There’s a lot of furor over former President Donald Trump‘s upcoming appearance on a CNN prime-time town hall. Especially since Trump has been battling with the network for years over past coverage. The event has taken on a whole new weight now that Trump was found liable for sexual assault against E. Jean Carroll, who accused him of rape.
The situation is rapidly getting more and more volatile, so much so that Trump himself seems to realize it could not go well. Over on Truth Social, he released a statement about the situation.
“I’ll be doing CNN tonight live from the great state of New Hampshire because CNN is rightfully desperate to get those fantastic Trump ratings back.” In typical Trump hyperbole, he calls them “ratings like none other.” What a way to measure ratings.
“They want me back. They made me a deal I couldn’t refuse. It could be the beginning of a new and vibrant CNN, with no more fake news,” he said. He also is aware that it could be “a total disaster for all, including me.” He also said “we’ll see what happens,” which, to be fair, is kind of a baller stance to take.
Say what you will, the man knows how to hype up an event. Who wouldn’t watch this? A lot of people, apparently, according to a “BoycottCNN” hashtag making its way through Twitter. Here’s a taste of that:
Here’s someone screenshotting an app removal? Is this what we’re doing now?
It’s a hot issue. A former police officer who was at the Capitol on January 6, Michael Fanone, actually wrote an op-ed for Rolling Stone called “CNN Is Hosting a Town Hall for a Guy Who Tried to Get Me Killed.”
“In the past, CNN has recognized the dangers of allowing election deniers a public platform and would not allow them on-air. Under new âleadership,â that policy has been discarded as evidenced by CNNâs decision to allow the chief election denier, former President Donald J. Trump, a prominent time slot in its evening lineup,â he said.
Fanone also made it clear what the whole thing was about for the network: cash money.
âI donât believe for one second that this is about journalistic integrity. Itâs about ratings and money. Sometimes things are exactly as they appear, and this appears to be an attempt by a major media outlet struggling with its ratings to attract disenfranchised viewers.â
He’s not wrong. CNN is a business at the end of the day. There are always shareholders to answer to, and profits to make. This is how things work these days. What can you do?
CNN, by the way, defends the event by saying it’s giving the GOP front-runner the same platform it would give any other presidential front-runner. Here’s what it told ABC News:
“This Town Hall is part of a longstanding CNN tradition of hosting leading presidential candidates for Town Halls and political events, connecting those running for office directly with constituents, as part of the network’s robust campaign coverage. CNN is no stranger to these types of events and this Town Hall will be the first of many in the 2024 election cycle.”
CNN News correspondent Kaitlan Collins will moderate the Town Hall. One of Trump’s former communication team members, Alyssa Farah Griffin, said that Collins is “one of the toughest interviews out there. Anyone thinking that Trump will get away with lying without being called out needs to watch her past interviews. Honestly surprised he agreed.”
Collins and Trump have butted heads in the past while he was President. Back in 2018, she was barred from attending a Rose Garden press event even though she was a pool reporter. Collins claimed she was âdisinvited from the press availability in the Rose Garden” because she “shouted” questions that then-White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said were âinappropriate.â
Finally, we have a political action committee called The Great Task, which is sponsored by former GOP Representative Liz Cheney, who lost her seat after spearheading a congressional investigation into January 6 and Trump’s alleged plan to keep himself in power.
The PAC is running an ad airing in New Hampshire this week on CNN that warns “Donald Trump is a risk America can never take again.” It features violent images from the insurrection.
The Town Hall airs at 8 p.m. on CNN.