After CNN news anchor John King described a video played during a briefing this week by President Donald Trump as propaganda, the reaction has been predictable. So why does CNN broadcast it?
The episode intensified a debate about how long airtime without filters the president should have virtually every day during a pandemic.
Coverage is a moving target, and CNN and MSNBC have been taking a more critical approach lately. However, even though presenters like Rachel Maddow, Don Lemon, Chris Hayes and Joe Scarborough have hinted that they would suspend her if she depended on them, her bosses have given no indication that they will.
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Every day, decisions are also made in the country’s newsrooms.
“Journalists have long been proud of their role as gatekeepers, selecting among the various events of the day those that deserve the public’s attention the most and presenting them in a way that helps citizens understand what is at stake,” said Thomas Patterson, professor of government and the press at Harvard University.
“The indiscriminate coverage of the president’s press conferences stains this tradition,” he added. “You wonder why. Are they audience ratings? Is it fear of Trump’s anger? It certainly isn’t journalism.”
It is not so easy for managers to make the decision.
When Trump started the briefings, it was definitely news. However, the events ranged beyond health updates to give some journalists the feeling that they are being used. Three moments stand out: the March 30 parade of business executives, including a pillow maker who praised the president; the April 1 discussion of drug trafficking with police officers; and Monday’s video, an apparent response to newspaper investigations that were critical of Trump’s early actions during the crisis.
The White House does not usually offer guidance before the day’s session on what Trump plans to address, although the president warned a day earlier that he would announce a plan to return to work Thursday.
A network may choose not to cover Trump live. But what if it is real news – for example, announces the day of the end of quarantine – and the competition has it, but you don’t.
“The instinct to broadcast live to important people amidst important stories is deeply rooted,” said Mark Lukasiewicz, a former news director for NBC and now dean of the Faculty of Communication at Hofstra University.
The risk of spreading disinformation in the midst of a health emergency is so great that networks curb that natural tendency, he added.
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