On a summer Sunday, Biden withdrew in a written statement. Media outlets struggled to find images
In an intensely visual news world, a seismic political week was transformed again in an instant Sunday by something almost old-fashioned: a printed statement.
President Joe Biden’s announcement that he would not run for a second term was broadcast on his social media feed at 1:46 p.m. Eastern Time, followed 33 minutes later by an endorsement from his vice president, Kamala Harris. While he is still recovering from Covid-19, the president has not appeared in front of the cameras. For the media, this means that there have been few or no images.
There was virtually no warning, which led to initial concerns that the president’s X-rated feed had been hacked. The Associated Press issued a “flash” alert at 1:54 p.m. Eastern. Television networks hacked their programs between 1:50 p.m. (Fox News Channel) and 2:04 p.m. (ABC).
According to the Associated Press, it was “a late-campaign thunderclap unlike any other in American history.” CBS News analyst Ashley Etienne called it “an incredible day in American history.”
After a week saturated with the endlessly repeated and analyzed video of former President Donald Trump being gunned down at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania, and the carefully choreographed four-day telecast of the Republican National Convention that followed, here was a dramatic report that lacked visuals in almost every way.
Cable news shows, especially when covering live events or breaking news, rely on video of a scene and its aftermath to provide the essential thread between anchors and newscasters’ updates. With no video Sunday, other than “b-roll,” or old footage of Biden, news networks had to turn to other sources.
But they had to scramble to find people who would talk about it. CBS White House correspondent Ed Keefe sounded out of breath when reached by phone. Because it was a summer Sunday afternoon, the first part of the newscast wasn’t immediately available, giving ABC’s Rachel Scott, CBS’s Kristine Johnson and NBC’s Hallie Jackson the opportunity to deliver the first reports.
As the news took hold, others interrupted their weekends to rush to an office: Wolf Blitzer on CNN, John Roberts on Fox News Channel, Rachel Maddow on MSNBC. ABC and CBS devoted more time to the story than NBC, which switched topics after a half-hour to cover NASCAR.
Former Biden White House press secretary Jen Psaki was in a studio after wrapping up her Sunday show, putting her in a position to reveal the news about her former boss.
The networks quickly turned to the discussion of a clash between Harris and Trump in the general election, even before Harris announced — again, via a printed statement — about two hours after Biden’s endorsement that she would be a candidate.
“Look how quickly politics moves,” ABC’s Terry Moran said by phone. “Joseph Biden, after 50 years in politics where he rose to the highest level, is now history.”
The day recalled March 31, 1968, when President Lyndon Johnson shocked the country at the end of a 40-minute televised address to the nation by declaring, “I will not seek or accept the nomination of my party for another term as your President.”
It was a complete surprise, compared with the seemingly endless debate that has consumed the political world for the past three weeks over whether Biden, 81, could actually continue as a candidate after his disastrous performance in a June 27 debate against Trump.
But Biden has repeatedly and emphatically insisted that he remains in the race, and Sunday morning political talk shows have featured voices defending that position. “He’s going to do what the American people expect him to do, which is beat Donald Trump,” Cedric Richmond, a co-chairman of the Biden campaign, said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.”
Several reporters said even members of the White House and Biden’s campaign team were surprised by the announcement. Biden is expected to address the nation later this week.
TV political junkies were almost overjoyed at the thought of the news that will be created leading up to the Democratic National Convention, which is scheduled to begin Aug. 19 in Chicago.
“This will be a historic and truly incredible sprint to the finish line,” said CBS News White House correspondent Mary Bruce.
Fox News commentator Dana Perino said: “The politics of the next four weeks are going to be absolutely crazy.”
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David Bauder writes about media for the AP. Follow him on http://twitter.com/dbauder.
