Two television news programs edited videos of the presidential candidates. Was it deceptive? – Pointer

The editing of presidential candidates’ videos by Fox News and CBS News has sparked debate: Where is the line between fair editing and misleading the audience?

Last week, former President Donald Trump visited a barbershop in the Bronx with “Fox & Friends” co-host Lawrence Jones. Trump and Jones sat in front of a flag draped over a drinks cooler and answered questions from visitors and staffers who had gathered to speak with the former president. Earlier this week, Fox News aired portions of the conversation on “Fox & Friends.”

On Thursday morning, CNN reported new footage that showed Fox News Edited Trump’s Responses Were Tough.

One of the hairdressers recorded much of Trump’s Q&A with people in the salon. More recent and complete footage shows Trump taking one of his usual circuitous, anecdote-filled routes to answer one of a patron’s questions.

From those shots that the hairdresser posted on InstagramCNN found that Fox & Friends aired clips that did not include Trump’s related stories and exaggerations.

“Participants had to be told repeatedly when Trump deviated from the original point of their questions,” CNN’s Brian Stelter and Liam Reilly wrote.

Notably, when one viewer asked whether Trump would consider eliminating federal taxes entirely, the Fox & Friends newsroom responded immediately: “There is a way.”

But found footage shows the former president had a more convoluted path to that answer, which included references to the “death tax” and its impact on small businesses and, as CNN mentions, “the Keystone pipeline, Ronald Reagan.” , Russia and transgender athletes.”

This stands in stark contrast to Trump’s recent claims that the CBS “60 Minutes” interview with his opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, could be a “serious campaign finance violation.” (Politifact rated this LIE.)

Trump pointed to responses from Harris in clips CBS posted on social media to promote the speech that differed from what was aired as part of the broadcast. Trump took particular aim at Harris’ response to a question about US-Israel relations.

He said the discrepancy was evidence that CBS edited the interview to make Harris appear “more presidential.”

Some social media users said the interview was an “in-kind contribution,” meaning an in-kind donation to a political candidate. Dan Weiner, director of the elections and government program at the Brennan Center for Justice, told PolitiFact that this argument is far-fetched.

CBS News reported that the full interview took 45 minutes, but it was cut down to 20 minutes.

Kelly McBride, senior vice president at Poynter and chair of the Craig Newmark Center for Ethics and Leadership, told PolitiFact that this type of editing is typical of broadcast news and is often due to time constraints.

In fact, news outlets across all media—print, digital, video, etc.—regularly edit information for brevity, clarity, and a variety of other factors. This is standard, long-accepted practice. Raw, unedited video or transcripts of conversations are rarely published outside of places like C-Span, in part because audiences simply expect a more polished product.

In this light, some of the outrage reflects a broader trend of denigration of standard journalistic practices. For example, in 2022, social media users went wild when journalist Taylor Lorenz knocked on doors to track down an anonymous person. TikTok user who spread hate towards LGBTQ+ people. Knocking on doors to fact-check or gather information is one of the most fundamental techniques in journalism, but critics who were either unfamiliar with the practice or theatrically clutching their pearls portrayed it as aggressive or unethical to smear reporters.

In most cases, McBride told PolitiFact, news outlets edit videos “to make the product more digestible for the audience, not to deceive the candidate by making the candidate look better or worse.”

It certainly seems like the 60 Minutes edits fall into that category, at least based on what CBS released that didn’t air on television. With Fox and Friends, things are not so clear.

While Fox News’ edits certainly contributed to brevity and readability, Trump’s meandering statements became a major focus of the election. With President Joe Biden dropping out of the race, Trump, 78, if elected, would become the oldest president to be sworn in in U.S. history. This renewed interest in his health and well-being, and also drew attention to his meandering method of public speaking.

Even if Fox News sought to make its news reporting smoother, “Fox & Friends” audiences were given a misleading impression of Trump’s abrasiveness.

Because CBS News did not release the unedited full interview with Harris in either video or transcript form, Trump was able to question the network’s integrity. “Once you question something, a news organization should explain and demonstrate why it can be trusted, and that shouldn’t be hard to do,” McBride told PolitiFact.

So while CBS News may have been willing to cut the interview short to suit television, it may be in the network’s best interest to release a video or transcript to address this issue.

Meanwhile, Fox News doesn’t really have that luxury. The full video of Trump’s barbershop interview on Instagram clearly shows that the network’s changes changed the tone of Trump’s responses in a way that made him appear more persuasive. This is deceptive.

