Bob Costas Condemns Mainstream Press for Doing 'MAGA Media': 'There Really Isn't Two Sides'
Legendary sportscaster Bob Costas criticized the media over its handling of President Donald Trump’s second term during an awards ceremony on Monday night. Costas took several major media organizations to task at this year’s Mirror Awards in New York. At the ceremony, hosted by Syracuse University’s Newhouse School, Costas received the Fred Dressler Leadership Award for making “distinct, consistent and unique contributions to the public’s understanding of the media.” In a speech touching on his career in broadcasting and the state of the media business through the years, Costas spoke candidly about the press in the Trump era, and singled out ABC News, CBS News, and CNN.
He slammed ABC News for settling a lawsuit for $15 million after the president sued the outlet for defamation stemming from comments by ABC This Week host George Stephanopoulos. “Judges and two separate juries have found him liable for rape and for defaming the victim of that rape,” Stephanopoulos said on the show in March 2024. A jury found Trump liable for sexually assaulting writer E. Jean Carroll, but did not find him liable for rape. “All they should’ve said was, ‘George misspoke. The president, that paragon of virtue, was only found guilty of sexual assault, not rape. So we stand corrected,'” Costas said of the decision to settle. “They didn’t have to pay a $15 million ransom.”
Next, Costas condemned Paramount, which is controlled by Shari Redstone, for its attempts to settle another Trump suit that legal experts have widely dismissed as frivolous. Trump rejected Paramount’s offer of $15 million to settle. Paramount is looking to merge with Skydance Media in a move that would require the approval of Trump’s Federal Communications Commission. In April, longtime 60 Minutes producer Bill Owens resigned and said in a memo to staff that the program no longer enjoyed editorial independence from the corporate side.
“And did Shari Redstone, because she wants to affect a merger that Trump’s FCC can stand in the way of, did she have to besmirch and undercut the gold standard in our lifetime of broadcast journalism, 60 minutes?” Costas continued. “Paying $20 million in ransom to Trump is just the cost of doing business when there’s billions of dollars at stake. These are ongoing assaults on the basic idea of a free press.” Costas went on to acknowledge that media organizations make mistakes and have “blindspots and misplaced narratives,” though he added a caveat and took a swipe at CNN:
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A couple of years ago Costas was on Jake Tapper's show and Jake was trying to act like they were best buds. He kept inviting Bob to go to a Senators game with him. Repeatedly. Every time he did so, Bob ignored him. It was painful. Finally, Jake gave up without even an acknowledgement of his invitation from Bob. 
