CNN boss Chris Licht wants Donald Trump City Hall audience to be “Extra Trumpy”: Report

If you caught the dire CNN town hall last month with Donald Trump, There are a few things that might stand out to you. It is clear that the former president continues to insist that the 2020 election is “rigged”. Or his claim that January 6th is actually Mike Penceerror of. Or his outrageous suggestion that before Roe sues Wade exposed, one could “kill a child in the ninth month… E. Jean Carroll. But aside from the series of lies, there was another aspect of the proceedings that made the live broadcast so strange and unsettling: The audience, who loudly cheered the lies Trump throughout the night and laugh when he attacks women, for example. The jury just found him responsible for sexual abuse and defamation. And apparently, that’s by design.

EQUAL Tim Alberta Report in a new Atlantic CNN boss biography Chris Licht, instead of gathering “the usual set of Republicans and GOP-leaning independents” for the event—as CNN said it would—most of the people in New Hampshire that night were “extremists, die-hard fans, political fanatics, who are more likely to show up at a rally with the MAGA flag than to go to a coffee shop with a question of policy.” .” Because, for some reason, that’s exactly what Licht wants:

Licht came to Manchester with the larger ambition of lifting CNN out of the basement in terms of viewership on a single evening in May. He credits Trump’s early political ascent in part to the media’s habit of marginalizing conservative views and Republican voters. That needs to change by 2024. Licht isn’t afraid to bring a group of MAGA enthusiasts to his set — he commented to his deputies, in the days in front of town hall, on style. The “Special Trump” of the CNN crowd was looking forward to.

Of course, others in the network don’t feel the same way, which could have involved organizing a rally for the man who tried to overturn the last presidential election and then incited an uprising when everything turns out to be a bad idea. did not go his way.

In the final days leading up to the event, concerns about audience composition spiked as Licht’s description of the crowd—“more Trumpy”—was through Slack channels and text message chains.

All of these concerns, it turns out, are warranted.… [Moderator Kaitlan] Collins did an admirable job but was overwhelmed by Trump at key moments; Her questions, stemming almost entirely from the candidate’s leftist ideology, effectively helped rally the room around him. Not the room to assemble: The crowd was overwhelmingly pro-Trump, and because CNN wanted an organic environment, it placed some restrictions on participation. The ensuing round of applause from the audience – I counted at least nine – interrupted Collins’ rhythm as the interviewer. The same goes for untimed laughter, such as when Trump mocked E. Jean Carroll, and the mockery that accompanied Collins’ mention Access Hollywood ice. At the end of the event, it was essentially indistinguishable from a MAGA rally. Everyone in the room shouted, “I love you!” during ad breaks and chant, “Four more years!” when the program ends.

Incredibly, Licht, who, when asked by Alberta if he is conservative, replied: “I would never put myself in a category. I think it depends on what we’re talking about”—was unwilling to admit that the town hall was a terrible disaster. His immediate take that night was that despite the “anticipated” backlash, Collins put on a “stellar performance,” “reality-checking Donald Trump in real time.” ” and “made a lot of news”. Speaking to Alberta, he said he has no regrets about the crowd “adding Trumpy”, or letting the audience “cheer to their liking” or even “taking the first question to [Trump’s] election lies,” despite the fact that the former guy would obviously continue to make lies that he won. In fact, the only thing Licht said he would do differently is maybe let the audience say whether they will vote for Trump in 2020 or are planning the next one.

Given how the night unfolded, that adjustment was probably unnecessary.