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Politics

Debate Moderator Lester Holt Blew It, Says The Hill

September 27, 2016 - 1:30pm
Lester Holt
Lester Holt

One of the more astute Tuesday morning reflections on the presidential debate comes from Joe Concha, media reporter for The Hill.

Concha isn't a guest contributor at the prestigious, politically centered Washington newspaper, he's a staid staffer, considered among the savviest analysts of media performance working today. What he concludes in his commentary is aptly expressed in the headline, "NBC's Lester Holt emerges from debate bruised and partisan."

Concha says, in essence, it's one thing to say the function of the debate moderator isn't to act as a truth squad -- but when you say that, you'd better apply it to both candidates equally. Holt did not, Concha concludes.

He pursued Donald Trump and let Hillary Clinton off the hook. 

Read the whole of Concha's piece, it's well worth it. But allow us to give you some of the highlights here:

"Debate moderator Lester Holt came into Monday night as a news anchor with a sterling reputation for being a non-partisan newsman.

"He enters Tuesday with at least 40 percent of the country questioning that distinction.

"... When Holt wasn't being invisible, he was targeting Trump's weaknesses while avoiding Clinton's.

"That's not to say the Republican nominee shouldn't have been challenged or fact-checked. But as we've seen throughout this general election campaign, only one candidate is getting fact-checked while the other largely gets a pass.

"Opinions are pointless without facts and foundations, so here's two easy examples to absorb as they pertain to Clinton:

"Fact check No. 1:

"TRUMP: You called it the gold standard of trade deals. You said it’s the finest deal you’ve ever seen.

"CLINTON: No. 

"TRUMP: And then you heard what I said about it, and all of a sudden you were against it. 

"CLINTON: Well, Donald, I know you live in your own reality, but that is not the facts. The facts are -- I did say I hoped it would be a good deal, but when it was negotiated.

"Clinton never used the word 'hoped.' She said 'gold standard' during her time as secretary of state. It had been broached multiple times by Bernie Sanders during the Democratic primaries and therefore was easy to see coming. 
 
"Does Holt correct or fact-check here? No. But he was decidedly aggressive when challenging Trump's claim on always being against the Iraq War, and that's fine. But if the decision was made by Holt beforehand to fact-check in real time, he needed to do so to both sides in obvious situations. This was one of them.

"Fact check #2: Clinton says the murder rate is down in New York City under Bill DeBlasio without police using stop-and-frisk. 

"Stop-and-frisk's last year of existence was 2014. In 2015, in the only full year of records without it in New York City, murders rose to 352, from 333 the year before. Trump kept insisting on this number, Clinton insisted he was wrong. Holt let it go.
 
"But here's where the moderator ultimately fell way short. First, a clear disclaimer: 
 
"Asking Trump about releasing his tax returns or about the "birther" issue are legitimate issues to ask, and Holt was right to do so. 
 
"However, for the moderator to ignore any questions about the Clinton Foundation -- which has been very much in the news lately for all the wrong reasons -- and any direct inquiries about destroying evidence and deleting tens of thousands of emails, calls into questions what his aim was here. And these aren't periphery topics, the kind you can take-or-leave on such a stage. If they were ignored, it was done so purposely. 
 
"That's not to say Trump had a good night. Given Holt's propensity to sit back and let the conversation go where it flowed, Trump -- in his first one-on-one debate -- needed to bring those topics up himself, particularly when one broad subject was cyber security, which couldn't have teed up Clinton's extreme carelessness around handling classified information any better. He didn't. ..."

Concha goes on to question why Holt never uttered a word about immigration or Clinton's health. And in the end, the Hill writer gave Holt a C- based on one thing: "Fact-checking is not a one-way street."

Lester Holt, he says, exits his debate experience as "the toast of left-leaning media, which makes up a solid majority of the landscape overall."

Comments

Joe Concha's article was very good. Lester Holt has lost another person who "thought " he might be impartial.He laid to rest that thought.I believe that is gone in today's Media.

I watched the "Rays" game full well knowing that the "debate" was just one more "liberal media tag-team event" (Hillary and her complicit media vs. Trump) not worthy of my time; NO SURPRISES THERE (as confirmed in the continuing 'aftermath spin'). It is STILL Trump for me (Hillary's proven incompetence would destroy us all, as well as our Republic)... signed// A fed up common sense, old fashioned Democrat.

