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| Edited By: Vritti Issar |Source: |Updated: May 28, 2016, 10:00 AM IST
Donald Trump's quest to "Make America Great Again" is going strong. Since his presidential candidacy announcement on June 16, 2015, Trump has dominated media coverage, to say the least. Already a popular reality show figure, he has only fed the media’s craving for higher ratings, since his campaign began.
His victory at the Indiana primary put an end to Ted Cruz’s campaign in May and virtually made him the Republican Party's "presumptive nominee". He has now secured the necessary number of delegates required to clinch the Republican Party's nomination. This makes one wonder how prominent the media’s role has been in giving Trump visibility. Trump has been on the receiving end of maximum media exposure out of all other candidates. Steady coverage of his campaigns on live television has proved extremely beneficial both ways.
One absurd claim after the other has ensured that Trump remains in the news. A collection of Trump’s quotes have inspired one article after the other, with New York’s Daily News condemning him right from the beginning, and Huffington Post even classifying his campaign into the 'Entertainment' section back in July 2015.
Failing @NYTimes will always take a good story about me and make it bad. Every article is unfair and biased. Very sad! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 20, 2016
A report by The New York Times projects that Trump has spent only $10 million on paid advertising, but in actuality, has received coverage worth a whopping $1.9 billion. He has been a clear media favourite as his other Republican rivals have failed to receive this much coverage combined, with only $1.2 billion worth of television coverage being given to them. This means that 62% of the attention focussed has been given to Trump.
Fox News, for example, has witnessed a double-digit growth in total number of viewers, with primetime viewers going up by 10%. The channel's focus on Trump during the primary season brought in an additional 11.3 million viewers. He has dominated not just television ratings, but has been in constant focus on print and digital platforms as well.
The nature of how Trump has been covered these past months makes for a curious case study. The reporting during the summer phase demonstrates how despite making ludicrous statements, he remained a popular figure. He became subdued during debates in the early fall period, but made it back into the limelight after the Paris and San Bernardino attacks; he voiced his anti-immigration and anti-Muslim opinions blatantly and it is not hard to see why these statements achieved the traction they did. The next phase (starting from winter and continuing till now), has been a frenzied affair, with Trump making the headlines nearly every day.
The "protesters" in California were thugs and criminals. Many are professionals. They should be dealt with strongly by law enforcement! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 30, 2016
26,000 unreported sexual assults in the military-only 238 convictions. What did these geniuses expect when they put men & women together? — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 7, 2013
To say that media is the force behind Trump’s rise, is only partially correct. The billionaire makes sure to connect with Republican supporters, constantly works to overpower his rivals, and revels in all the negative attention he gets, especially on Twitter where he makes sure he hits his challenger with a strong comeback. The political drama he created has certainly made him a topic that is trending constantly.
Look where the world is today, a total mess, and ISIS is still running around wild. I can fix it fast, Hillary has no chance! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 20, 2016
Trump’s entry into the race was initially laughed off- the media certainly undermined his popularity. During the last few months, however, it became clear that unpopularity is what has made him the presumptive nominee of the Republican Party, even though at one point of time Trump rebelled against the “establishment” of the party. Trump recently claimed that he does not need the support of the Republican Party, given that some of the party's prominent leaders have now joined the #NeverTrump movement, which is focussing on looking for an 'alternative candidate' to Trump.
While the media has both berated him and laughed at him in turn, they remain guilty of benefiting off Trump's antics in the form of better ratings.
The economy is bad and getting worse-almost ZERO growth this quarter. Nobody can beat me on the economy (and jobs). MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 30, 2016
