Ad News Live
July 10 2024
George Stephanopoulos: George Stephanopoulos was casually strolling through the streets of New York City, dressed in a T-shirt, shorts, and wearing headphones. During his walk on a Tuesday, a stranger came up to him and asked for his thoughts on President Joe Biden’s ability to continue serving in office.
“I don’t think he’s fit to serve another four years,” Stephanopoulos replied honestly. He had recently interviewed Biden on television following the CNN presidential debate, which influenced his opinion.
Stephanopoulos' scathing comment — video of which reached TMZ — is the latest example of the news media's assault on Biden, which has raised deep concerns about whether he has the courage to defeat Donald Trump in November and then serve an additional term in office. On Tuesday night, Stephanopoulos apologized for his candid statement, saying through a spokesperson, "This morning I responded to a question from a passerby. I should not have done that." (Notably, Stephanopoulos did not retract the viewpoint he expressed, but simply said he should not have expressed it.) ABC News separately said Stephanopoulos "He made it clear that his opinion was his own and not endorsed by ABC News. However, the damage from his comment had already been done."
Needless to say, Stephanopoulos is not alone in sharing this opinion among his peers in the news media. Whether it’s fair or unfair (and I believe you could argue that some of the coverage over the last two weeks has been exaggerated and irresponsible), the reality is that Biden has lost much of the press corps at this juncture. Many journalists simply don’t buy the narrative being sold by Biden, his campaign, and the White House.
“To best serve his country, President Biden should quit the race,” headlined a scathing article by the New York Times editorial board last week, as several other prominent figures called on him to step down.
This lack of trust is a major challenge for Biden as he tries to convince the American public that he is up to the difficult task ahead of him. Every move Biden makes, every sentence he utters, is now being monitored, which is never a good sign for any political candidate. What's worse for Biden is that he is no longer being given the benefit of the doubt. In fact, just the opposite.
The president said this week that he doesn't care what "the elite" think of his candidacy. But, given his decades of experience in politics, he surely knows that alienating the news media and going to war with it is not a winning strategy. Whether he likes it or not, how the news media covers his campaign affects how millions of Americans view him as fit for office. And given how close the 2024 race was even before the CNN debate, the recent coverage affecting Biden's campaign is a serious threat to its livelihood.
How Biden is able to extricate himself from this media storm that is threatening to derail his candidacy remains to be seen. Can he? So far, the steps Biden has taken to win back trust have failed to yield the desired results. The Stephanopoulos interview is a perfect example of this. Instead of helping him move forward, allowing him to give the interview has effectively backfired, with Biden also failing to convince Stephanopoulos of his message.
The fact that the president could not convince an interviewer chosen by his campaign about his ability to lead the country for the next four years does not bode well for his campaign.
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