Me too, did not watch either.

Ditto for me

People have to understand, the Leftists operate by Saul Alinsky's Rules for Radicals which means they will do anything it takes to reach the goal they seek which is one world domination and the end to individual freedom. HRC was made well aware of the questions Holt was going to ask and gave every appearance of reading from a script in her answers. Her smugness was an added giveaway.

Well each side is going to see it their way, which shows how ridiculous and useless these debates are. Totally ridiculous was the continuation of the birther issue. Who gives a rats patootie where he was born, but that said it WAS her supporters who initiated it in 2008 in hopes it would benefit her. As far as his taxes: polls show the electorate don't care about his tax returns--- they care about their own. In any case the ultimate debate will be held on November 8. And we won't need a moderator.

Clinton attacked Trump for not paying enough taxes stating his tax money could be used for important things others needed. Trump missed the opportunity to remind clinton when her husband and her used their underwear as a tax exemption.

Perhaps folks should read a copy of the debate transcripts. Trump appears so ignorant, inconsistent, unfocused, and agitated through out the "debate" that even Perry Mason couldn't rehabilitate him. The reality is that extremists in the GOP simply selected the wrong person to represent them.

Spoken like a true no-nothing liberal. Lester Holt was definitely biased and the word is that He gave Hillary the questions he was going to ask a week before the debate. And if you r soooo smart, why did you vote for Obama...the worst president we ever had after Carter? She is an extension and worse than Obama. Trump cares about this country. Hillary cares about herself. It has been said by the people that work for her...She is a BITCH...vulgar and has no respect fr anyone. You should catch u on your reading! You are definitely a narrow-minded Democrat.

Florence - Do you really think Trump cares about this country? That Fox cool-aid needs to stop being spiked.

Sorry you feel, rather than think.

Not an objective host...he was certainly biased towards HRC. Too bad. I respected him as a journalist before last night.

Holt did great, just called Trump on his lies as he should. ....... Trump lost big time in the groups he needed most, women, the educated giving them up to Hillary because Trump can't stop lying and so sexist........ And Hillary played him like a fiddle using his massive ego to turn him into a babbling fool for all to see......

Holt's personal agenda rendered him hapless. A joke. A DNC teamplayer. Go figure Comrade.

Holt's personal agenda rendered him hapless. A joke. A DNC teamplayer. Go figure Comrade.

Mr. Concha is absolutely correct on the overt partisanship displayed by Lester Holt...I'm very disappointed that he didn't treat both candidates equally...in fact looking at all of the prez debates, the prez commission on debates has decidedly tilted to mainstream media so it's only going to get worse with Anderson Cooper and others...as a former high school and college debate champion, Hillary Cleary won the debate on style points (irrespective of any fact checking)...the Donald was terrible - and very unprepared and it showed...hope he's better next time!

As an Independent voter, I am motivated by facts. That's exactly why I did fact check the debate, and Trump was untruthful more than HRC for over a 4 to 1 ratio. That is not good, maybe that is why Holt felt the need to fact check Trump because he was lying 4 times as much...and those are the facts...classic.

Clinton was polished but lackluster. Trump blew it. He rambled most of the night. He got embarrassed about not being presidential, taxes, and his business record (I've built fabulous, magnificent companies, you should see them...give me a break dude) He is going to fix everything, but has zero plans for anything. He is a typical big business bozo with no clue, and admitted to making billions of dollars and paying zero taxes on any of it. He, and many just like him are what's broken with this country. He is part of the problem, instead of part of the solution...

It would be difficult to debate someone whom was getting her words from the boss.....there really was NO debate, it was a schmere.

Hillary flops around more than an out of water fish

Well Written .. Well said by Concha - way to go... Super.. Truth will always win. If he is a reporter -he should facts both sides.. they are all total Liberals and they conduct main stream media like that..totally Unfair and make Trump as a victim.. This is not a TRUE MODERATION. Well written at least to the world to make it known. Anyhow it is going to be President Donald trump to win for White House- that's for sure

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