"The Donald Trump years have broken any number of hallowed political and media institutions, so why should the most hallowed political-media institution of them all, the Sunday show, escape unscathed?" says Jason Zengerle. "Yes, those self-important shows with their self-important anchors have never been as crucial to our constitutional system as they like to imagine. But they have at least provided a refuge from the soft-focused fecklessness of the networks’ evening news and the shrieking of the prime-time carnival barkers on cable. That changed during Trump’s presidency. In some instances, the shows were less about educating the viewing audience than flattering an audience of one. 'The reality is that the president is a political genius,' Stephen Miller told Jake Tapper on CNN’s State of the Union during a contentious interview in 2018. 'I’m sure he’s watching and is happy you said that,' Tapper told Miller. (Trump soon tweeted a link to the segment, praising Miller.) Even worse, the shows became platforms for disinformation."
TOPICS: Trump Presidency, Face the Nation, Fox News Sunday, Meet the Press, State of the Union with Jake Tapper, This Week With George Stephanopoulos