Dem
51
GOP
49
We have noted a few occasions in which the New York Post or Wall Street Journal have been unkind to Donald Trump. One of the biggest political issues of 2023 and 2024 is whether all of Rupert Murdoch's media properties—especially Fox—finally and definitively drop Trump. Political observers are watching this very closely. If Murdoch drops Trump and stays neutral in the 2024 primaries, that will hurt Trump considerably. However, if Murdoch not only ditches Trump but also hops on the bandwagon of Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), that will have an even bigger impact as many Fox viewers outside Florida probably don't know much about DeSantis. If Fox not only jumps on the DeSantis bandwagon but tries to steer it, that could have a huge impact on the primaries.
Some important evidence that Murdoch has had it with Trump comes from ... Rupert Murdoch. At the meeting of the News Corp. stockholders in November, Murdoch said: "It is crucial that conservatives play an active, forceful role in that debate, but that will not happen if President Trump stays focused on the past." If Trump has any brains at all, he ought to see that as a giant red flag. Murdoch might yet come around to giving full-throated support to him, but only if he stops talking about 2020 and starts talking about 2024. If he continues to spend his time whining about how unfairly he was treated in 2020, Murdoch is going to drop him. Murdoch couldn't have said that much more clearly. And if all of Murdoch's media properties, including Fox, actively start showcasing DeSantis, Trump has a very big problem.
Murdoch's statement and the various headlines and front pages The New York Post has run aren't the only signs that Murdoch's love affair with Trump is over. Fox doesn't cover his rallies anymore. Some of the Fox hosts have come close to blaming him for the disappointing 2022 midterms. Fox Business host Stuart Varney said: "He seems to be losing what used to be his iron grip on the GOP, and he still has a hard core of supporters who will follow them regardless, but many of the 74 million people who voted for him in 2020 have been turned off."
Daniel Cassino, a media expert who wrote a 2016 book about Fox' influence over American politics, said: "Trump's superpower is getting all the coverage. That's not happening anymore. Fox is not covering him 24 hours a day." The implication here is that if Fox starts treating what DeSantis is having for breakfast as breaking news, that could have a huge impact on the GOP presidential primary.
Tobe Berkovitz, an emeritus professor of advertising at Boston University, said: "Murdoch's outlets in recent months have sent the message that they see Trump as more of an anchor than a life preserver when it comes to the kind of politics they'd like to see. They all see that Trump is no longer the lunch bucket for them when it comes to ratings and readership."
Needless to say, we are going to keep an eye on this in 2023. (V)