The New York Times came under sharp criticism on Friday after its print edition omitted a single word about Joe Biden’s disastrous performance during the presidential debate against Donald Trump.
On Friday, readers of the self-proclaimed ‘newspaper of significance’ woke up to headlines about Iran’s intensification of nuclear work and an analysis of Julian Assange.
Unlike other major newspapers — including the equally left-leaning Washington Post, the more conservative Wall Street Journal and the tabloid New York Post — the real Times did not report on the debate between President Biden and Donald Trump.
The newspaper made no mention of the debate, except for a small box at the bottom right of the paper edition, which briefly indicated what the online reporting would be.
The outlet directed physical readers of the newspaper to its website to stay up-to-date on the high-stakes rematch.
The newspaper made no mention of the debate, except for a small box at the bottom right of the edition briefly noting that it was taking place.
The president and his predecessor faced off in the first of two debates in Atlanta on Thursday evening
Fox News contributor Joe Concha went to the outlet and told DailyMail.com that he believes if Biden had performed well, it would have been splashed across the entire cover.
“I find it completely incomprehensible that the New York Times would leave coverage of a debate off the front page for an event that, aside from election night, will be the most watched political event of the year,” Concha said.
‘I cannot speak about the motives of the decision makers [at the Times]but I daresay if Joe Biden had had anything resembling a good night, it would have been all over the front pages.
‘And this underscores once again that this publication has not endorsed a Republican presidential candidate since 1956.
“And whoever the Democratic nominee becomes, it is 100% certain that they will support that candidate as well, even Joe Biden.”
Meanwhile, Newsbusters editor-in-chief Tim Graham wondered whether the piece would have been as bereft if the debate had gone the right way.
“I don’t know enough about the publishing process, but the question is, was it a political decision or a logistical decision?” Graham said.
“It’s very embarrassing anyway and it begs the question: Would there have been more urgency if Trump had had a similar bad night?”
Despite the Times – which promises on every front page to deliver “all the news that fits” – providing no information whatsoever about Biden’s freezes, weak behavior and disastrous assessments of even staunch Democrats who called for his resignation after the 90-minute debate, on their website there are headlines such as ‘JOE MUST STOP OUT OF THE RACE’, ‘BIDEN CANNOT CONTINUE LIKE THIS’ and ‘PRESIDENT BIDEN, IT’S TIME TO RETURN’.
It remains unclear why the outlet’s newspaper edition did not publish a later edition that included the debate — they reportedly printed around 9 p.m., when the debate began.
But in recent years, after major debate nights, the newspaper has featured extensive reporting and analysis on the front page.
On social media platform
Someone posted: ‘I just looked at the front page of the New York Times. WTH happened last night?
“And I’m not talking about Caitlin Clark taking two shots in the second half,” the post snarled.
Another shared a screenshot of the page, adding: “What’s missing from the front page of The New York Times today?”
Author Dr. Jordan Peterson also joined the debate, writing, “Did I just hallucinate the disastrous presidential debate?” He shared a photo of the front page of the Times.
The president and his predecessor faced off in Atlanta on Thursday night in the first of two debates on topics ranging from the economy to immigration and foreign affairs.
Previous editions of the newspaper after the debate evening included reporting and analysis on the front page
Trump, on the other hand, had his usual energy as he attacked Biden on stage and made at least 30 untrue statements during the 90-minute debate
Biden, whose aides said he had a cold in an attempt to explain away his performance, spoke hoarsely and appeared confused and at times incoherent at the start of the increasingly downhill debate.
At times, the president looked blankly into the camera or at his notes as Trump spoke.
Trump, on the other hand, had a lot of energy as usual as he attacked Biden on stage and made at least 30 untrue statements during the 90-minute debate.
Biden’s disastrous performance found its way into the Times’ online opinion pages, where none of a panel of 12 writers concluded that Biden had won the internal battle.
To top it off, one A number of columnists said that Biden must immediately withdraw from the race.
In a piece titled “God Help Us,” NYT columnist Josh Barro added that Biden was “particularly disastrous” and “mumbling, sometimes incoherent and seeming very, very old.”
Thomas Friedman, political commentator and friend of the president, added: ‘I watched the Biden-Trump debate alone in a hotel room in Lisbon and it made me cry.
“I can’t remember a more heartbreaking moment in the American presidential campaign in my lifetime — precisely because of what it revealed: Joe Biden, a good man and a good president, has no business being re-elected.”
JL Partners surveyed 805 independent voters immediately after the 90-minute clash
Friedman added that Trump was a “firehose of lies” who “doesn’t come close to what America needs to lead in the 21st century.”
In a Paul Krugman piece titled “The Best President of My Adult Life Must Resign,” he said he joined the “chorus asking Biden to voluntarily step aside.”
The confrontation with Donald Trump after the car crash has caused a crisis within the Democratic Party.
At a rally in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Friday, the president used his time to allay those fears on Friday afternoon.
‘I know I’m not a young man anymore. To put it plainly,” Biden said. ‘People, I no longer walk as easily as I used to. I no longer speak as fluently as I used to. I don’t debate as well as I used to.’
“But I know what I know — I know how to tell the truth. I know what’s right and wrong. And I know how to do this job. I know how to get things done,” the president argued.
He also assured the crowd, “I give you my word as Biden.”
“I would not run for re-election if I didn’t believe with all my heart and soul that I could do this job,” Biden said.
First Lady Jill Biden, who helped her husband off stage after his CNN disaster, wore a dress with the word “vote” on it and defended his debate performance the day after
Behind the scenes, there are calls to replace him on the 2024 slate of candidates, with just 130 days to go until the nominating convention in Chicago.
‘Deflated’ White House staffers have reportedly filled group chats with messages saying their boss’s performance was ‘ugly’ and ‘terrible’.
Congressional leaders even admitted that Biden’s debate performance, in which he squirmed and struggled to finish his sentences, was poor.
But publicly they stand behind their man, who refuses to back down and has even agreed to a second debate with Trump in September.
A damning DailyMail.com poll of the debate found that a clear majority of independent voters said Biden should no longer be the nominee, with some 62 percent saying he should be thrown off the ticket.
JL Partners polled 805 independent voters immediately after the 90-minute clash and found that 68 percent said the former president had won over his successor in the White House.
DailyMail.com has reached out to The New York Times for comment, but there was no immediate response.