CNN denies speculation the debate feed will be delayed by up to two minutes amid claims from Don Jr. network wants to ‘manipulate’ the debate
- Speculation flew for hours before the debate was to begin
- Trump supporters said it was part of a plot to help Biden; CNN denied any delay
Corners of the Internet capitalized on speculation, denied by the network, that CNN would implement a two-minute broadcast delay in an attempt to focus the presidential debate on Joe Biden.
It started when Patrick Webb of Leading Report on
‘BREAKING: CNN will implement a 1-2 minute delay for tonight’s presidential debate instead of the standard 7 second delay. This may allow time to edit portions of the broadcast,” the account said.
This led to a wave of conspiracy theories claiming the whole thing was rigged, and the post quickly racked up over 2 million views.
“The Trump camp thinks there will be at least a minute’s delay. Can you confirm that there will be no delay of more than seven seconds?’ Webb wrote and tagged the network.
The communications department responded to his original post and removed it.
‘This is wrong. The debate begins live at 9:00 PM ET,” according to CNN. Webb used that response to say, “Thanks for confirming the delay.”
Why the rush? There was speculation online that CNN would delay the debate – something the network specifically denied
The claims and counterclaims prompted media reporter Brian Stelter, a former CNN contributor, to jump in. “Be careful — it’s wild here today — a lot of people are falling for misinformation about the presidential debate production. To address one of the BS claims: No, CNN does not put the live feed on a half-minute delay to somehow protect the older candidates.”
The conspiracy took off after Trump floated the idea during the debate that Biden was “under the influence” of drugs. White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre said on Thursday en route to Atlanta that she would not deign to answer a question about whether Biden was under the influence of drugs.
CNN may have stoked the conspiracy theorists by ignoring the White House Correspondents Association and refusing to allow a group of reporters into the debate chamber to cover the race in its entirety.
Under the terms negotiated by the campaigns, the two candidates will face each other
Leading Report’s Patrick Webb posted information on X claiming the network would delay the debate
Time will tell: the network said the debate would start at 9 p.m.
Trump supporters used the idea to claim that CNN would be the deciding factor for President Biden
Biden, 81, arrived in Atlanta shortly before Trump, 78
“The pool is for the ‘what if?’ in a world where the unexpected happens. A pool reporter is there to provide context and insight through direct observation and not through the lens of television production,” wrote WHCA President Kelly O’Donnell.
Trump had already claimed the debate would be three-to-one by predicting moderators Jake Tapper and Danna Bash, both longtime DC correspondents.
There will be no studio audience, after a town hall during the primaries cheered many of Trump’s comments.
Candidates are not allowed to consult with staff during commercial breaks.
Donald Trump Jr. resumed the drug claim Thursday hours before the show. Why would Joe Biden refuse to take a drug test? The New York Post published an article about all the drugs he could “legally” take to give him some semblance of clarity… If he wasn’t that impressed with drugs, why wouldn’t he take such an easy test ? He’ll be higher than Hunter!’ He wrote.