As networks grapple with whether to air President Trump’s primetime address to the nation on Tuesday night, remember that if they do decide to take a stand against the billionaire — it would not be entirely without precedent.
As many have pointed out, President Obama had an immigration address he wanted to deliver to the American people from the Oval Office in 2014. Executives from several networks, however, told him “no.” The speech did go ahead, but most Americans didn’t watch.
“President Obama will address the nation tomorrow night on new steps he’s taking to fix our broken immigration system,” the White House said at the time in language that almost mirrors the current debate over the issue.
“ABC, NBC, Fox and CBS knew that their customers would not be happy if the president ate into time reserved for some of the most popular shows on television, including ‘The Big Bang Theory’ and ‘Bones,'” reporter Jaime Fuller wrote at the time. “November happens to be “sweeps” month, when programming tries to encourage more viewers to tune in by promising more exciting content. Presidential sweeps don’t always ensure the exciting cliffhangers and plot twists that networks are looking for.”
But it wasn’t just ratings concerns. Just five years ago, evidence suggests that the networks were keenly aware of the politics of the speech as the Washington Post and Politico also pointed out.
“There was agreement among the broadcast networks that this was overtly political,” a network insider told Politico Playbook at the time. “The White House has tried to make a comparison to a time that all the networks carried President Bush in prime time, also related to immigration [2006]. But that was a bipartisan announcement, and this is an overtly political move by the White House.”
In his Monday newsletter, CNN’s Brian Stelter also weighed in.
“Obama gave numerous prime time addresses, and virtually all of those were shown live,” Stelter said. “The White House never formally asked for time, but when it put out feelers about the idea, the broadcast networks were reluctant. Why? Well, they [had] been known to resist presidential requests for airtime for a variety of reasons, including the perceived urgency of the subject and the popularity of the shows that would be interrupted.”
So far, all of the major networks are resisting pressure from left-wing critics and are planning to air Trump’s address live.
On Monday, the White House revealed President Trump would deliver the first White House Oval Office address of his presidency. His remarks are expected to focus on immigration and his proposed wall along the Mexican border. Funding for the long promised wall is currently at the center of a government shutdown which is now in its third week. Democrats have demanded equal time from the networks if Trump speaks so they can issue a rebuttal.
11 Media Losers of 2018, From Les Moonves to Michael Avenatti (Photos)
2018 was hard for a lot of media folks, but particularly so for this rogues' gallery. For some, it was MeToo. For others, industry headwinds were too much. And for more still, disgrace and ignominy came after just saying the wrong thing.
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Les Moonves: Once celebrated for his leadership at CBS, Moonves faced multiple allegations of sexual harassment and misconduct for which he was ultimately fired. CBS said in December that it would seek to deny him a roughly $120-million severance package.
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Laura Ingraham: Long a divisive figure (even on the right), the Fox News host might have avoided the losers' column were it not for a sponsor boycott launched against her by Parkland shooting survivor David Hogg in March. Months later, advertisers are still wary of appearing on the program.
Michael Ferro/Tronc: The leadership of Michael Ferro has now made Tronc synonymous with mismanagement. In addition to leaving the top job with a #MeToo scandal over his head, Ferro is now facing accusations of making anti-semitic remarks and paying off an LA Times editor who reportedly had the comments on tape.
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Media Publishers: From Mic.com on the left to The Weekly Standard on the right, publishers came in for a beating, with some closing up entirely. With few exceptions, legacy shops saw print sales decline, while digital-first properties continue to face the crushing economics of turning pageviews into profits.
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Breitbart: It's a name you probably haven't heard for a while. Once a key part of the engine which powered Trump's improbable election, the website had long fallen off most radars. A sustained pressure campaign against advertisers on the site by Sleeping Giants has also taken a bite out of revenue.
Marc Lamont Hill: Once a CNN regular, Hill lost his job as a contributor on the network after making remarks about Israel and Palestine at the UN that many called anti-semitic. A chummy photo with Louis Farrakhan -- who has compared Jews to termites -- didn't help matters for him either. He remains a tenured professor at Temple University.
CBS and "60 Minutes": Both the network and its marquee news program took a beating this year. "60 Minutes" executive producer Jeff Fager was forced out in a MeToo scandal, while details of an investigation launched by the network generally hit the press before reaching top management.
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Michael Avenatti: Just months ago, the lawyer representing Stormy Daniels in her legal fight with Donald Trump was considered a serious presidential contender. But his reputation took a hit after taking on a questionable MeToo claim against Brett Kavanaugh, and he disappeared for good after being booked on felony domestic violence charges in November (though he was not charged).
Andy Lack: The MSNBC/NBC News chief had a rough 2018. His network's decision to pass on Ronan Farrow's historic MeToo reporting continues to reverberate. His big bet on Megyn Kelly also flopped and became a multi-million dollar ulcer which still remains far from resolved.
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Gavin McInnes: Always on the fringes, McInnes had nevertheless carved a niche for himself as an online provocateur, a host on CRTV and as the head of his own (occasionally violent/racist) fraternal organization, The Proud Boys. By the end of 2018, he was banned from Twitter, dropped by CRTV and had resigned from The Proud Boys.
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Univision: Univision spent $135 million on Gawker Media back in 2016 and has spent most of the time since mismanaging the former properties and being called out by its own writers. Amid buyouts to editorial and broad layoffs elsewhere, Univision revealed it is looking to cut its losses and unload the websites once and for all.
2018 was a rough year for media, and for this rogues’ gallery, the damage was particularly catastrophic
2018 was hard for a lot of media folks, but particularly so for this rogues' gallery. For some, it was MeToo. For others, industry headwinds were too much. And for more still, disgrace and ignominy came after just saying the wrong thing.