TV News Veterans Offer Advice on Clinton-Trump Debate

CAMBRIDGE, MA — Bob Schieffer has this theory he's been thinking about. It goes something like this: "The most successful politicians are the ones that master the mediums of their time."

In 2016, that politician is nearly unquestionably Donald Trump.

It's a thought Schieffer says he's been kicking around, maybe more-so now that he's retired from a 46-year career with CBS News, where he interviewed every president since Richard Nixon and most recently hosted "Face the Nation."

Schieffer credits Trump's mastery of the modern medium of Twitter for his ability to control messaging and his understanding of TV news for the reality star's runaway success in the primaries. However, he sharply disagrees with those who would question whether a lapse on the part of the media resulted in Trump's current proximity to the presidency.

He spoke at a Harvard Kennedy School panel Sept. 20 alongside fellow political reporting veteran Ann Compton, answering questions on that topic and more.

"I don't know if Donald Trump is a good politician," Schieffer said, "but he knows how to get on television."

Asked by an audience member whether the media is to blame for Trump's rise, particularly in the primaries, Schieffer was adamant, even sharp. There's always room to improve, he said, but by and large he believes the press has done a good job. Then he turned the question around, asking whether the audience member felt she had enough information about Trump to decide whether to vote for him.

"At this point, yes," she said, after a brief hesitation.

"Then we've done our job," Schieffer replied.

But as both Schieffer and Compton elaborated over the course of a wide-ranging, thought-provoking hour, this is an unprecedented time, for both the American political system, and for the traditional journalism outlets covering it.

Both reporters drew on decades of experience, having presided over or asked questions at five presidential debates between them and covered dozens of candidates. Compton spent her career with ABC, Schieffer with CBS.

To the moderators at next Monday's debut debate between Trump and Hillary Clinton, some words of advice from both:

• Do your homework.
• Don't make it about you.
• Let their opponent play fact-checker first, but step in if you need to.
• Help the public learn something about the candidates.
• And know, says Schieffer, that these are "two of the hardest people in American politics to interview" (although no need to worry that they'll be shy about correcting one another).

The prevalence of social media "puts the tools of journalism in the hands of the candidates themselves," Compton said, while Schieffer described the tenor of political conversation this cycle as akin to an ever-devolving "thread on a blog post," with each person going lower and nastier than the next.

Different partisan groups seek out online and broadcast sources that confirm their own biases, and present their own skewed version of the facts, he said; the "presumption of truth" for mainstream outlets has diminished.

On top of changes in the media landscape, there's the disintegration of the traditional party support structures. Both are at the weakest they've ever been, according to Schieffer.

"This is not so much a campaign about issues as it is about attitude," he said, noting that Trump — to Schieffer's mind — represents few traditional Republican values. "If it's a win, it's a win for the Trump Party, not Republican. ... I think the GOP is coming apart. There's not a tent big enough to hold its separate parts."

Schieffer draw a straight line connecting historically high frustration with the federal government, with gridlock in Washington, DC, with the success of politicians such as Trump. The state of politics today, particularly the role of money and perpetual demands of fundraising, discourages what Schieffer calls "serious people" from seeking public office as they once did.

He referenced months-long congressional inaction on a funding bill to combat the Zika virus as one example.

"This is an outrage; this is one of the worst stains on our government that I can recall," Schieffer said. "No wonder people feel frustrated."

Both Schieffer and Compton were reticent to forecast the future on Nov. 8 or beyond, although Schieffer gave one unequivocal, short-term prediction ("more gridlock").

Beyond that, Compton said, a president is rarely defined by their campaign promises. Rather, it's by whatever "unbidden crisis rolls in their path," and how they meet it.

Or, as Schieffer summed up, "Events (not people) will probably dictate what happens next."

Schieffer and Compton spoke Tuesday as part of the Kennedy School's forum, "Media, Politics and Power: Trump, Clinton and the 2016 Election." Schieffer is the current Walter Shorenstein Media and Democracy Fellow, and Compton is a visiting fellow at the Institute of Politics, which co-sponsored the event.

The conversation was moderated by Nicco Mele, Director of the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy.

Photo for Patch by Jeff Engel