Why does Donald Trump do this? What does he get out of it? How does it benefit him or his presidential campaign?
I liked The Kelly File much better without @megynkelly. Perhaps she could take another eleven day unscheduled vacation!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 25, 2015
"@mstanish53: @realDonaldTrump @megynkelly The bimbo back in town . I hope not for long ."
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 25, 2015
As noted in todays’ forthcoming Three Martini Lunch podcast, it’s bad enough that we’re going to spend another news cycle or two arguing about whether Trump is out of line calling Kelly a bimbo. But we’ve already done this… less than three weeks ago! Our news cycle is in late summer reruns!
We look at our news media and wonder, “why are they talking about X instead of ISIS gassing the Kurds/the Planned Parenthood videos/the sudden spike in homicides/other important news?” One possible explanation is that stories about hurt feelings are a lot easier to write and discuss. You don’t need any specialized knowledge to discuss whether something is offensive or not; you just need feelings. The “debate” is simple and open to everyone; endless cycles of “yes, it’s offensive” and “no, it’s not.”
Trump’s instinctive combativeness — whether you find it obnoxious or merely “politically incorrect” — provides constant fodder for this never-ending hunger for perpetual drama. (Alex Pappas reports on a Frank Luntz focus group of Trump supporters that see nothing in his past or behavior that bothers them.) In this sense, he’s perfectly matched with the voracious needs of our news cycle. But what does that mean for all of those stories that aren’t as simple as Trump fighting with some other famous news figure?