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Sunday, December 22, 2024

Media veterans discuss election coverage challenges at UC Berkeley event

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Carol T. Christ, Chancellor | Official website

Carol T. Christ, Chancellor | Official website

Marty Baron and Dean Baquet, former editors of the Washington Post and the New York Times respectively, shared insights on media coverage of the 2024 U.S. presidential election during a UC Berkeley Journalism event held on November 13. Their discussion was featured in episode 214 of Berkeley Talks.

Reflecting on past elections, Baquet noted that in 2016, the New York Times was surprised by Donald Trump's victory due to a lack of understanding about the electorate's readiness for such a candidate. However, he expressed confidence that media coverage had improved in the recent election cycle.

Baquet stated, "My argument would be that...all of the things that became controversies about Donald Trump — were written about in the American press, and the American people voted Donald Trump in anyway. So I actually think the press did a much better job."

Baron echoed this sentiment but emphasized ongoing challenges: "Our problem is that we did not understand America well enough to understand that this country would produce a candidate like Donald Trump." He highlighted misunderstandings regarding public dissatisfaction with elites and traditional political figures.

The conversation acknowledged an awareness among journalists of Trump's potential success in his second term campaign. Yet, as Baron pointed out, there remained unanticipated outcomes: "They didn’t understand that he would win in the voting segments that he won...To win all of the swing states, I don’t think that that was anticipated at all."

Concluding his thoughts on media coverage and public perception, Baron remarked, "I think we need to work harder at really understanding the country."

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