
They are literally praising Trump for not murdering journalists.

Donald Trump has waged an unprecedented campaign against the free press in America, but "Fox & Friends" would like to remind you that at least he's not killing any journalists.

In response to Trump's infantile (and as-yet-unscheduled) "Fake News Awards" ceremony, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) put out a list of top press oppressors this week, handing Trump the award for "Overall Achievement in Undermining Global Press Freedom."

That honor did not sit well with the folks at "Fox & Friends," or their guest Katie Frates, editor at The Daily Caller.


The gang laughingly wondered how Trump could be on that list when he hasn't even murdered anyone. Really:

DOOCY: He is the top oppressor in the world. In Mexico, six journalists were murdered. In Russia, two were murdered. In the Philippines two were murdered. And yet, Donald Trump is not only the top oppressor, he is also the most thin skinned, according to this outfit. FRATES: Again, clearly that's wrong. Look, like, it is true that Trump does have a thin skin. You can see it in how he behaves on Twitter with the media. But again, he cannot be the worst because he's not killing anyone. And there are presidents that are murdering journalists.

This may well be the lowest bar that has ever been set for Trump, and that's saying a lot.

Elsewhere in the segment, Frates urges Fox viewers to read "the actual article" accompanying the awards, which would have been good advice for Frates and the Fox hosts to take.

The CPJ actually named Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an "Most Thin-Skinned," naming Trump the runner up for that prize, and awarded Trump its special prize mainly because of his utter failure to uphold U.S. leadership in protecting press freedoms worldwide.

In fact, Trump has repeatedly praised the aforementioned Erdo?an, and even apologized after Erdo?an's security detail assaulted protesters on American soil. Trump has also effusively praised many of the other leaders on CPJ's list, and failed to raise concerns over press freedom and other human rights issues with these leaders.

Furthermore, Trump has attacked journalists to their faces, labeled an award-winning black White House correspondent an "enemy," demanded the firing of journalists explicitly over their criticism of him, and incited violence against journalists on a number of occasions, including during his recent golf vacation.

On his first full day in office, Trump sent his press secretary out to literally demand that reporters print demonstrable lies.

So while it is true that Trump has not murdered any journalists, his campaign against the free press is undoubtedly the most vicious in American history  a history that has stood as a worldwide beacon for freedom of the press.

Until now.