Katherine Timpf explains at National Review Online why President Trump’s plea for equal viewpoint representation on major media outlets is “honestly one of the most unsettling things that I’ve seen in a while.”

Now, I would completely agree that President Trump has been hit with an unsurpassed level of negative media coverage since he’s entered politics. Yes, there have been issues with the way he’s handled his job in the White House, but he and his supporters are correct in saying that many in the media insist on trying to turn even the smallest things into major scandals — all while ignoring the scandals on the left and refusing to acknowledge anything positive that President Trump has done. Here’s the thing, though: That’s their right, and neither he nor anyone else in government has the right to do a damn thing about it.

To be fair, I’m sure that it must be tough to turn on Morning Joe and see that the people you once considered friends are now talking smack about your hands. But the truth is, that should not matter. In fact, it must not matter, not if we want to continue to live in a free society — and it’s the solemn responsibility of our elected officials to honor and protect our freedoms. I know that if I were the president and I had taken that inaugural oath, then I would understand that ensuring the protection of our free press was more important than getting back at people for saying mean things about me on TV. It wouldn’t matter if there were a “Kat Timpf Sucks” channel. Hell, it wouldn’t matter care if every channel were the “Kat Timpf Sucks” channel; I’d never for a second even consider that I should be allowed to have any influence whatsoever over the negative content — not despite my position of power, but because of it.