{"id":2339585,"date":"2024-09-11T04:33:01","date_gmt":"2024-09-11T08:33:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-should-refuse-to-do-another-corrupt-biased-debate\/"},"modified":"2024-09-11T04:36:28","modified_gmt":"2024-09-11T08:36:28","slug":"trump-should-refuse-to-do-another-corrupt-biased-debate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-should-refuse-to-do-another-corrupt-biased-debate\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump Should Refuse To Do Another Corrupt, Biased Debate"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ftrump-should-refuse-to-do-another-corrupt-biased-debate%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2339585&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>During a recent \u200dpresidential debate between former President \u2064Trump and Vice President\u2062 Kamala Harris, the coverage and moderation\u200b were criticized for being heavily\u200b biased against \u200dTrump, with ABC \u200cNews moderators David Muir and Linsey Davis accused of \u200dfailing to \u2062fact-check Harris&#8217; misleading statements. The debate\u200c was described as an\u200d &#8220;effective three-on-one&#8221; against Trump, enabling Harris to make numerous \u2063claims without any\u2064 pushback from the moderators. These \u200dclaims included debunked statements regarding Trump&#8217;s \u200dcomments \u2064on\u2062 Charlottesville, his \u200cresponse to\u200d the Capitol riot,\u2063 and various issues like fracking and law \u2064enforcement. <\/p>\n<p>Critics,\u2062 including Megyn Kelly, pointed\u2064 out \u2063the close ties between Harris and the ABC News leadership, suggesting that the \u2064moderators&#8217; performance was aligned with their personal and organizational biases. The blatant one-sidedness of\u200b the \u200bdebate raised concerns about \u200cthe \u200derosion of the public&#8217;s ability to engage in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/x-expands-efforts-to-combat-election-misinformation-ahead-of-2024\/\" title=\"X intensifies fight against election misinformation for 2024.\">informed political discourse<\/a> and the integrity of democratic processes, particularly \u200bin the context of\u2062 social media, where misinformation can rapidly spread. the debate was seen not\u200d as a productive exchange of ideas, but rather as a spectacle that \u200dcould further confuse and demoralize the \u200bAmerican electorate.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Tuesday night during the presidential debate between former President Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris, the fact-checks were flying, but only in one direction. As expected, ABC News moderators David Muir and Linsey Davis were criminally biased, making the debate effectively three-on-one against Trump and practically amounting to an in-kind donation to the Harris campaign.<\/p>\n<p>The lying and gaslighting were so brazen from Harris, and the &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/watch-biden-flies-into-a-rage-during-dnc-farewell-speech-tells-numerous-lies\/\" title=\"Watch: Biden Flies Into a Rage During DNC Farewell Speech, Tells Numerous Lies\">fact-checking&#038;rdquo<\/a>; from Muir and Davis so lop-sided (they failed even once to push back or correct any of Harris&rsquo; obvious falsehoods), that the entire spectacle eventually took on an air of unreality. It was bizarre to see it happening live on the air. By the end, my main takeaway was that the purpose of these debates, besides the media&rsquo;s obvious goal of boosting Harris and hurting Trump, is to confuse and demoralize the American people by distorting reality and flooding the internet with lies, making it impossible to know what&rsquo;s true and what&rsquo;s not.<\/p>\n<p>At one point, Harris recited a litany of the most obvious, thoroughly debunked lies about Trump, from the &ldquo;fine people on both sides&rdquo; comment on Charlottesville, to the &ldquo;bloodbath&rdquo; remark about the auto industry, to claiming he &ldquo;incited&rdquo; the U.S. Capitol riot on Jan. 6. Anyone can go online and check for themselves that these things are all hoaxes; they never happened. But the moderators said nothing. <\/p>\n<p>They again said nothing when Harris lied about her views on fracking, gun control, and defunding the police. Nor did they say anything when she erroneously claimed there are no American troops in combat zones (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/news\/world\/3-us-troops-killed-drone-attack-jordan-rcna136065\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">three U.S. soldiers were killed<\/a>&nbsp;in a drone attack in Jordan earlier this year, and&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2024\/08\/31\/nx-s1-5096744\/iraq-isis-us-military-raid\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">seven were injured<\/a>&nbsp;in a raid against ISIS in Iraq last month), that police officers died on Jan. 6, that third-trimester abortions never happen, or that the Trump tax cuts disproportionately benefited the wealthy. On and on, <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/09\/11\/25-lies-kamala-harris-told-in-her-debate-against-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">lie after lie<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>With Trump, it was of course much different. Muir and Davis routinely inserted themselves into the debate under the guise of &ldquo;fact-checking&rdquo; the former president, even on trivial matters, to the point that at times it devolved into a side debate between Trump and the moderators.<\/p>\n<p>But again, media bias is baked in, and wasn&rsquo;t a surprise. As&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/EllieGAnders\/status\/1833702720315834498\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Megyn Kelly noted<\/a>, &ldquo;The person who runs ABC News,&rdquo; Dana Walden, &ldquo;is a close personal friend of Kamala Harris,&rdquo; and the moderators &ldquo;did exactly what their bosses wanted them to do.&rdquo; We&rsquo;ve known all along that Trump isn&rsquo;t just running against Harris and the DNC; he&rsquo;s running against a machine that includes the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/the-durham-report-leaves-no-doubt-the-fbi-is-a-mortal-threat-to-democracy\/\" title=\"Durham Report confirms FBI as a threat to democracy.\">entire corporate press<\/a>, the administrative state, the intelligence agencies, Big Tech, and even Taylor Swift.<\/p>\n<p>What was different about this debate, though, was how brazen the bias was, how unconcerned ABC seemed to be even with presenting the appearance of journalistic integrity or fairness. It was shocking to see it. And the effect of it isn&rsquo;t necessarily to move the needle on the election one way or the other. It&rsquo;s unlikely that anyone, whatever his views, will be persuaded by anything that was said or done during this farce of a debate.<\/p>\n<p>No, the real effect is to erode our ability to function as a coherent polity, to maintain a democratic form of government or anything close to self-government. You can&rsquo;t do it like this, especially not in our digital era. The lies and distortions and undisguised bias get fed directly into social media, which instantly becomes a feeding frenzy of claim and counterclaim, replete with clips and commentaries that serve only to compound the distorting effect of the debate itself.