When discussing the media’s biases, we often talk about biases by omission or commission. But tonight we must also consider bias by zone-flooding, wherein the media avoid talking about something potentially detrimental to Democrats by backfilling newscast time with nonsense about Republicans.
Consider tonight’s reporting on the presidential election, with maximum focus on the ongoing “Trump says mean things” cycle, which means less time devoted to Vice President Kamala Harris’s upcoming speech proposing price controls. Here’s NBC’s Garrett Haake:
GARRETT HAAKE: And he was pressed about fellow Republicans calling for him to focus on Harris' record, instead of unleashing personal attacks.
DONALD TRUMP: I think I'm entitled to personal attacks. I don't have a lot of respect for her. I don't have a lot of respect for her intelligence, and I think she'll be a terrible president. I mean, she certainly attacks me personally. She actually called me “weird.” “He’s weird.” And she’s weird in her policy. Who wouldn't want to have strong borders? Who doesn't want to have lower taxes?
The “personal attacks” narrative being so essential that it made into NBC and ABC’s anchor introductions to their respective reports:
DAVID MUIR: Meantime, just before we came on the air tonight, former President Donald Trump holding a news conference, saying in his words, he is entitled to make personal attacks on Kamala Harris.
LESTER HOLT: And former President Trump at a news conference saying he won't follow the advice of allies who want him to dial back his attacks.
Neither NBC’s Garrett Haake nor CBS’s Weijia Jiang make any reference in their reports to Harris’s upcoming remarks on price controls. Ironically, ABC’s Rachel Scott does, but then only to complain that Trump is “trying to undercut her message.”
RACHEL SCOTT: Tonight, as Vice President Kamala Harris prepares to unveil her plan to crack down on price gouging at the supermarket, Donald Trump trying to undercut her message.
DONALD TRUMP: Kamala Harris is reportedly proposing communist price controls. She wants price controls. And if they worked, I'd go along with it, too, but they don't work. They actually have the exact opposite impact and effect. But it leads to food shortages, rationing, hunger, dramatically more inflation.
It bears noting that this is the same media that is all too willing to echo any conspiracy theory or narrative if it is levied against Republicans. We are not that far removed from what appeared to be an endless cycle wherein “childless cat ladies” and “weird” played in a constant loop immediately after the nomination of JD Vance as vice presidential nominee.
On paper, this narrative appears to be about the Regime Media now wanting Trump to play nice. But it’s really about killing the clock so as to not have to cover price controls, the kind of proposal we expect to hear in places like Venezuela as opposed to the United States.
Click “expand” to view the full transcript of the aforementioned reports as aired on their respective evening newscasts on Thursday, August 15th, 2024:
ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT
ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT
8/15/24
6:41 PM
DAVID MUIR: Meantime, just before we came on the air tonight, former President Donald Trump holding a news conference, saying in his words, he is entitled to make personal attacks on Kamala Harris. The new national poll showing this race is a dead heat, with Vice President Kamala Harris now tied or leading now in several key battleground states. And our Rachel Scott tonight asking Trump about what he said this week about American workers in that conversation with Elon Musk.
RACHEL SCOTT: Tonight, as Vice President Kamala Harris prepares to unveil her plan to crack down on price gouging at the supermarket, Donald Trump trying to undercut her message.
DONALD TRUMP: Kamala Harris is reportedly proposing communist price controls. She wants price controls. And if they worked, I'd go along with it, too, but they don't work. They actually have the exact opposite impact and effect. But it leads to food shortages, rationing, hunger, dramatically more inflation.
SCOTT: His comments coming as inflation hits a three-year low. Today, Harris' running mate accused Trump of rooting for failure. I asked the former president about that.
Governor Tim Walz is out on the campaign trail today and he's been saying that he believes that you want things to get worse so you can campaign on it. That you're rooting for failure. What is your thought on that?
TRUMP: No. Just the opposite. I wish I didn't have to do this. They’re going to ruin- she's going to ruin our country. Going to ruin our country.
SCOTT: I also asked Trump about his controversial comments about striking workers, what he recently told the billionaire Elon Musk.
TRUMP: I mean, I look at what you do, you walk in, you say, you want to quit? They go on strike- I won’t mention the name of the company- but they go on strike and you say, that's okay, you're all gone. You're all gone, so, everyone one of you is gone.
SCOTT: You praised how he treats workers, saying they go on strike and you say, that's okay, you're all gone, you're all gone, so, every one of you is gone. Are you really comfortable with companies threatening to fire workers who go on strike?
TRUMP: Well, no, I want companies to get workers that are going to love them and work for a wage that lets the company make a profit so they can go and expand. Elon wants to run an efficient company and if he has to get -- he got rid of a lot of people on X, or former Twitter, a lot of people gone, and it still works. It still works. So, you got to run the company productively.
SCOTT: In the rambling news conference, the former president again hurling personal attacks against Harris. Some of his own Republican supporters have begged him to stay focused on policy. But today, Trump making it clear, he's not going to change.
TRUMP: I think I'm entitled to personal attacks. I don't have a lot of respect for her, I don't have a lot of respect for her intelligence, and I think she'll be a terrible president. And I think it's very important that we win. And whether the personal attacks are good, bad, I mean, she certainly attacks me personally. She actually called me weird. He's weird.