Ren LaForme, editor-in-chief of Poynter; and Josie Hollingsworth, director of audience engagement at PolitiFact

TV networks aren’t just preparing for election night this year—they’re preparing for election night.

Cable and broadcast news outlets are preparing for the fact that races will take several days to determine the results on Election Day and are planning their coverage accordingly. Variety journalist Brian Steinberg reported.. This means 24-hour coverage in some retail locations, while others ensure that staff are ready to jump into regular programming at a moment’s notice to share important updates.

“I think you have to be prepared to get through the week,” NewsNation President and Managing Editor of News and Politics Cheri Grzech told Variety. “We will make sure we provide coverage throughout the week, and 24 hours if necessary.”

During the 2020 presidential election, the Associated Press took four days to call the race for Joe Biden. Many voters decided to vote by mail due to the pandemic, and those ballots took longer to count, causing delays in calling the race. While mail-in voting rates this year may not reach the heights reached in 2020, both Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign and former President Donald Trump’s campaign have urged supporters vote early.

Delays in election results this year may coincide with the spread of misinformation. In 2020 Trump falsely stated that mail-in voting can be rigged, a claim he repeated this year. Network executives told Variety they are prepared to counter election misinformation in their reporting while viewers wait for results.

When the results do arrive, they will likely be delivered by each network’s most famous anchors—think Fox News’ Martha McCallum and Bret Baier, or CNN’s Jake Tapper, Wolf Blitzer and Anderson Cooper. MSNBC President Rashida Jones told Variety that Steve Kornacki “has a window if he needs a few winks” and during those lulls, other staffers fill in for him.

“Kornacki will be on set when this big moment happens.”

Angela Fu, media business reporter

In case you missed it, Poynter’s Tom Jones spoke with Kornacki about third episode of the Poynter Report Podcast published earlier this week. Consider this your 23-minute insider’s guide to what to watch on election night. If you trust Kornacki’s judgment—and I do—perhaps you can hit the hay a little early, on November 5th, with a pretty good idea of ​​who will be the next President of the United States.

Ren LaForme, Editor-in-Chief

• IN yesterday’s episode of The Poynter ReportTom Jones wrote that the Los Angeles Times would not endorse a presidential candidate this year (a decision apparently made by the paper’s owner, Patrick Soon-Shiong), and that its editorial editor had resigned in protest. Well, Katie Robertson of The New York Times shared an email from top editors Terry Tang and Hector Becerra to Los Angeles Times employees announcing the newspaper’s decision. “Approvals are at the discretion of the owner,” Tan and Becerra wrote in part.
• A number of well-known social media users, including actor Mark Hamillsaid they were canceling their subscription because of the Times’ decision. “I canceled our subscription to the LA Times because I want to make it clear that I am not happy with their silence. In dangerous times, honest people need to stand up,” Hamill wrote. But The LA Times Guild released a statement. urging readers to reconsider the cancellation. “This subscription supports the salaries of hundreds of journalists in our editorial office,” the statement said.
• Also in Poynter’s report yesterdayTom Jones wrote about what presidential candidates can gain from podcasting, a relatively new method they’re using to reach audiences. But David Bauder of the Associated Press writes: “By moving to podcasts, Harris and Trump are abandoning legacy media to spread their ideas.” Bauder notes, “Among the legacy news outlets that failed to interview Kamala Harris and Donald Trump during the general election campaign: NPR, The New York Times, PBS and The Washington Post.”
• Vice President Kamala Harris appeared at a Pennsylvania town hall on CNN Wednesday night. Brian Stelter writes that the program was watched by an average of at least 3.2 million viewers.According to preliminary data. Meanwhile, PolitiFact verified some of Harris’ claims.including her statement that “the former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff called (Trump) a ‘fascist through and through.'”
• Bloomberg’s Amanda Mull writes about “The Revival of the Print Magazine in 2024.” “More and more publishers are realizing that magazines are now a luxury item,” says Mull.
• As the host of WNYC’s All of It, Alison Stewart has a gift for words. But one day last winter she discovered that she could only speak gibberish. The New York Times correspondent Julie Bezonen reports on what happened next in “Her job was to talk on the radio. And suddenly the words didn’t come.”

Have feedback or advice? Email Poynter Senior Reporter Tom Jones at [email protected].

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