Journalists, increasingly irked by the White House’s dodging of direct questions concerning President Joe Biden’s health and mental sharpness, are bracing for a hectic end to the week. On Thursday, Civic Media, a progressive talk-radio network from Wisconsin, disclosed its agreement to modify an interview with Biden following requests from his campaign team.
The interview, conducted by popular host Earl Ingram, occurred after Biden’s June 27 televised debate with former President Donald Trump, where the president showed noticeable lapses in coherence and repeatedly lost his train of thought. Recorded on July 3 and aired on the Fourth of July, the media group admitted that agreeing to these edits failed to meet “journalistic interview standards.”
“On Monday, July 8th, it was reported to Civic Media management that immediately after the phone interview was recorded, the Biden campaign called and asked for two edits to the recording before it aired. Civic Media management immediately undertook an investigation and determined that the production team at the time viewed the edits as non-substantive and broadcast and published the interview with two short segments removed,” the station wrote in a statement. The group announced that it would publish the complete, unedited version of Biden’s interview online.
The station acknowledged making two specific edits to the original broadcast at the campaign’s request. The first, at the 5:20 mark, involved cutting the statement, “…and in addition to that, I have more Blacks in my administration than any other president, all other presidents combined, and in major positions, cabinet positions.” The second edit, at 14:15, removed Biden’s comments on Donald Trump’s past advocacy for the death penalty against the Central Park Five, specifically, “I don’t know if they even call for their hanging or not, but he–but they said […] convicted of murder.”
The statement continued, “With a high-profile interview comes a listener expectation that journalistic interview standards will be applied, even for non-news programming. We did not meet those expectations. Civic Media disagrees with the team’s judgments in the moment, both with respect to the handling of the interview questions and the decision to edit the interview audio.”
“The decision to make the requested edits to the interview was made in good faith. While we disagree with the decision, we stand by our team. This has been a learning experience and we will do better moving forward.”
When questioned by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel about the rationale behind the edits and whether such requests are common for the campaign, a spokesperson for the Biden campaign stated, “Hosts have always been free to ask the questions and air the segments they think will best inform their listeners.”
Additionally, a source familiar with the Biden campaign’s booking operations revealed to the Journal Sentinel last weekend that the campaign would cease providing suggested questions. “While interview hosts have always had the freedom to ask whatever questions they want, moving forward, we will refrain from offering suggested questions.”
On Thursday evening, after wrapping up a three-day NATO summit, Biden will face a pivotal moment in his reelection campaign during an impromptu news conference. Allies, skeptics, and opponents alike will be watching closely to see if he can adeptly manage questions without stumbling. They’ll be particularly alert for any signs of hesitation, like losing his train of thought, fumbling words, or showing the vacant look that was apparent during his debate with Trump.
Biden’s showing at this event could either quiet his critics or intensify calls for him to exit the race.
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