CNN and MSNBC Obsessed Over Trump’s Courthouse Spectacle. They Skipped His Speech.

Donald Trump made history on Tuesday as he became the first former U.S. president to surrender under arrest to federal authorities on criminal charges. He later laid out his defense strategy during a half-hour speech-cum-political rally from his Bedminster, New Jersey golf course.

Neither MSNBC nor CNN aired the speech live, a decision that reeked of self-satisfaction. Was the right call? There is strong logic behind it. Trump’s post-indictment comments were riddled with lies, half-truths, bitter partisan accusations, and alarming threats to weaponize the justice department against his political rivals if he gets back in the White House. At one point, he appeared to admit to the very crime he was charged with.

No news network has a responsibility to air that shitshow live.

But the decision not to air his speech — which, aside from Trump’s not-guilty plea, was the most newsworthy thing that happened all day, giving credence to those networks that did air it live — would resonate much more had CNN and MSNBC not fallen for Trump’s self-promotional political theater all day long.

Now, I’m going to yell something from the balcony of my beautifully appointed glass house: I fell for it too! I was glued to the television all day, waiting for … something to happen. Instead, I was served up warmed-over political punditry and shots of sad protesters, who I am sure are very good people on both sides. I didn’t learn anything other than Trump flew his private plane to Miami, took a motorcade to the courthouse, appeared in court (no cameras), then visited a restaurant where his supporters treated him as a hero (and were reportedly unkind to journalists.)

Credit where due: the most insightful comment I saw on air was from CNN’s Audie Cornish, who effectively admitted that the media had fallen for Trump’s criminal indictment theater.

Trump “needed other imagery today that was not related to the courthouse,” Cornish said. “And so they did have to go somewhere where he would get that imagery of shaking hands, of being a candidate, not somebody who’s under indictment. Similarly, with having a motorcade, he’s not president anymore. I don’t know why you need a motorcade.”

Cable news had its own imagery to erect in the days before the indictment. Titles were custom-made, graphics built, and anchors, pundits, and reporters descended on the Miami courthouse.

Of course, the federal criminal indictment of a former president is massive news deserving of coverage. But the breathless, wall-to-wall obsession with the spectacle played right into Trump’s hands. The symbiotic (parasitic?) relationship between Trump is alive and well.

Sure, this was not a day for typical cable news elements, but neither was it for standard punditry. It should have been a sober and sad day that reflected the gravity of what unfolded.

The former president was arrested for allegedly absconding with state and nuclear secrets and lying to investigators. Not only have we lost the collective ability to see “holy shit” moments, but the media seem more interested in monetizing the news as programming with bells and whistles than…being more dispassionate.

I wrote something similar surrounding Trump’s first impeachment proceedings encouraging the media to treat it as a gravely sober affair and not the time for barely-hidden smiles and swallowed guffaws. I shared the following story, which I will share again:

I am old enough to remember Richard Nixon’s resignation and my memory is still clear as a bell.  On vacation in Dillon Lake, Colorado, my parents called my sister in to watch the historic moments of Nixon exiting the White House, giving that iconic double V sign.

What I remember most, however, was how sad my parents were, which surprised me since we had a bumper sticker on the back of our Country Squire station wagon that read “Don’t Blame Me, I Voted for McGovern.”

After Nixon left the White House, my father immediately removed the sticker from the car, as my mother explained to me that it was now inappropriate. That was not the time for political gamesmanship. It was time to act as a united set of beliefs and political persuasions, not as victors.

I wouldn’t say that reliable political media outlets were acting like victors, but instead, they failed to capture the true scale of what unfolded Tuesday and instead gave into the kayfabe of the moment — which, ironically, is precisely what Trump sought and received.

Even as I wrote this, a CNN chyron screamed, “TRUMP DEFIANT, ” precisely the image he and his supporters relish.

The surrender by a former president to federal authorities is a vast and historic event. And yet, it felt like just another day of programming. Why? Because over the past six or seven years, it seems like everything Trump did earned a media freakout. And if everything he does is an 11 on a scale of one to ten, his indictment over hiding state secrets feels like a typical news day.

So not taking the speech? I get it. Makes sense. But it was arguably the most newsworthy part of the day. The damage to democracy by elevating Trump as an anti-hero? That was already done.

This is an opinion piece. The views expressed in this article are those of just the author.