UPDATE: On Wednesday afternoon, Fox News issued a terse statement claiming the chyron “was taken down immediately and was addressed.”
With its ratings plunging as disgruntled MAGA viewers have fled in droves since Tucker Carlson’s ouster, Fox News served up as much red meat as possible Tuesday night to win them back following Donald Trump’s arrest and arraignment.
Just ahead of the former president’s grievance-laden speech—during which he downplayed allegations he willfully mishandled classified documents—Fox News host Brian Kilmeade told viewers that Trump was still the leader of the free world.
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“Let’s take in the last moments,” Kilmeade exclaimed as “God Bless the USA” blared in the background. “This is the president of the United States about to address a crowd of reporters. Also the first time after being indicted on federal charges, first time in history.”
Kilmeade, at least, was correct on that second point: There is no precedent for Trump’s indictment on 31 counts of willful retention of national defense information, three counts of withholding or concealing documents during a federal investigation, two counts of making false statements, and one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice.
But it wasn’t just the Fox News Tonight guest host’s remark that stood out.
Moments later, Fox News briefly aired footage of President Joe Biden speaking at the White House alongside Trump’s remarks. With Trump raging about both Biden and Hillary Clinton, the network shamelessly posted the following on-air chyron: “Wannabe Dictator Speaks At The White House After Having His Political Rival Arrested.”
Notably, the over-the-top message aired during the time slot formerly held by Carlson, who was infamous for headline-grabbing stunts of this nature.
And, true to form, Carlson himself whined about the “transparently political” indictment in a Twitter video posted Tuesday night, while framing that day’s developments in a Miami courthouse in a way sure to rile up his loyal viewers: “The Biden administration arrested Donald Trump this afternoon.”
As for other networks’ coverage of Trump’s speech from his Bedminster, New Jersey golf club, CNN and MSNBC did not air it live. MSNBC anchor Rachel Maddow explained that “there is a cost to us as a news organization to knowingly broadcast untrue things”—echoing similar remarks she made in April when Trump was giving a speech after being arraigned in New York on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records.
