News networks ponder, energized by presidential coverage after Trump victory
Presidential candidate Donald Trump, the unrepentant ratings magnet, has disappeared.
But the prospect of covering President-elect Trump, the capricious conundrum, has energized newsrooms in ways they hadn’t anticipated.
“This changes everything,” says Phil Griffin, president of MSNBC. “We left the studio at 4 a.m., and we knew there was a whole other world of storylines and changes that are going to happen.”
Major TV news operations were bracing for a ratings letdown as the historic and contentious election wound down. CNN had its highest online traffic ever on Election Day and the election was a distinct revenue driver for its parent company, Time Warner, this year. But the company was warning as early as summer that its ratings will drop next year. “They all presumed ratings would go down because the Trump factor added so much to the race,” says Chris Ariens, editor of TVNewser.
But then Tuesday happened. Trump defied most polls and emerged victorious, leaving TV networks to quickly reconsider coverage plans and story ideas. “There are so many different threads that we’ll pursue that we didn’t imagine three days ago," Griffin says. "It’s an amazing story about what’s going on in this country.”
The first 100 days of any presidency are exciting, particularly when a new party takes over in Washington, D.C. The transition, with politicians jockeying for key Cabinet positions, is a horse race of its own kind. But, Trump, the inexperienced politician suddenly leading the federal government, adds multiple and substantive layers to the story. “You’ve got a more dynamic transition in place,” says Chris Isham, CBS News’ Washington bureau chief. “He’s not a predictable Republican, not in the way of previous administrations.”
Gauging Trump’s comfort level with the press, already underway, has been as challenging as pinning down his stance on issues. Reporters who have known him for years speak of his accessibility and willingness to banter. Yet he’s also sought political advantage in bashing the mainstream media. “Let’s see how much access he grants," Ariens said. "He’s not the candidate anymore. He’s not going to be calling into Fox and Friends.”
One of the first major interviews Trump granted after the election was to 60 Minutes, which will air Sunday. Jeff Fager, executive producer of 60 Minutes, said the show had planned on pursuing an interview with the president-elect regardless of the election outcome but, because so much of Trump’s governing philosophy and policy specifics are unknown, it heightens the urgency.
“It’s not about good TV. It’s about how we can help people better understand,” Fager says. “There’s a lot to talk about. Hopefully, we’ll get some details.”
In an interview clip released early by CBS, Trump says he's willing to retain some key provisions of the Affordable Care Act, including prohibiting insurers from denying coverage to patients with pre-existing conditions.
There has already been plenty of hand-wringing in American newsrooms about the failure to properly assess the impact of Trump’s voters and the issues that drove them so eagerly to the voting booths. Coverage planning for Trump’s presidency must entail deep-diving into these issues to hold him accountable for some of his outlandish proposals, Fager says. “There are so many layers that make this interesting,” he says. “He’s tapped into the dissatisfied voters. That’s an important part of this. How is he going to address the issues they care about? How is he going to build a wall?”
Beyond issues, scrutinizing Trump’s governing styles and tendencies — not as a career politician, but honed on the fly based on his experience as a real estate developer and TV personality — will also be a rich source of stories. “He’s a businessman who’s a negotiator," Fager says. "There’s a lot of stories that could be generated in (covering) someone who’s got a totally different perspective on how to get things done."
While no news executives may admit it publicly, the possibility of Trump’s gaffes and unfiltered diatribes, frequently evident during his campaign, remains an intriguing variable, says Mark Feldstein, a broadcast journalism professor at the University of Maryland, College Park, and a former journalist at NBC. “Media critics are always attacking TV for ideological bias,” he says. “But the real bias is toward conflict, controversy and excitement because that’s what increases revenue. Whether you love or hate him, he is going to bring controversy.”