Donald Trump is $15 million richer and ABC News is being questioned by many in the news media industry, while others argue the network has “bent the knee” to a would-be dictator.
The move by ABC News to settle the defamation lawsuit brought forth by Trump comes on the heels of MSNBC hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski facing similar charges from media members for their decision to meet with the President-elect at his Florida home.
Some have posited that it’s falling in line in advance of the Trump inauguration in fear of retribution for what has transpired over the past eight years.
Maybe it’s naive, but I don’t think that’s the case.
The ABC News settlement with Donald Trump sure seems like it’s about one thing and one thing only: evidence discovery.
No one — and I mean absolutely no one — wants their dirty laundry drug through the court of public opinion. Does ABC News have some skeletons in their closet they’d love not to be exposed? Absolutely. How much is that worth to them? Apparently, it’s a $15 million donation to Trump’s presidential library fund and another $1 million to cover his legal fees.
Which, in the grand scheme of things, is pennies for an organization like The Walt Disney Company. So that’s an easy problem to rectify.
But to the greater question of what the settlement means for the future of the media under a second Trump administration, I don’t know what we can discern from the decision.
Could it truly be that all these news outlets are truly terrified of what Trump will do for the next four years? I guess that’s a possibility. Alternatively, I think these decisions are based on fear of losing access and fear of losing ratings/revenue than it is fear of being attacked by the Trump administration. Maybe I’m horribly, horribly incorrect, but I don’t think so.
Donald Trump has proven to be a Catch-22 for the news media industry. He still — nearly a decade after being at the forefront of the news cycle — still brings ratings. Just look at the numbers from Meet the Press, the NBC show helmed by Kristen Welker, earlier this month when Trump appeared. In recent months, the show has finished in third place behind, ironically enough, the ABC News show hosted by George Stephanopoulos and the CBS News’ Face the Nation anchored by Margaret Brennan. But, with Trump in tow for the duration of the show on Sunday, December 1st, Meet the Press rose to the top.
Since Donald Trump won the election, Fox News has seen its ratings grow and it now commands the largest share of the cable news audience in network history.
I don’t believe that’s a coincidence. Trump produces ratings. So, for the business, it’s been a good thing.
Have his constant attacks on the media driven a wedge into the trust and credibility of the industry as a whole? Yes. Is it a gigantic problem that no one really knows how to solve? Also yes. Because that’s the Trump conundrum. Will he do things during his second term that deserve to be covered and will shine a negative light on him? Undeniably. Every President goes through that. But we now live in such divided, echo-chamber silos that “My team can do no wrong and your team is the anti-Christ!” is the prevailing thought for all-too-many news consumers.
But I do know that the answer isn’t to simply bury your head in the sand or plug your ears and shout “La la la la!”, either. Whether it’s ABC News, or MSNBC hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski leading the pack, it’s time for the news media industry to admit the mistakes it has made in covering Donald Trump.
For a very long time, the overall — and I hate to use the phrase “mainstream media” or “legacy media”, but in this case, it’s true — media landscape hasn’t been all that favorable to Donald Trump. Now, in many instances, I think that’s justified, but that’s a different column for a different day.
However, when coverage of an individual for several years continues to be filled with hyperbolic rhetoric, eventually it falls on deaf ears. You simply cannot be outraged about everything all the time. And I say that to those on the conservative side of the political aisle, too.
So, I think wisely, ABC News and hosts like Scarborough and Brzezinski came to the same realization: We need to change our approach. Which, in my opinion, is a good thing. That doesn’t mean ignoring some of the concerning actions or policies Donald Trump is likely to enact or attempt to enact during his presidency. But it does feel as if the tide has turned toward an approach more focused on potential access to the man who continues to draw ratings rather than another upcoming four-year war against him and his supporters.
Ultimately, I think that change in approach could be the thing that moves the trust needle back toward the trust and credibility side so many in the industry would love to see. Donald Trump hasn’t exactly shied away from the media during his time in the political realm. Getting him to opine on your network, show, or station, is likely the key to news media success during his second term. And if that’s the game you have to play — with the goal of a return to prominence, trust, and credibility the biggest focus going forward, I hope more in the mainstream media play it.
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Garrett Searight is Barrett Media’s News Editor, which includes writing bi-weekly industry features and a weekly column. He has previously served as Program Director and Afternoon Co-Host on 93.1 The Fan in Lima, OH, and is the radio play-by-play voice of Northern Michigan University hockey. Reach out to him at Garrett@BarrettMedia.com.
