CNN will host the next Republican presidential debate on Wednesday, September 16. Unlike the last debate, you can stream this puppy for free. This isn’t a charitable move on CNN’s part, for they will reel in some major dough and increase their usual advertising rates by 40 times more than what they usually charge sponsors. Instead of $5000, which is their average going rate, CNN will charge up to $200,000 per ad spot. They can certainly justify those rates because of one candidate’s presence — Donald Trump.
Trump is an entertainment juggernaut. If this week’s event plays out anything like the Fox News GOP debate did, Trump will dominate the conversation while the other candidates wonder why they showed up. He may once again say inappropriate things to moderators and spend the next week trolling them on Twitter while his supporters also make unsavory comments to support their guy. There could be an enduring aftermath, and CNN wants to cash in while they can.
Trump — who is a businessman at heart — knows all of this, and he thinks CNN shouldn’t profit from the political process. He wrote a letter to the media requesting that CNN head honcho Jeff Zucker donate all debate profits to veterans’ charities:
“While I refuse to brag, and you know very well, this tremendous increase in viewer interest is due 100% to ‘Donald J. Trump’ … As you are aware, for the first debate, FOX unexpectedly (but not to those who know), had one of the largest audiences in the history of cable television, 24 million people plus, and word is that your audience will be even larger.
“I believe that all profits from this broadcast should go to various VETERANS groups, a list of which I will send to you in the near future. The veterans of our country, our finest people, have been treated horribly by our government and its ‘all talk and no action’ politicians.
“In fact, some would say they are treated like third class citizens — even worse, in many cases, than illegal immigrants. It is about time that someone comes to their aid. Let’s start now! This large contribution of many millions of dollars would be a truly wonderful thing for CNN to do.”
Trump is correct about how his presence increases viewership. Fox News viewers received an across-the-board boost by Trump’s presence. 24 million people tuned in to see what Donald Trump would do, and this will happen for CNN too. He’s leading in the latest polls, and this debate could arguably be even messier than the last one. Should CNN donate their profits? That’s a decision for Zucker to make. Whatever happens, Trump achieved his goal by working in a statement about veterans without insulting a war hero.
(Via Business Insider)
