Former President Donald Trump has stated that he plans to approach media mogul Rupert Murdoch and request that Fox News refrain from airing negative political advertisements against him leading up to the election. Trump made this announcement during an appearance on “Fox and Friends” on Friday morning. He expressed his intention to have a conversation with Murdoch, emphasizing the importance of not broadcasting negative commercials for 21 days. Murdoch, who is now 93 years old, stepped down as chairman of Fox Corp., the parent company of Fox News, last year after a long and influential career in the media industry. His son Lachlan currently holds the positions of chairman and CEO within the company.
Trump acknowledged that publicly disclosing their meeting might not please Murdoch Sr., but he believed it was necessary to convey his message directly. He expressed confidence in achieving victory if his request was honored. In recent weeks, Trump has intensified his criticism of Fox News through his Truth Social platform, accusing the network of providing airtime to Democratic pundits and officials from Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign.
During the interview on “Fox and Friends,” Trump lamented how negative ads were now prevalent compared to earlier times when they were rarely aired. Host Brian Kilmeade explained that these ads are shown because advertisers pay for those time slots.
It is worth noting that Trump and his allies have frequently appeared on Fox News throughout his presidential campaigns. These recent criticisms come shortly after Harris participated in an interview with Fox News anchor Bret Baier in an attempt to appeal to their predominantly conservative audience. The exchange between them became heated as both individuals repeatedly interrupted each other.
Following this interview, David Plouffe, a senior advisor to Harris’ campaign, referred to it as an “ambush” in a social media post. The campaign also accused Fox News of selectively editing a video clip featuring Trump during the broadcasted interview.
Baier later admitted on his show “Special Report” that he had made a mistake by expecting another clip instead of what was shown. He defended his interviewing style by stating that redirecting Harris without interrupting her proved challenging.
Please note: Jack Phillips contributed to this report.