Symbol of unity? Inauguration news coverage illustrates differences that pull country apart

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This article was published 20/01/2025 (580 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A presidential inauguration is traditionally a symbol of the traditions that bind Americans together. Mainstream media coverage of the event on Monday provided many reminders of what keeps people apart.

On the Martin Luther King Day holiday, news organizations offered wall-to-wall coverage of President Donald Trump’s second inaugural, an event held largely indoors in Washington because of frigid temperatures.

In many respects, it was a return to normal after Trump did not attend successor Joe Biden’s swearing in four years ago. The ceremony offered images of bipartisanship that “the country to some extent is hungry for,” said NBC News’ Kristen Welker.

A few hours later, historian Jon Meacham was on the same network declaring that Trump had given “the most partisan inaugural that I think I know of in American history.” He said he was stunned that religious figures called to deliver invocations seemed to take sides as well. “When religion is used to divide and exalt one side over the other, we are in a place where we need to take care,” Meacham said.

On CNN, conservative commentator Scott Jennings praised Trump’s speech as remarkable, saying he enjoyed the chance to “watch Donald Trump indict the gangsters to their faces,” referring to Biden and some of his supporters.

CBS’ Norah O’Donnell said it was unusual to see so many attendees of the inauguration leaping to their feet to applaud Trump’s promises and declarations of the weak state he finds the country in. “It was notable,” she said, “that none of the former presidents stood up and applauded during the inaugural address.”

Divisions become more evident as day’s coverage went on

Some of the divisions that marked Trump’s first term became more evident as the day went on.

When Trump addressed supporters in Emancipation Hall shortly after his inaugural, the speech was carried on all of the broadcast networks, CNN and Fox News Channel. But left-leaning MSNBC didn’t show much of it and instead showed former President Biden addressing his supporters at the same time — while silencing the voice of the current president on a split screen.

After Trump spoke in that second speech, CNN’s Jake Tapper noted that “there were a lot of falsehoods” and brought in a fact-checker to go over the remarks. He introduced correspondent Kaitlan Collins to report from the event “before they kick her out.” It harkened back to Trump’s battles with CNN when he was first in office.

Some news websites offered wildly divergent reports after Trump’s inaugural address.

“Trump Declares MAGAfest Destiny in Crazy ‘Saved by God’ Rant,” headlined the Daily Beast. The Daily Wire reported on a different grievance: “Biden, Harris Stay Seated as Trump Gets Standing Ovations Talking About God Saving His Life.” MSNBC highlighted an opinion piece on its website: “Donald Trump is Still Not King.”

Two of the billionaires in control the nation’s biggest social media sites — Elon Musk, owner of X, and Meta leader Mark Zuckerberg — both had prime seats at the inaugural. Fellow tech titans Jeff Bezos — also owner of The Washington Post — Apple CEO Tim Cook and Google CEO Sundar Pichai were also visible.

“The new world order of American politics,” ABC News’ David Muir called them, a description that Musk, who has railed against mainstream media and stands to benefit from doing so, certainly would have appreciated.

“This is what victory feels like,” an exuberant Musk later told an audience at an inaugural event, adding: “This was no ordinary victory. This was a fork in the road of human civilization.”

A day to make note of Fox News’ ascendancy

At Fox News Channel, it was a day to take note of its own (re)ascendancy. Its cameras caught host Laura Ingraham walking in to the inaugural as a guest, pausing to take a selfie with incoming border czar Tom Homan. Former Fox host Pete Hegseth, Trump’s nominee as defense secretary, mingled with other appointees. Cameras even briefly caught a smiling former Fox personality Tucker Carlson.

“It is a spectacular day in Washington, D.C.,” Fox host Martha MacCallum said. She referred, in part, to blue skies over the city but also said — echoing Trump — that the country could be entering a golden era.

“This is a tremendous changing of the guard,” said Larry Kudlow, a Fox host and former official in Trump’s first administration.

Fox commentator Brit Hume mentioned the “extravagant promises” of Trump’s inaugural address. “The greatest four years of American history are about to begin,” he said. “Well, one hopes that turns out to be true. But it’s quite a big promise.”

On Newsmax, another network that appeals to conservative viewers, Chuck Holton noted that none of the “rioters” who protested Trump’s inauguration in 2017 were on hand this year. He suggested that their anger dissipated because temperatures were so cold outside.

The New York Times headlined its coverage: “Trump Says He’ll End U.S. ‘Decline,’” noting that he was casting himself as the rescuer of a nation in disarray. Similarly, the Post said that Trump promised an immediate reversal of many U.S. policies “in vow to end ‘America’s decline.’”

The news websites, along with The Associated Press, maintained live news feeds of a remarkable series of executive orders promised and issued by Trump during his first day back in office. ___

This story has been corrected to show that Norah O’Donnell works at CBS, not CNN.

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David Bauder writes about media for the AP. Follow him at http://x.com/dbauder and https://bsky.app/profile/dbauder.bsky.social