Donald Trump, who never seemed to meet a camera he didn’t like, became a constant TV presence throughout the Republican primary, a bonafide celebrity crowding out a field of more conventional senators and governors. He understood the power of the medium, knocking out one TV interview after another before most politicians finished their morning coffee.
As Republican standard-bearer, however, Trump has mostly retreated to the relatively cozy confines of Fox News. And it seems to be in response to having badly damaged his own candidacy during a high-profile sit down on another network.
On July 31, Trump spoke with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos for an interview on “This Week,” during which he publicly questioned whether the Gold Star mother of a Muslim army officer had been forced into silence because of her religion. Since that attack on the Khan family, Trump hasn’t appeared on the network. Nor has he appeared on any others except Fox News and Fox Business (save for a phone interview with CNBC on Aug. 11).
Indeed, the last appearance Trump made on CNN was June 13, according to an official with the cable network. The last time he was on NBC News was July 24, three days after officially becoming the party’s nominee. He hasn’t appeared on MSNBC since a May 20 episode of “Morning Joe,” a show he’s since repeatedly railed against. And he hasn’t been on CBS since July 17, as part of the rollout for vice presidential pick Mike Pence.
Since he sat down with Stephanopoulos, however, Trump has appeared at least 11 times on Fox News.
