Should we expect anything else when inviting Donald Trump? For his big comeback after his sexual assault conviction, Donald Trump was the guest of a CNN program this Wednesday, in which he multiplied the fake news and the provocations against Joe Biden. What does one wonder about the place the media will give him in the Republican primary and perhaps the 2024 presidential election as well?
For an hour and 10 minutes, Donald Trump answered questions from a group of Republican or undecided New Hampshire voters, attacked Joe Biden on inflation and immigration, and portrayed America as “a third world country.” But he also repeated — without evidence, recalled journalist Kaitlan Collins – that the 2020 presidential election had been “rigged” against him, and downplayed the violent invasion of the Capitol by thousands of his supporters who were opposed to defeat on January 6, 2021.
Most often to the applause of his followers, downright hilarious when the seventy-year-old called former journalist E. Jean Carroll “insane” whom he has to pay five million dollars in damages for sexually abusing her in 1996.
“It’s not information, it’s noise”
“Catastrophic,” “total madness,” “shame”… Criticized even before the show, especially in the ranks of the Democrats, CNN has been reaping a torrent of allegations since Wednesday night, accused of having stretched out the megaphone to the favorites inform the Republican primary to win over the audience. According to the broadcaster, the show attracted 3.3 million viewers, the second-best result for such a format since 2016 on CNN.
“It’s hard to see what benefit America has brought from the show of lies that aired on CNN Wednesday night,” even begins the analysis of one of the channel’s journalists, who follows the media, Olivier Darcy. “It’s not information, it’s noise,” adds Matthew Jordan, associate professor of media studies at Penn State University.
On the contrary, through a spokesman, CNN assures that this verification work was carried out “in real time” by its journalist, who asked “difficult, fair and insightful questions”. The day after the show, many media outlets devoted articles refuting certain claims made by Donald Trump.
Aside from the odds potential the 76-year-old candidate could still represent, it’s hard to imagine being without whoever is currently dominating the polls for the Republican primary in the coming months. “What happens if he wins the primary? Shouldn’t we broadcast the Republican Convention? asks David Greenberg, professor of history and journalism at Rutgers University. “In a democracy you have to allow people to make their own judgements,” he adds.
“In 2016, the networks and especially CNN gave him too much airtime. Because they thought it was spectacular,” recalls David Greenberg. “But that doesn’t mean the alternative is just a blackout,” he adds. For him there is no other solution than “to question him and confront him with the facts”.