Melania Trump 2018: Is the Media Treating the FLOTUS Fairly?

Melania Trump has always been under the scrutiny of the media ever since Donald Trump won the 2016 presidential campaign. Even now, two years after becoming the latest first lady, Melania Trump is still being put under the microscope.

From her visiting troops at U.S. bases and helping pack care packages for soldiers to reading for sick children at a D.C. hospital and her fashion choices – the first lady is always put on the spotlight. And it is for this reason that Melania Trump’s spokesperson, Stephanie Grisham, recently lashed out at the media.

“'These days the consistent negative coverage that Mrs. Trump gets is not fair. I know I will be attacked for saying it's not fair that I'm whining but we are defending ourselves. I can't tell you how many inquiries I get that has nothing to do with the substance of her work. [Melania Trump] went two weeks ago to Liberty University and spoke to 10,000 college kids about the dangers of opioid abuse. She gave an off the cuff answer about Christmas décor and for two days that's what we talked about - Christmas decor. I think the media is missing an opportunity to cover the great work she is doing” Grisham gushed.

But it appears that Melania Trump isn’t just unpopular with the media but with the general population as a whole. The first lady is currently facing a declining popularity rate as CNN released a poll that found out that only 43 percent of the masses view her favorably.

While others might argue that this decline is attributed to the stances and performance of her husband, Melania Trump herself also has a hand in this regard. For instance, the first lady wore a Pith Helmet during her visit to Kenya last October.

The headpiece is associated with colonialism in Africa and the surfacing of her photo wearing the gear resulted in waves of criticism from both the media and the public. CNN’s op-ed published a few days ago even said that Melania Trump “doesn’t understand what it means to be the first lady.”