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>That&rsquo;s what happened Tuesday night. Corporate media commentators like Chris Hayes of MSNBC&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/chrislhayes\/status\/1833680065063698644\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">declared<\/a>&nbsp;Harris was &ldquo;cleaning his clock.&rdquo; California Gov. Gavin Newsom later&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/GavinNewsom\/status\/1833729070984462608\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">used the exact same phrase<\/a>. Meanwhile, commentators on the right were apoplectic about the bias from ABC and the dishonesty from Harris, and they furiously posted evidence debunking her lies and omissions.<\/p>\n<p>You can&rsquo;t engage in meaningful debate this way. You need a bare minimum of shared reality for that. The conduct of ABC and the rest of the corporate press is making it impossible, which is why we would be better off without these presidential debates. <\/p>\n<p>If they&rsquo;re going to be like this, then they&rsquo;re just contributing to the disintegration of our polity by distorting reality and making political discourse impossible. Instead of a necessary and salutary part of our national elections, they are poison in the bloodstream of our national life. Trump, at least, should refuse to take part in them going forward, and the rest of us should refuse to watch if he does.<\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>      John Daniel Davidson is a senior editor at The Federalist. His writing has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, the Claremont Review of Books, The New York Post, and elsewhere. He is the author of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Pagan-America-Decline-Christianity-Dark\/dp\/1684514444\/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Pagan+America&amp;qid=1695306441&amp;sr=8-1\"><i>Pagan America: the Decline of Christianity and the Dark Age to Come<\/i><\/a>. Follow him on Twitter, @johnddavidson.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On Tuesday night, during the presidential debate between former President Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris, fact-checking was prevalent but overwhelmingly favored one side. As anticipated, ABC News moderators David Muir and Linsey Davis displayed a significant bias against Trump, creating an environment that felt like a three-on-one confrontation and essentially serving as an advantage for Harris&#8217;s campaign. The level of dishonesty from Harris was striking, while Muir and Davis failed to challenge or correct any of her blatant falsehoods throughout the debate. This led to a surreal atmosphere as viewers witnessed the event unfold live. My primary observation was that these debates seem designed not only to promote Harris at Trump&#8217;s expense but also to confuse and demoralize the American public by distorting reality and inundating social media with misinformation, making it difficult to discern truth from falsehood.<\/p>\n<p>At one point, Harris listed several thoroughly debunked claims about Trump\u2014such as his &#8220;fine people on both sides&#8221; comment regarding Charlottesville and accusations related to the Capitol riot on January 6\u2014despite these being easily verifiable online as fabrications. The moderators remained silent in response. They also did not address her inaccuracies regarding fracking, gun control, defunding police initiatives, or her erroneous statements about U.S. troops in combat zones.<\/p>\n<p>In contrast, when Trump spoke, Muir and Davis frequently interrupted him under the guise of fact-checking\u2014even on minor issues\u2014leading to moments where it felt like he was debating them rather than focusing solely on his opponent.<\/p>\n<p>This blatant media bias wasn&#8217;t surprising; Megyn Kelly pointed out that Dana Walden\u2014the head of ABC News\u2014is a close friend of Kamala Harris\u2014and thus it seemed clear that the moderators were acting according to their superiors&#8217; expectations. It&#8217;s evident that Trump is not just contending with Harris or the Democratic National Committee; he&#8217;s up against an entire system comprising corporate media outlets, government agencies, Big Tech companies\u2014and even celebrities like Taylor Swift.<\/p>\n<p>What stood out in this debate was how overtly biased ABC appeared without any concern for maintaining journalistic integrity or fairness\u2014it was shocking to witness such disregard for impartiality. The impact may not significantly sway voters one way or another; it&#8217;s unlikely anyone would change their opinions based on what transpired during this farcical debate.<\/p>\n<p>The more concerning effect is its potential erosion of our ability to function cohesively as a society capable of self-governance\u2014a necessity in our digital age where lies can spread rapidly across social media platforms leading to chaotic discourse filled with conflicting claims supported by clips and commentary amplifying distortions from the debate itself.<\/p>\n<p>Following Tuesday&#8217;s event, commentators from corporate media praised Harris&#8217;s performance while those on the right expressed outrage over ABC\u2019s bias and her dishonesty by sharing evidence disproving her statements.<\/p>\n<p>Meaningful debates require at least some shared understanding of reality\u2014a standard that&#8217;s becoming increasingly unattainable due to actions taken by ABC News and other corporate outlets which hinder productive political discussions. If presidential debates continue in this manner they will only contribute further towards societal fragmentation through distortion rather than serving their intended purpose within national elections\u2014they have become detrimental instead of beneficial elements within our political landscape. Moving forward Trump should consider abstaining from participating in such events again\u2014and viewers should think twice before tuning into them if he does participate again<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":518,"featured_media":2339586,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Debate-1.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546],"tags":[5050,8773,3896,5894,3634],"class_list":["post-2339585","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist","tag-bias","tag-corruption","tag-debate","tag-politics","tag-trump"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Debate-1.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2339585","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/518"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2339585"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2339585\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2339586"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2339585"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2339585"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2339585"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}