While President Joe Biden was running the country, Donald Trump was on the campaign trail, talking about a “bloodbath” and sitting down with Fox News’ Howard Kurtz.

Let’s start with the latter.

I rarely quote Kurtz’s “MediaBuzz” on Fox News because it often is more about politics than it is about the media. It certainly doesn’t cover the media like the media-centric “Reliable Sources,” which was disappointingly whacked by CNN in 2022.

But on Sunday, Kurtz did have an interview with Trump. And there were some media mentions in their nearly hourlong conversation.

Mediaite’s Jennifer Bowers Bahney wrote the “5 wildest comments from Trump’s bizarre Fox News interview Sunday.”

They were:

• Trump doubled down on rhetoric about migrants “poisoning the blood” of America.
• Trump waffled on questions about Vladimir Putin.
• Trump ramped up his feud with Jimmy Kimmel.
• Trump didn’t back down when asked about threats against network broadcast licenses.
• Trump reupped his “rigged” election claims and all but dared Fox to cut them out.

Let’s focus on the media aspects of the interview. Once again, Trump pulled out his old favorites, using phrases such as “fake news.” Kurtz asked Trump, “After the Iowa caucuses, two networks didn’t carry your speech. I was very critical at the time. But you said, ‘CNN and NBC should have their licenses, or whatever they have, taken away.’ Sounded like you were threatening to go after television outlets whose reporting you don’t like.”

Trump answered, “I guess it was ‘Fake Tapper’ or somebody turned it off, he said, ‘Turn it off.’ I think, actually, MSNBC did do it — ‘MSDNC’ — but they did do it. But I think it was CNN that didn’t cover it. Jake Tapper, who I used to know and actually sort of liked him, actually, but he hurts himself very badly when he does a thing like that. And he hurts the ratings, too. You look at CNN ratings, they’re so bad. So, you cover, though — I mean, think of it — you’re covering someone for a year, and this is the culmination, this is the big moment, and people want to watch it, and you say, ‘I’m not going to put his speech on.’ How can you do that?”

Interestingly, Trump knows his false allegations that the 2020 election was rigged are controversial. He said this at one point during the interview: “You can cut this if you want, but the election was rigged.”

My take: Cable and broadcast networks should definitely monitor Trump speeches, particularly after primary victories (as opposed to rallies), but they are smart to not air them live. That’s because you never know what Trump might say, including outright lies about things such as the 2020 election and Jan. 6, not to mention dangerous rhetoric about those he doesn’t like.

Then again, news organizations are in a precarious situation when it comes to Trump. On one hand, maybe they feel an obligation to show the American people exactly what he is thinking and saying, no matter how dangerous or irresponsible it is at times. In fact, one could argue citizens need to see it. By not showing it, are they actually protecting Trump? By not airing what he’s saying, are they sanitizing his speech to a point where voters might think that Trump has toned down his lies and troublesome speech?

Then again, you can understand a news organization being hesitant to amplify a lot of what Trump says because it simply is not true or potentially harmful.

So there lies the conundrum.

Maybe the best way to do it is to do what Bahney did in her Mediaite piece. That is, show some of the outrageous things Trump said just to remind voters who Trump is, what he believes and what he is saying.

Trump’s ‘bloodbath’ comment

A story that gathered strong momentum over the weekend came from something that Trump said during a speech in Ohio on Saturday. Talking about the U.S. economy and auto industry, Trump said he would place a tariff on cars manufactured outside the U.S. if he wins the election in November. Then he added, “Now, if I don’t get elected, it’s going to be a bloodbath for the whole — that’s going to be the least of it — it’s going to be a bloodbath for the country.”

Reactions to Trump’s “bloodbath” comment varied. Many found Trump’s comment disturbing, suggesting that Trump was predicting violence if he loses. Trump supporters said Trump’s remarks were taken out of context. For example, on her “Sunday Morning Futures” show, Fox News’ Maria Bartiromo, shaking her head, said, “The remarks triggering dishonest headlines about what he actually said from the mainstream media.”

MSNBC’s Jen Psaki had an extended commentary, saying, “We did not miss the full context. This was not an off-message comment. This is his message.”

Most saw Trump’s comments as a threat that went beyond the auto industry. Several on social media commented that if you truly want to put Trump’s comments in context, don’t just look at Saturday’s speech, but the past eight years.

But the best approach was this simple, fact-based opening to ABC’s “World News Tonight” on Sunday when anchor Mary Bruce said, “We begin tonight with the race for the White House and former President Trump’s campaign now on the defensive after his fiery rhetoric at a rally in Dayton, Ohio, on Saturday night. Trump warning while discussing the economy that there would be a quote ‘bloodbath’ if he is not reelected in November. This, after the former president kicked off the event by paying tribute to those who attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, President Biden’s campaign swiftly denouncing those comments as threats of political violence.”

Speaking of Trump …

Check out this piece in The New York Times from Jim Rutenberg and Steven Lee Myers: “How Trump’s Allies Are Winning the War Over Disinformation.”

A TikTok apology

North Carolina Democratic Congressman Jeff Jackson, shown here in 2021 when he was a state senator. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

North Carolina Democratic Rep. Jeff Jackson is apologizing for voting for the bill that is forcing TikTok’s Chinese owners to sell or be banned in the U.S. The apology is because Jackson used TikTok to build his brand and popularity, with more than 2.5 million followers. And after he was roasted by many of those followers, Jackson apologized with a video on … TikTok.

Jackson said, “And I get it. If I were in your shoes I would probably feel the same way. I would see someone who used the app to build a following and then appears to have voted against it, and I would be upset.”

Jackson said he voted for the bill because he heard some “alarming” things about the app. He also said he didn’t really believe TikTok would ultimately be shut down in the U.S. Lawmakers in favor of the bill are worried TikTok poses a national security threat. They fear the Chinese government could force owner ByteDance to hand over data that would compromise U.S. users. TikTok said it has not shared U.S. data with the Chinese government and would never do so.

Jackson said, “I genuinely believe the chance of a ban is practically zero for a lot of reasons, financial, political, geopolitical, I just don’t think there’s any real chance of a ban. I still believe that but maybe I got that balance wrong.”

He finished by saying, “I screwed this up. I did. I apologize. And I will keep you posted.”

Media tidbits

• Opinion from The New York Times’ David French: “What Trump’s TikTok Flip-Flop Tells America.”
• Politico’s Jack Shafer with “What the Press and Pollsters Get Wrong about a Biden-Trump Rematch.”
• Semafor’s Max Tani with “How American news lost its nerve.”
• For Awful Announcing, Michael Grant with “HBO’s ‘The Lionheart’ about Dan Wheldon and family is one of the most powerful sports documentaries in years.”

Hot type

• Strong segment from “60 Minutes” and correspondent Scott Pelley: “Dissidents speak out from Lithuania after fleeing Putin’s Russia.”
• And from “CBS Sunday Morning,” correspondent Luke Burbank profiles “Jeopardy” host and former champ Ken Jennings.
• The Washington Post’s Emily Yahr with “Beyonce has a country hit. How will country radio handle that?”

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