Commentary

People On Television Are Saying...

by Joe Mandese , September 11, 2024

After watching ABC News moderate the second -- and likely last -- 2024 presidential debate I'm pretty sure the best ticket in the debate race so far is Muir/Davis.

With the exception of being too slow on the draw to mute one of the debater's mics, the team of David Muir and Linsey Davis achieved what no other moderators have managed to do so far in the era of debates featuring Donald Trump: fact-check him in real-time.

Even their decisions to let Trump continuously run over and eat up the clock likely was part of the fact-setting process, because watching him rant and ramble nonsensically -- you know, performing "the weave" -- allowed viewers to witness what most of us already know about the candidate.

Perhaps the best example was when Trump promoted what has already been debunked as a false conspiracy theory about American pets being eaten by "immigrants."

For those who haven't watched you can view the clip above, but here's the exchange:

Muir: I just want to clarify here, you bring up Springfield, Ohio. ABC News did reach out to the city manager and he told us there have been no credible reports of specific claims of pets being harmed, injured or abused by individuals within the immigrant community.

Trump: Well, I've seen people on television...

Muir: Let me just say here...

Trump: The people on television say, 'My dog was taken and used for food, so.' Maybe he said that and maybe that's a good thing to say for a city manager...

Muir: I'm not taking this from television. I'm taking it from the city manager...

Trump: But the people on television are saying, 'My dog was eaten by the people who went there...

Muir: Again, the Springfield city manager says there's no evidence of that.

We'll have to wait for some morning after polls to come in to see what American viewers and voters thought about who actually won the debate, but I don't think there's much doubt that it was ABC News, which means that Democratic nominee Kamala Harris also won, if for no better reason than by looking sane, calm, collected -- you know, "presidential" -- in contrast to a blatantly tangled weaver.

There are many more choice fact-checking encounters between Trump and both Muir and Davis, but you get the idea, and why I'm nominating the team to be the moderators of all future televised presidential debates.

politics, television

8 comments about "People On Television Are Saying...".

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Paul Bledsoe from Bledsoe Advertising/Productions, September 11, 2024 at 11:50 a.m.
Yes, you are stating your commentary as a liberal Democrat, and most importantly cheering on the biased event favoring Presidential Candidate Vice President Harris. I assume you are just another Trump hater.
Reply

Joe Mandese from MediaPost Inc., September 11, 2024 at 11:56 a.m.

@Paul Bledsoe: For the record:

1 - I am not a Democrat.

2 - I have always been a Trump hater -- long before he was a politican -- because I hate people who hate everyone else and lie, cheat and con them to get their way.

Paul Bledsoe from Bledsoe Advertising/Productions replied, September 11, 2024 at 12:13 p.m.

I respect your feelings about Trump and the hatred. Many of my friends have a hatred for Trump too. Even though I don't understand the hatred, I do understand that policies and the success of the nation under a previous President of the USA such as candidate Trump will never change the minds of those filled with hatred for him.

Joe Mandese from MediaPost Inc., September 11, 2024 at 12:59 p.m.

@Paul Bledsoe: I appreciate and respect your candor.

In case I wasn't completely clear, I have always hated Donald Trump as a human being, even when he was a Democrat, and long before he was running for office, because he's despicable, a grifter, and goes out of his way to hurt others, especially the disadvantaged.

The fact that I also hate him as a president is coincidental, but I don't agree with your assessment that his policies were a success. I think he caused great harm to the U.S., and the rest of the world by undermining democracy.

There are many former presidents who I've disliked and/or disagreed with their policies and actions, but I always respected that they were duly elected by American voters via a mostly democratic process.

Dan C. from MS Entertainment, September 11, 2024 at 2:35 p.m.

Trump didn't do well. He was on his toes and defensive much of the time and should have ignored her attacks.

She lied her ass off and made mostly false claims and zero fact checks. "Moderators" was the top trending topic during the debate on X - most of it not in favor of Muir and Davis.

Putting aside the moderators' obvious bias, there wasn't a single question to either candidate on "what is your PLAN for the economy, foreign affairs, the border, guns, fentanyl, etc. The moderators basically just set up a 90 minute cat fight.

Nobody won the debate, but the American people definitely lost as an opportunity to illustrate each candidate's plan for our future was never brought up.

We're going to be left with an infinite stream of memes showcasing the dumb faces Harris made throughout and Trump being a liar.

It was prime time entertainment - not a debate.

Ben B from Retired replied, September 11, 2024 at 9:55 p.m.

Moderators should ask the questions it isn't their job to fact-check that is the candidate's job, not the moderator's job who wanted to make it about themselves at least those on Twitter/X called them out on it. That's why I don't watch debates as the networks want a catfight and no substance or anything serious to come out of it.

Kenneth Fadner from MediaPost, September 13, 2024 at 11:08 a.m.

I'm amazed at all the people who fail to see Trump for who and what he is.

As far as the economy is concerned, it has been better under Biden after the COVID era than it was under Trump pre-COVID.

And, BTW, Clinton got it right when he reported that the “score” on job creation since the Cold War was 50 million to 1 million in favor of Democratic administrations.

Michael Giuseffi from American Media Inc, September 13, 2024 at 2:24 p.m.

Because Harris cleaned Trump's clock the blame had to fall upon someone. So its the moderator's fault- they were biased.

The moderators have a duty to point out a nominee's falshoods to the public. People that watch only Fox, OAN or Newsmax never see the lies Trump spills out every single day. They live in a bubble, so maybe this will open some eyes.

We NY'ers know Donald Trump- the biggest grifter and con man ever I continue to be shocked that 50% of Americans still buy into his sh*t. Even when his story is out there in the public they will not be swayed. Could it just be that the dark hatred he represents is what they like?