of press as an enemy of the people. pic.twitter.com/m0rE7XCz0R
Michelle Nichols (@michellenichols) December 6, 2018