Staff Reports
In the wake of President Joe Biden’s lackluster debate performance in June, two radio stations – one in Philadelphia and another in Milwaukee – conducted phone interviews with him. These interviews were meant to reassure black voters and dispel concerns about Biden’s communication skills. However, it was later revealed that both interviews were pre-recorded, with questions submitted by the Biden campaign in advance.
The fallout was swift. WURD in Philadelphia decided to part ways with their host, Andrea Lawful-Sanders, stating that they were not a mouthpiece for the Biden administration. In Milwaukee, Civic Media stood by their host, Earl Ingram, but admitted to making edits to the interview at the Biden campaign’s request.
Civic Media, a progressive talk-radio network, disclosed that they had agreed to remove two segments from the interview before airing it. These edits included a comment about the diversity of Biden’s administration and a reference to Donald Trump’s past remarks about the Central Park Five case.
President Biden's scripted phone interviews with black radio hosts backfired as the Biden campaign submitted questions in advance. WURD and Civic Media faced consequences for editing parts out of the interviews at campaign's request. https://t.co/YB04y5SlKO
— The America One News (@am1_news) July 11, 2024
The fact that these radio interviews were scripted and edited at the behest of the Biden campaign raises questions about the president’s ability to engage in unscripted conversations. It also underscores the lengths to which his team will go to control the narrative and message.
With these revelations, it’s becoming increasingly clear that even supposed friendly media outlets are not immune to the heavy hand of the Biden administration when it comes to shaping their coverage. The willingness of these stations to comply with editing requests from the campaign calls into question the integrity of the interviews and the independence of the media in holding public figures accountable.
