Joe Lockhart was White House press secretary from 1998-2000 during President Bill Clinton's administration. The opinions expressed in this commentary are his own. View more opinion at CNN.

(CNN) Since Donald Trump took office, he and his administration have been yelling about fake news and alternative facts. Now that the midterms are over, and the President is nearing the halfway point of his term, we need to accept that the way we cover this administration isn't working. The primary reason is Trump -- he does not act in the way traditional presidents act, particularly when it comes to handling affairs of state with honesty, care and decency.

Joe Lockhart

The problem doesn't entirely lie with Trump. The social media explosion of new technology over the past decade has ironically given rumors and falsehoods an even bigger head start on the truth. One can only imagine what Mark Twain would make of Twitter and the way the President as well as many other public officials use it.

Some journalists throw their arms up and say there is nothing we can do but wait. Journalism is built on a strong foundation and will outlast Trump and other demagogues who seek to subvert facts and the truth. I think that's wrong. There are limits to what media organizations can do, but that doesn't mean they should do nothing to adjust to the new reality.

So, some modest ideas. The first applies to covering live presidential events, which involve mutual trust between journalist and public official. Trump has abused that privilege of his platform. He has repeatedly and blatantly lied about the facts and his own policies. He has spread spurious and demonstrably false charges against his critics and attacked journalists who are doing their jobs.

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He has lost the right to be covered live on TV or Twitter. His probation? Tape delay. Do not put anything on live; in fact, don't put anything on without a fact check. Whether a presidential event is broadcast live at 11 or 11:30 does not impose an enormous burden on the President's ability to lead the nation or get his message out. It does allow the President's comments to be broadcast in the context of reality and truth.

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