There are many noticeable differences between the first and second Trump administrations, but some things remain constant throughout. Then and now, the major network newscasts are reluctant to report any good economic news to emerge from the Trump administration, in this case: the Consumer Price Index coming in lower than expected.
Per CNBC:
Prices for goods and services moved up less than expected in February, providing some relief as consumers and businesses worry about the looming impact tariffs might have on inflation, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Wednesday.
The consumer price index, a wide-ranging measure of costs across the U.S. economy, ticked up a seasonally adjusted 0.2% for the month, putting the annual inflation rate at 2.8%, according to the Labor Department agency. The all-item CPI had increased 0.5% in January.
Consumer relief would’ve warranted a good chunk of A-block time during the last administration. Instead, we were treated to mirror coverage of ugly inflation reports during the Biden administration: two briefs and one omission.
The CBS Evening News placed their inflation item within their “Evening News Roundup”, a minute-long report by Kelly O’Grady:
CBS EVENING NEWS
3/12/25
6:38 PM
JOHN DICKERSON: The Labor Department says inflation slowed last month for the first time since September. Consumer prices rose 2.8%. Money Watch correspondent Kelly O'Grady has a look at what's driving prices higher and what isn't.
KELLY O’GRADY: Well, after increasing four straight months, the rate of inflation has fallen. Here's what's driving the biggest price swings. Let's start with a necessity for all of us: Groceries. While prices for most categories of groceries went down last month, meat, poultry, fish, and eggs were up more than 1.5%. That was because of beef and eggs. Eggs alone are up nearly 10.5%, largely the result of the bird flu. Gasoline prices dropped 1% in February after rising for three straight months, and airline fares fell 4%. Analysts say this could be tied to energy prices coming down, and the airlines adjusting prices to counter weaker demand. All of this could change quickly though, as today’s data does not account for the impact of the new tariffs.
Short and to the point, no editorializing, and with a hedge for the potential future impact of any tariffs. Fair enough.
The NBC Nightly News took the opposite approach with correspondent Christine Romans:
NBC NIGHTLY NEWS
3/12/25
6:35 PM
LESTER HOLT: Christine Romans is here. We saw the markets close mixed after falling and falling earlier in the week, and people wondering about the state of the economy. What can you tell us?
CHRISTINE ROMANS: You know, Lester, this is the first welcome news the markets have had in days here. Annual inflation improving to 2.8%, getting a little closer to normal. But the context here is so important. The trade war underway is not yet reflected in these numbers. You know, take today's new tariffs on aluminum and steel. And look at this chart from Barclays Bank. It shows a typical car is 50% steel, 11% aluminum. That’s part of why their forecast that the average price of a car in the U.S. could rise by thousands of dollars. So while Wall Street seemed to calm down a little today given that the president has promised more tariffs to start just weeks from now, it’s the months ahead that could see some real changes in the prices people pay.
HOLT: Going to be a while before we see how this plays out.
ROMANS: That’s right.
HOLT: All right. Christine Romans, thanks.
Contrast this report with CBS’s. Kelly O’Grady devoted a single sentence of her report to the impact of tariffs. On the other hand, Romans devoted 30 of her 45 seconds to doomcasting about the impact of tariffs.
CBS and NBC devoted about a minute each to the CPI, which was a minute more each than ABC did. ABC World News Tonight omitted the inflation numbers entirely. The CPI didn’t even get the courtesy of a throwaway mention at the back end of the top story on tariffs. This is the exact opposite of what would have happened during the past quadrennium.
The Regime Media’s shift to Resistance Mode would not be complete without the downplay of some positive economic news. Things are (D)ifferent that way.