SCOTT: And this is Donald Trump's second event this week focused on the economy. His advisers really trying to get him to stay on message. But the former president making it clear tonight that he is not backing away from those personal attacks on Vice President Kamala Harris, saying flat out, he just does not have a lot of respect for her.” David.
MUIR: All right, Rachel Scott tonight. Rachel, thank you.
CBS EVENING NEWS
CBS EVENING NEWS
8/15/24
6:33 PM
MAJOR GARRETT: President Joe Biden and Vice President Harris appeared together today at their first public event since she became the Democratic nominee. In the heat of the presidential campaign, the two teamed up to talk about the economy, inflation, and lowering the cost of everyday items. CBS's Weijia Jiang reports from The White House about a Medicare first.
KAMALA HARRIS: I love you guys.
WEIJIA JIANG: It was a White House event to highlight lowering the cost of prescription drugs.
HARRIS: No senior should have to choose between either filling their prescription or paying their rent.
JIANG: But President Biden wasted no time campaigning for Vice President Harris in their first official joint appearance since she became the Democratic presidential nominee.
BIDEN: She's going to make one hell of a president. Let me tell you what our Project 2025 is. Beat the hell out of them.
JIANG: In New Jersey, former President Donald Trump dismissed criticism that he should focus more on substance and less on personally attacking Harris.
TRUMP: I think I'm entitled to personal attacks. I don't have a lot of respect for her. I don't have a lot of respect for her intelligence.
JIANG:: Trump also bashed the Biden administration for not doing enough to stop rising prices. Today, The White House announced agreements with drug manufacturers to bring down the price for ten widely used medications that will take effect in 2026. The Medicare negotiation program marks the first time the federal government has haggled with drugmakers.
FRANK IRWIN: I think this is an enormous step.
JIANG: 80-year-old Frank Irwin takes Xarelto to treat a rapid heart rate. One of the top three most prescribed drugs on the list. A 30 day supply will go from $517 to $197. Erwin says the savings are way overdue.
IRWIN: I've never understood why the drug cartel, if that's the right term for it, has such a monopoly and has the lobbyists out there that they can get the laws written.
JIANG: Tomorrow, Vice President Harris will deliver her first policy speech as a presidential nominee with a focus on the economy. And new tonight, vice presidential candidates Governor Tim Walz and Senator JD Vance have agreed to a debate right here on CBS. Moderated by Norah and Face the Nation's Margaret Brennan. It’s set for October 1st in New York City. Major.
GARRETT: Filed under must-see TV. Weijia Jiang. Thank you.
NBC NIGHTLY NEWS
NBC NIGHTLY NEWS
8/15/24
6:36 PM
LESTER HOLT: We turn now to the race for The White House. President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris appearing together today for the first time since he exited the race. And former President Trump at a news conference saying he won't follow the advice of allies who want him to dial back his attacks. Here is Garrett Haake.
GARRETT HAAKE: Tonight, Vice President Harris holding her first joint event with President Biden since he dropped out of the race and endorsed her.
JOE BIDEN: She’s going to make one hell of a president.
HAAKE: Appearing in front of a raucous crowd to tout a White House effort to lower drug prices.
KAMALA HARRIS: Today we take the next step, thank you, Joe. Forward in our fight.
HAAKE: Biden taking aim at Republicans.
BIDEN: But they're trying to turn this into a race war. They're trying to turn this into a war about who you are, what your ethnicity is, what your background is.
HAAKE: Beforehand, President Biden was asked if Harris might try to distance herself from him on the economy.
BIDEN: She is not going to.
HAAKE: Later in a press conference, former President Trump tying them together, hammering both Harris and Biden for inflation.
DONALD TRUMP: You don't have to imagine what a Kamala Harris presidency would be because you're living through that nightmare right now. And it is a nightmare.
HAAKE: And he was pressed about fellow Republicans calling for him to focus on Harris' record, instead of unleashing personal attacks.
TRUMP: I think I'm entitled to personal attacks. I don't have a lot of respect for her. I don't have a lot of respect for her intelligence, and I think she'll be a terrible president. I mean, she certainly attacks me personally. She actually called me “weird.” “He’s weird.” And she’s weird in her policy. Who wouldn't want to have strong borders? Who doesn't want to have lower taxes?
HAAKE: Meanwhile, tonight NBC News learning from two sources familiar with the planning that the Secret Service will start using bullet-resistant glass to protect former President Trump so he can resume outdoor rallies after he survived an assassination attempt last month in Pennsylvania. Ballistic glass is already available to President Biden and Vice President Harris.
HOLT: All right, Garrett, there has been a lot of speculation about debates. Tonight we learned there will be a VP debate. What else do we know?
HAAKE: That's right, Lester. That debate between Tim Walz and JD Vance now set for October 1st. That's on top of a debate between Harris and Trump next month. Tonight, the Trump campaign still continuing to go after Harris for not holding a press conference or sitting down for an interview since becoming the de facto nominee. She says she intends to do an interview before the end of this month. Lester?
HOLT: All right. Garrett Haake. Thank you.
