The United States has spent decades, billions of dollars and American lives trying to install democracy around the world, but over the past four years, Trump has effectively handed autocrats a rhetorical sledgehammer with which to bash away at one of its most fundamental pillars: freedom of the press. His favorite catchphrase, "fake news," has emboldened authoritarian and democratic leaders alike to restrict the media in their own countries and target perceived critics with a growing sense of impunity.
