ToplineCNN anchor Anderson Cooper drew heat from the media, political analysts and politicians this week for his defense of CNN’s town hall with former President Donald Trump, one even posting a deepfake video of Cooper Friday that appeared to show him complimenting Trump’s performance at the event. Debate moderator Anderson Cooper poses a questtion during the CNN Democratic Presidential Primary ... [+] Debate between Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-Vt.) at the Whiting Auditorium at the Cultural Center Campus on March 6, 2016, in Flint, Michigan. After Cooper’s comments, others in the media criticized him for defending his network’s decision to host the town hall, with political commentator Keith Olbermann taking to Twitter to say, “Instead of Anderson Cooper bravely calling out his bosses, last night he blamed his audience,” and NPR media analyst Eric Deggans tweeting that Cooper gave viewers the false choice of ignoring Trump or giving him a platform with no pushback. CNN alumni also weighed in, as former analyst Jeff Greenfield called Cooper’s comment “a straw man” and said “it conflates the real need to cover Trump . He wrapped up the event by calling moderator Kaitlan Collins a “nasty person.”Further ReadingAOC Says CNN Should Be ‘Ashamed’ Of Trump Town Hall, Amid Widespread Backlash (Forbes)Trump Town Hall: Trump Open To Pardoning Proud Boys For Seditious Conspiracy—And Calls Jan. 6 ‘Beautiful Day’ (Forbes)

Source: CNN May 13, 2023 08:18 UTC