NBC News Now Being Dunked on Internally and Externally
By Kyle Koster
NBC News' spineless and cynical decision to counter-program a town hall with President Donald Trump has backfired in the most predictable ways, from an internal revolt to the candidate involved making a mockery of the whole thing. Oops! Couldn't have happened to a more craven group of decision-makers.
Strife is ripping through the highest levels of NBCUniversal today, per multiple reports. This happens as external criticism mounts. It's a perfect storm born out a red-sky morning and the one life jacket has already been fitted for Trump. Again, oops!
Here's some defense being played in defense of the indefensible. Plan B, if you will, once the preventing-this defense proved too little, too late in a Big 12 game.
Statement from NBCU news chief Cesar Conde:
— Brian Steinberg (@bristei) October 15, 2020
'If we were to move our town hall with President Trump to a later timeslot we would be violating our commitment to offer both campaigns access to the same audience and the same forum.'
If those words sound familiar that's because they are paraphrased from a man dressed as a hot dog on Netflix reminding everyone that they all want to figure out whoever could have done this. It's insane to see those who made the decision lament that such a decision was made, as if the town hall will show up on their channels the way they do for us at home: just randomly after Chicago Fire without us asking.
They want to act like their hands are tied against their will when they not only showed Trump how to tie a Bowline, they purchased the rope custom-made. Speaking of, let's check in on the guy who was given 90 free minutes of airtime after backing out of the second scheduled debate.
Trump tells the crowd he's doing his NBC town hall tonight. He says NBC is "the worst" and repeatedly insults them and host Savannah Guthrie. "I figured, what the hell, we get a free hour on television," Trump says.
— Felicia Sonmez (@feliciasonmez) October 15, 2020
I will be doing a major Fake @NBCNews Town Hall Forum, live tonight from Miami, at 8:00 P.M. They asked me to do it in place of the Rigged Steve Scully (he is now suspended from @cspan for lying) Debate. I wonder if they’ll treat me as well as Sleepy Joe? They should!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 15, 2020
This was a shrewd but not at all clever move by the president. No need to be clever when you're dealing with the collective memory of a school of goldfish.
On one hand, it's hard not to feel bad for NBC News which debased itself for ratings, all the while alienating internally and insulted publicly. Again, who couldn't have seen this coming. It's not 4-D or even 3-D chess at play here. It's one-dimensional, really, as the bottom-line tends to be.