Donald Trump has all but disappeared from the TV news sets and press conference stages he once seemed all too eager to dominate earlier in the election, and is making it clear to the thousands of people who attend his rallies that the press is now his enemy.
Under intense scrutiny following a spate of past sexual harassment allegations, Trump on Thursday even canceled what was scheduled to be an appearance on Fox News’ “Hannity,” which has consistently been the friendliest forum for Trump throughout the campaign.
Reporters for the last week have been writing about the flood of news surrounding his treatment of women, and on Wednesday night, the New York Times wrote about two women who said they were sexually harassed. That prompted Trump and his campaign to declare war on the media, and Trump told his followers in a Thursday rally that the press — once a great aid to his campaign — was now not to be trusted.
Trump’s supporters eagerly accepted his new directive.
When the traveling press entered the venue for Trump tonight, the crowd stood up loudly booed them with real animus
— Ben Jacobs (@Bencjacobs) October 13, 2016
But even before the accusations of inappropriate conduct, and the resurfacing of an 11-year-old video showing him make lewd comments about women, Trump had begun withdrawn from the spotlight and cameras.
It’s a dramatic change for a candidate who was thriving almost exclusively on his ability to win free or “earned” media. In March, Democrats were nervous of reports in the press that Trump had earned $2 billion in free media coverage, which had some calling for reporters to stop giving Trump such a big advantage.
Even after his recent slowdown, Trump has still held at least 10 press conferences in 2016 where he jousted with national reporters who tossed out questions on all subjects, far more than Clinton has. As of September, she had only held three press conferences, all of which clocked in far shorter than Trump’s.
But now, Trump seems to have taken a page out of Clinton’s media strategy. He no longer ventures for interviews of any kind, aside from a handful of more sympathetic shows on Fox News, although his cancellation of “Hannity” is a sign that even those days might be over.
Instead, his campaign manager and top surrogate Rudy Giuliani are the ones who have sat in to answer questions on the Sunday morning network news shows and cable channels outside of Fox News.
Though his campaign has billed two recent events as “press conferences” — a short statement in September on the so-called “birther” controversy and an event last week where he showcased women who have accused Bill Clinton of sexual misconduct — Trump didn’t take took questions from the press at either event.
The last real press conference where Trump took questions was in July, following the Democratic National Committee.
