CNN Faces Backlash for Hosting Unchecked Trump Town Hall

CNN recently hosted a town hall with former President Donald Trump, where they allowed him to spew lies and misinformation for a full 70 minutes without any real-time fact-checking. Yes, you read that correctly – 70 minutes of uninterrupted Trumpian nonsense. It was like watching a train wreck in slow motion, except the train was made of bullshit, and the tracks were greased with the tears of fact-checkers.

CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, tasked with moderating this circus, tried her best to fact-check Trump‘s statements in real-time, but she was about as effective as a screen door on a submarine. Trump simply ignored her attempts to correct his falsehoods and continued to ramble on like a drunk uncle at Thanksgiving dinner.

The audience made up of Republicans and unaffiliated voters, applauded and laughed at Trump‘s punchlines, including his comments about the January 6th insurrection and the 2020 election. It was like watching a comedy show, except the jokes were all lies, and the audience was made up of people who still think Trump won the election.

CNN has defended its decision to hold the town hall, saying it was a chance to put Trump in front of a wider audience. But let’s be real here—this was less of a town hall and more of a Trump rally. The network gave him a platform to spread his lies and misinformation, and they did very little to stop him.

The backlash against CNN has been swift and fierce. Critics have accused the network of failing to fact-check Trump in real-time and allowing him to spread falsehoods to a national audience. Some have even called for CNN to apologize for the town hall and to fact-check Trump’s statements in real time in future appearances.

CNN’s lack of real-time fact-checking is a serious issue. It’s one thing to give a politician a platform to speak, but another to allow them to spread lies and misinformation without pushback. The media is responsible for holding politicians accountable and fact-checking their statements in real-time. If they don’t, they risk becoming complicit in the spread of misinformation.