Becket Adams writes at National Review Online that mainstream media outlets should be careful as they push a Trump presidential nomination.
The obvious effort by the press to secure Donald Trump the 2024 GOP nomination is a classic case of “be careful what you wish for.”
Sure, major newsrooms may once again see the ratings and subscriptions boosts they enjoyed between 2015 and 2020. And, sure, for an industry that donates overwhelmingly to Democratic candidates, it probably doesn’t hurt to have someone as troubled, toxic, and legally tied up as Trump to run against the Democratic incumbent.
But trust me, members of the press, when I say this: You don’t want another four years of President Donald Trump. Your heart may tell you it’ll be great for promoting your personal brand or securing (another) book deal, but your brain knows you don’t want to do this again. He’s no longer a circus act, performing hitherto unthinkable acts of political insanity for a captivated, shocked audience, including you. He’s now a one-trick pony, just an older, more tired boor and loudmouth, obsessed with relitigating the 2020 election. Face it: Trump has become mind-numbingly tedious.
You know this. We all see that you know this. We can see that your commentary is phoned in, that your questions and coverage are recycled and cliché. You’re tired of it, in fact positively exhausted, despite your attempts to appear excited.
Here’s another thing you know: The public doesn’t want another four years of what the media dished out during Trump’s term. The public doesn’t want to spend another four years watching every single person in the news industry focus obsessively on Trump, his every utterance and action. No one wants another four years of news cycles dedicated to how the president walks down ramps or how he drinks from a glass of water. No one wants another four years of members of the press tearing their hair out over Rose Garden remodels or how the president misspells words such as “hamburger” and “coffee.”
