Donald Trump’s CNN town hall sparked anger among many on the left, with some vowing never to watch the network again. However, despite the backlash, CNN’s Republican Town Hall featuring Trump was deemed a success for the network. It garnered significant attention, dominating the 8:00 time slot and attracting approximately 3.2 million viewers.
While some perceived the event as merely a televised Trump rally hosted by CNN, others pointed out that CNN commentator Kaitlan Collins engaged in extensive debates with Trump throughout the town hall. Collins made efforts to fact-check the former president whenever possible, adding a layer of rigor to the event.
According to The Guardian:
Trump was not particularly concerned by whether the broadcast would get high ratings, though he told CNN’s chief executive, Chris Licht, backstage that he would boost their ratings, to which Licht nodded and said he should have “a good conversation and have fun”, two of the people said.
Trump’s advisers saw the town hall ultimately as a strategic win for the former president, who revelled in playing off the live audience of Republican and Republican-leaning voters in New Hampshire, which is hosting the first 2024 GOP presidential primary, and talked over the CNN moderator, Kaitlan Collins, as she tried to factcheck him in real time.
The New York Times also reported on Wednesday that Trump may also face a new lawsuit from the writer E Jean Carroll over his diatribe against her at the town hall, when he said that her decades-old sexual abuse claim that a jury held him liable for this week was a “made-up story”.
Despite the initial backlash, CNN’s Republican Town Hall featuring Donald Trump proved successful for the network, attracting a significant audience and dominating its time slot with approximately 3.2 million viewers. While some criticized the event as a televised Trump rally, others acknowledged CNN commentator Kaitlan Collins’ efforts in engaging in extensive debates with the former president and fact-checking him when possible. Trump himself expressed confidence in boosting the network’s ratings and reveled in playing off the live audience of Republican and Republican-leaning voters in New Hampshire, which hosted the first 2024 GOP presidential primary. The town hall also generated further controversy as Trump may potentially face a new lawsuit from writer E Jean Carroll over his remarks, adding to the ongoing legal and narrative complexities surrounding the former president.
