Trump blasted for threats against Comcast, NBC
Former President Trump is coming under intense criticism for a social media post late Sunday in which he threatened to investigate Comcast, the parent company of NBCUniversal, NBC News and MSNBC, over the outlet’s coverage of him, if he is elected president again.
“They are almost all dishonest and corrupt, but Comcast, with its one-side and vicious coverage by NBC NEWS, and in particular MSNBC, often and correctly referred to as MSDNC (Democrat National Committee!), should be investigated for its ‘Country Threatening Treason,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social website.
NBC has not commented on Trump’s threat, but his remarks have sparked a wave of backlash in media and political circles.
“Let’s just think about the last three days where we’re at here. Donald Trump mocked a disabled veteran, called for the execution of General Mark Milley, has called for the complete shutdown of the government unless they defund the prosecutions against him. He’s asked for all Senate Democrats to resign over the Menendez case. And, you know, he’s talking about using government power to retaliate and shut down NBC for criticizing him,” said Charlie Sykes, a political commentator who makes regular appearances on MSNBC.
The progressive political organization Occupy Democrats also blasted the former president’s social media post, which it called a “deranged rant.”
“There you have it, folks. While Trump and his Republican enablers love to falsely accuse Democrats of ‘weaponizing’ the government against Trump, Trump himself is now openly threaten to weaponize the presidency to completely remove entire news channels from the airwaves simply because they expose his rampant criminality,” the organization said.
President Biden’s White House, which has itself not shied away from publicly criticizing media coverage it does not agree with, issued a statement of its own on Monday, blasting Trump’s rhetoric toward NBC and the press more generally.
“President Biden swore an oath to uphold our Constitution and protect American Democracy. Freedom of the press is a fundamental Constitutional right,” a White House spokesperson said. “To abuse presidential power and violate the Constitutional rights of reporters would be an outrageous attack on our democracy and the rule of law. Presidents must always defend Americans’ freedoms — never trample on them for selfish, small, and dangerous political purposes.”
Other observers noted on Monday what they say is a lack of outrage on the political right in response to Trump’s threat to scrutinize coverage of an independent media organization.
“Of course, Glenn Greenwald and all the RWers [right-wingers] who complain about Democrats’ lack of respect for free speech said nothing yesterday about Trump calling for investigations of TV networks and threatening to pull NBC’s broadcast license because of their speech,” the journalist and author James Surowiecki wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. Greenwald is a conservative blogger and television personality.
The Hill has reached out to Trump’s spokesperson.
Trump has long attacked media and press organizations that are not, in his view, supportive enough of him.
As part of his threat against Comcast and NBC, he again referred to the media as the “enemy of the people.”
Trump has spent the last several months ridiculing conservative media juggernaut Fox News, which he has repeatedly accused of boosting his primary opponents and trying to stymie his bid for the White House in 2024.
Trump’s most recent attack on NBC came just days after the former president participated in a wide-ranging interview with journalist Kristen Welker that aired as part of her first broadcast moderating “Meet The Press.”
Trump’s relationship with NBC goes back years. The network helped him become a household name in the early 2000s with its hit show “The Apprentice.”
Today, a number of MSNBC’s leading stars are sharply critical of the former president including prime time pundits Rachel Maddow, Joy Reid and morning talk show host Joe Scarborough.
Trump’s attack also comes as NBC is reportedly in the running to host a coming GOP primary debate.
Trump did not participate in last month’s first GOP debate, which aired on Fox News, and has said he does not plan to attend this week’s second GOP debate on Fox Business Network, citing his large lead in most primary polls and what he says is a “hostile” relationship with the network airing it.