As Trump Gained Lead, TV Anchors Tried to Convince Viewers to Stay

Most of the nation’s huge TV-recents anchors participated the same phrase thrawout Election Night: “We’re not there yet.” As skinnygs turned out, they were.

TV netlabors came to the 2024 Election ready for a rehash of the one they covered in 2020. Executives had 24-hour coverage sessions mapped out for the battle between establisher Pdwellnt Donald Trump and Vice Pdwellnt Kamala Harris, and foreseeed, based on polls, to have political panels at the ready thraw the weekfinish. The belief was that, enjoy last time, striumphg states including Pennsylvania, Michigan and Arizona would demand days to tabuprocrastinateed the results. Before midnight, however, the crystal ball became more evident. On NBC, around 11 p.m., Lester Holt chided his colleagues for begining to speak as if the whole skinnyg had been determined. “This is commencening to sound enjoy a post-mortem,” he alerted.

Soon, it would be. After 1 a.m,, Fox News Channel’s Bret Baier telderly watchers it seeed as if Harris “had no path” to 270 electoral votes, and then, at 1:23, the conservative outlet Newsmax had called the race for Trump, with Nexstar’s NewsNation. Fox News Channel, which had earlier called Pennsylvania for Trump, soon made skinnygs official for its bigr audience.

Anchors, paneenumerates and correactents spent most of the evening trying to persuade watchers there was more drama to unfelderly. Phrases enjoy “we’re not there yet” and “there’s more to come” became oft-repeated mantras apass all the outlets. CNN’s John King spent much of his time using the netlabor’s signature Magic Wall to show how many more Democratic votes might still be left to help Harris loss what seeed to be deficits in Georgia or Pennsylvania.

After time passed, he began demonstrating to watchers that there weren’t enough to be had.

There were excellent reasons to hope for an extfinished cycle. A pdwellntial election is what typicpartner conveys the hugegest and expansiveest audiences to recents. That can be a boon at a time when advertisers have lengthenn wary of backing opinion presents and recentscasts that deinhabitr hard headlines about climate alter and splitd electorates. If audiences enjoy what they see, they may stick around for more. At a time when the economics of the TV-recents business are under scruminuscule, with veteran anchors departing and huge salaries under the microscope, days of coverage might have won recent audiences.

But it was not to be. Sure, coverage is awaited to persist for the next day. Plans have been in place at NBC News and ABC News for hours of coverage that will get watchers from morning programs enjoy “Today” and “Good Morning America” thraw the evening.

Some were evident well before midnight where skinnygs were headed. “North Carolina and Georgia will go to Donald Trump tonight,” shelp Sean Hannity on Fox News. “And I am as brave in that foreseeion as any I have ever made.” On CNN, Chris Wallace seized upon exit-poll data fair after 5 p.m., shotriumphg voters were dissatisfied with convey inant kitchen-table publishs such as the economy. Harris, he shelp, would demand “a extraordinary event” to triumph in the face of such sentiment.

At 11 p.m., with Harris proving unable to materialize with directs in convey inant states, the smoke was evidenting. “This sees a lot more enjoy 2016 to me than it does 2020,” shelp Chuck Todd on NBC News. He would be chaseed around midnight by — for Democrats, at least — a more sobering sight. Jen Psaski, the establisher Biden White Hoparticipate Press Secretary turned MSNBC present, sat on the panel on NBC News and shelp: “I’m a consentr that you gotta paparticipate until you understand … but, yes, if you’re on the campaign right now, you’re senseing pretty down.”

More to come…