As former President Donald Trump prepared for his arraignment at a Manhattan courthouse on Tuesday, cable news networks covered his arrival in New York on Monday. Viewers could tune into significant cable news networks such as CNN, MSNBC, and Fox News to watch the live coverage of Donald Trump’s journey from Florida to New York on his jet with the Trump branding. Later, they showed him traveling in his motorcade to Trump Tower.
“I know that media critics are taking issue with the way that a lot of news networks are covering this, but I have to say, as we watch Donald Trump’s limo drive on the FDR, this is unprecedented,” said CNN’s Jake Tapper.
According to Forbes, Fox News Channel’s coverage displayed the banner “TRUMP LEAVING MAR-A-LAGO, HEADING FOR NYC,” while MSNBC stated, “NOW: TRUMP HEADS TO PALM BEACH INTL. AIRPORT FOR FLIGHT.” CNN’s banner initially read “TRUMP IN NY; MOTORCADE EN ROUTE TO TRUMP TOWER,” and later changed to “SOON: TRUMP TO ARRIVE AT TRUMP TOWER AHEAD OF TOMORROW’S ARREST.”
As Trump’s SUV made its way through the streets of West Palm Beach, followed by his takeoff and landing in his private jet, and then another SUV journeying up the FDR Drive, many drew comparisons to the infamous slow-speed chase involving O.J. Simpson’s white Ford Bronco. These similarities were significant enough to cause “O.J. Simpson” to trend on Twitter for the afternoon.
“I’m flipping stations and shaking my head. No wonder we can’t recover from this Trump infection because the media continues to feed Trump’s thirst to be everything everywhere simultaneously! On the plane, off the plane, in the car. You all know the actual @POTUS traveled today?” MSNBC Political Analyst Michael Steele tweeted.
Shortly before 3:30 pm ET, Fox News utilized its FOX NEWS ALERT stinger to inform viewers of the latest update: “the former president’s plane is about to land,” as Martha MacCallum reported over the live footage of Trump’s plane, which had extended its landing gear in anticipation of the arrival. MacCallum commented, “It’s a beautiful day to fly into Manhattan,” while the banner on the screen displayed “NOW: TRUMP APPROACHING NYC AHEAD OF ARRAIGNMENT.”
Mary Trump, the former president’s niece, and a vocal opponent criticized the sensationalized coverage, questioning CNN’s decision to show footage of Trump’s plane taking off. She argued that the media should have learned from their mistakes during the 2016 election when they deemed empty podiums and idle planes newsworthy. However, Mary Trump observed that the media appeared to repeat the same errors.
