AFTER UNSATISFYING Q&A “DEBATE” MEDIA FREAKS OUT
After Weeks of Hype Over Early “Debate,” the Real Loser is CNN
CNN fails with two-minute format; media pees collective pants
The most notable thing about the debate was the drunken giddiness of the media in the weeks leading to the “debate.” Both in the left-leaning media beforehand, and the panicky “Biden will be on drugs” weeks-long messaging of the right.
Every media outlet saw this as an opportunity for President Biden to easily shred the convict, Donald Trump, on his current criminal trials, ripping away women’s rights, or even the ominous Project 2025.
But leading into this early “debate,” which barely deserved the title, the media got drunk on ratings, with CNN compromising any semblance of a real debate format in order to grab the ratings for hosting the candidates.
A “poor performance” in this crappy format was inevitable, and doesn’t reflect the progress America has made under Biden’s steady leadership. The economic numbers has America number one in the world, and our alliances with NATO have stabilized under Biden. As America stays steady, so steadies the world. Have we already forgotten the worldwide celebration in 2020 when an increasingly lawless and incompetent Trump lost?
After Biden’s stellar State of the Union speech, the media on both sides were like kids whose parents promised them a day at an expensive fun park; too wound up with anticipation, hyperbolic, giddy, and certain to have a meltdown at the first disappointment. Cable news networks covered it like it was going to be the wedding of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce. Pundits everywhere had “coaching” advice for President Joe: Trump, they said, only needed to act like a normal person.
Fox and the right-wing media spun up their viewers with more sensational and scary immigrant stories than usual: The Botox and lip-plumping industry hit new highs in the Dow Jones. CNN trotted out their panels of campaign experts, and Intellectual Eyewear, Inc. had a good month because of it.
It was a ratings windfall for a cable industry that has increasingly been losing out to social media news networks. And America is the worse for it.
President Biden could have reminded America that Trump is on trial for espionage in the stolen classified documents case. He could have pivoted to the January 6th attack on our capitol. He could have talked about Trump’s 34 felony convictions, or Trump being held liable for sexual assault. He could have reminded America that Trump is out on bail in Fulton County, Georgia for his role in the RICO conspiracy case to illegally overturn the 2020 election.
Biden could have reminded America of the number of Trump associates who have been arrested, charged with crimes, and/or jailed. Spoiler: Eight, if you don’t count the leaders of domestic terrorists Proud Boys and Oathkeepers (two of whom have been charged with seditious conspiracy) and those who broke into the capitol and attacked police or damaged property, or refused lawful orders to leave, or others in the mob charged with crimes.
Biden could have reminded America that Trump is currently awaiting sentencing, rescheduled for September, on his guilty conviction of 34 felony counts of criminal fraud in another case. He could have reminded us that on Trump’s last day in office Coronavirus deaths in America hit 400,000 behind his politicization of the worst public health crisis in a hundred years.
Every media outlet was fully expecting a blowout for Biden. Then, when they didn’t get the treasure trove of TikTok-worthy clips and quotes, they turned on Biden. They collectively pivoted to “worry” about President Biden’s age, with op-eds calling for him to step aside. Make up your mind, New York Times and CNN. These two media outlets are both suffering from split personality disorder right now, attacking Trump one day, and President Biden the next. That is the cage-match America is seeing right now, while the media is eating itself with opinions on “debate performance.” The late fact-checking is falling flat.
That one man was literally performing, and one was trying to answer big questions in just two minutes didn’t figure in the armchair media quarterbacking about who “won.” Spoiler alert: Not America.
The real loser in this so-called “debate” was CNN.
It should have been easy for Biden, if it wasn’t for CNN screwing up the production decisions in spectacular fashion.
The two-minute question-and-answer format was THE dumbest production decision — among many dumb political production decisions — in CNN history. This was not a “debate.” At best, it was a question-and-answer session with no time for either candidate to answer in any meaningful way. And the decision not to fact-check Trump or Biden in real time was simply cowardice. CNN once again chose ratings over integrity.
It should have been an easy layup, even in a two-minute format, if Joe had used each two-minute block to attack Trump on his criminality and unfitness for office. It was uber-predictable that Trump would ignore questions he didn’t want to answer, attack the president and Democrats, and lie about the rest. So why not use that same attack mode against him? But that is not Joe’s style.
It was a colossally stupid decision for CNN, and for the Biden team to agree to a two-minute answer time limit. With real, critical issues at stake, the “debate” was a Q & A with no time for the A’s.
Trump, as expected, lied and propagandized, and was not fact-checked in real time. The one takeaway I got from Trump was the same fearmongering message he feeds his MAGA base: “America is a failing nation.” No, honey, that’s just you.
Trump would not answer the question if he would accept the results of the next election, and will not rule out political violence. The most rabid of his base threaten political violence daily.
The takeaway I got from Biden is that you cannot address important and complex issues in a two-minute format. That is something deserving of criticism. He and his team should never have agreed to it. Trump speaks in slogans and soundbites. Biden speaks like a serious president.
The takeaway I got from the media is that they have collectively turned into self-reflecting mirrors whose only real goal is ratings. That they treat Trump as a normal, serious candidate. And, especially that they haven’t learned their lessons in giving him so much media time.
