At least until Friday, cable news coverage of the former president's first criminal trial had a sense of climax.
The dry, slow-moving proceedings inside a lower Manhattan courtroom are off-camera, so each network conducts its usual interviews with experts and analysts over the sight and sound of on-site cameras outside. could only provide.
That changed Friday when a Florida man named Max Azzarello attempted to self-immolate near the courthouse. This was an immediate reminder of the promise and danger of live cable news, especially for CNN, the network that birthed the genre.
As the station's legal analyst and anchor Laura Coates was conducting a live interview with a jury selection expert, Azzarello threw a conspiracy theory pamphlet in the air, doused him with an accelerant, and set himself on fire. I started.
Ms. Coates stopped the conversation about quarantine rules to dramatize what was happening nearby.
“Active shooter, active shooter in the park outside the court,” she mistakenly shouted in excitement, but soon realized what she was witnessing. He himself has just come out of court. Our camera is on this time. ”
This completely engulfed CNN's screen, filling it with searing footage of Mr. Azzarello sitting on a park bench while Mr. Coates continued his radio-style reading. “We see multiple fires starting” around his body. ” she said. “There's confusion. People are wondering if people are in danger right now,” adding, “You can smell the air and smell some kind of meat burning.” You can feel it and smell the burning of some kind of chemical that was used.”
Other networks at the scene covered the incident, but CNN's coverage was the most dramatic and graphic. (FOX News cut footage of the fire as soon as it became clear what was going on, and senior correspondent Eric Shawn told viewers, “We apologize for showing this.”)
There's no question it was a big moment for Coates, a former Justice Department voting rights attorney who is now CNN's chief legal analyst and anchor of its 11 p.m. .
“CNN's Laura Coates praised for 'breathtaking' coverage of Trump trial eruption,” the Daily Beast reported, with various journalists and influencers on social media platform X and Threads praising Coates. He said he deserved an award, a raise, and a raise. CNN is getting even more attention.
But there was also criticism of Coates' initial false reporting as a “mass shooter” and CNN's snap decision to broadcast graphic footage of the self-immolation live.
“In chaotic and shocking situations, mistakes happen,” podcaster, commentator, and former cable news host Keith Olbermann wrote in a critical post about He complained that he was doing so.
The incident was reminiscent of other moments when cable news had to make split-second decisions about what to show during breaking news events that featured graphic and disturbing images. Perhaps most notable was the aftermath of the September 11 attacks, which occurred just blocks from her home. Coates stood.
In fact, shortly after her report, CNN standards officials issued new guidelines warning producers not to rebroadcast footage aired live.
The network declined to comment. One executive, speaking on condition of anonymity, said there were concerns that rebroadcasting the video would encourage copycats, but said the station has to make such decisions every day, including its coverage of the Gaza war. It pointed out.
But in this case, the action was unexpected and unusually close, so close that the driver of CNN's satellite truck was among the first on the scene, along with police, and offered to use a fire extinguisher. It was moderate.
on her Friday night show. Ms Coates said: She initially thought Mr. Azzarello was an “active shooter” because of “the times we live in.” At that moment, she said, “she was shocked,” and she noted that she came to CNN as a legal professional, not a typical journalist with field experience. “My mouth spoke volumes about my eyes,” she said. My nose longs to smell it, but my heart breaks for that man and his girlfriend's family. ”