The approval rating for President Trump’s handling of the coronavirus crisis is around 60 percent, and his press briefings have caused some in the media to ask if the media should stop covering them live. A New York Times media reporter has explored that very question:

NEW: Trump's virus briefings are scoring "Monday Night Football"-level ratings. But should TV networks be covering them live? https://t.co/ZDkMV2U8Oq — Michael M. Grynbaum (@grynbaum) March 25, 2020

Cable news viewership for the daily Trump briefing is eye-popping: 12.2 million on Monday, with 6.2 million watching on Fox News *alone.* Millions more are tuning in via ABC, CBS, NBC, and online streaming sites. — Michael M. Grynbaum (@grynbaum) March 25, 2020

But Ted Koppel told me he's concerned about the unfiltered coverage by TV networks: "Training a camera on a live event, and just letting it play out, is technology, not journalism; journalism requires editing and context." — Michael M. Grynbaum (@grynbaum) March 25, 2020

Yeah, we can’t have people deciding for themselves before the content has been filtered by the liberal media!

Unfiltered is how I like my events. Why I don’t subscribe to narrative pushers. — Pouncing Coder Brad (@bradcundiff) March 25, 2020

Because, again, the American people must only be shown information after it's been filtered & framed by the media. Otherwise they won't know what to think. https://t.co/pxsCJLyOxX — Omri Ceren (@omriceren) March 25, 2020

OUT: Where are the daily briefings, you fascist?

IN: Why is this fascist holding so many briefings? https://t.co/QLwqezv3lR — China did this (@jtLOL) March 25, 2020

And yet the media seem oblivious to their inconsistencies.

You guys had no problem covering his 2016 rallies live beginning to end. Now he’s President & you have no idea how bad this makes you look. Like it or not, he’s the president speaking to the country. https://t.co/SGjsAds2Gl — Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) March 25, 2020

If you stop airing briefings that includes live up to date information from Fauci & Birx people will go somewhere else to watch it, and they won’t come back to you. How do these people continuously shoot them selves in the foot like this. — Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) March 25, 2020

Media outlets don’t get to determine if the president of the United States speaking during a global pandemic is newsworthy or not. It is newsworthy. This is about journalists making themselves the story and deciding what information you should have. — Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) March 25, 2020

It makes every news outlet doing this look petty and it lends credibility to the conspiracy theory that they are only doing it to blunt his approval ratings. — Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) March 25, 2020

Thinking that you can not air the daily briefings, then just play snippets you think are important 5 hours later on your nightly newscast is why the internet killed your industry. You're dinosaurs, and worse, you're activists. — Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) March 25, 2020

Bingo.

This is about blunting approval ratings … let’s not delude ourselves into thinking there is any “journalism” conversation happening https://t.co/55dFH2pmFM — Jon Levine (@LevineJonathan) March 25, 2020

Translation: Trump’s press conferences are increasing his approval ratings and we don’t like that so SHUT IT DOWN https://t.co/iK4nClExmo — Adam Trahan (@AdamTrahan) March 25, 2020

That’s exactly what’s happening.

It's the President speaking to the country during a pandemic. Why would we want to see CNNs interpretation of what he said as opposed to his actual words? — Ban Free Zone (@BanFree) March 25, 2020

“People are appreciating the information they’re getting. Here’s why we should interfere with that.” https://t.co/8Y8L7DsyND — The Partyman (@PartymanRandy) March 25, 2020

If TV networks covered them live, they couldn't lie and say that Trump told people to take fish tank cleaner when in fact he said the drug in question (which wasn't even the same drug as what's in fish tank cleaner) would eventually be available by PRESCRIPTION. pic.twitter.com/3QNCmGEddp — Aldous Huxley's Ghost™ (@AF632) March 25, 2020

The funniest thing is that they were the ones crying the loudest that he wasn't doing briefings. — CORDENTHUSIAST (@cordenthusiast) March 25, 2020

It’s almost as if the media will never be happy with anything Trump does, no matter what it is.