In this members-only episode of “The New Abnormal,” host Molly Jong-Fast sits down with award-winning journalist Soledad O’Brien to chat about the media's role in covering elections.
“So is the media doing a better job in 2020 than they did in 2016?” asks Jong-Fast.
O’Brien gets straight to the point: “Obviously, they’re not.” She then suggests that the media didn’t understand they had a lesson to learn in the first place.
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“Where was there evidence that people needed to learn a lesson? If in fact you flog a lot of this stuff, you get ratings, airtime, ads, and that brings in money,” she said.
O’Brien then breaks down a basic tenet of journalism, which she believes isn’t being followed: “Do not elevate shit that is a lie. We haven’t learned that basic lesson.”
And the biggest perpetrator of misinformation? You guessed it: Donald Trump. “It’s just a fact,” O’Brien added.
“Why would you allow him to give updates on coronavirus if your ultimate goal is to help people who are struggling with the biggest health crisis of the last 100 years? It just doesn’t make sense,” she said.
Next, she slams NBC for hosting President Donald Trump’s town hall, which competed with former vice president Joe Biden’s on the same night.
“They’re rewarding a person who didn’t want to take part in a debate by giving him air time and allowing him to compete because they want to compete against ABC. I mean, it’s just ridiculous... I think they’re happily going along with it,” she said.
Plus, O’Brien talks about the role that Rupert Murdoch plays in all of this, whether or not social media is a platform or publisher, and the new podcast she’s launching!
Listen to The New Abnormal on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Stitcher.
