The President is doing what is legal to destroy their credibility. Shutting down the NY Times et al., would just make him look like a cheap tyrant like Hitler or Lincoln.
ML/NJ
We are not at war. That makes a bit of difference, but he’s right to call them out. They are defending a political ideology, not the people.
Check out the Anti-federalist paper, “Centinel” Number 1
https://www.constitution.org/afp/centin01.htm