COLUMBIA JOURNALISM REVIEW – 23/03/2020
Jon Allsop, CJR
Remember when the Sunday shows were filled with Democratic presidential candidates, or Republican lawmakers spreading debunked claims about Trump and Ukraine? In recent weeks, as the coronavirus crisis has taken hold and relegated recent huge stories to the realm of distant memory, administration officials—Mike Pence, Dr. Anthony Fauci, Surgeon General Jerome Adams, and others—have (often virtually) made the rounds. Yesterday, it was the turn of Peter Gaynor, the Federal Emergency Management Agency administrator, who appeared on ABC, NBC, and CNN. On the latter network, Jake Tapper tried to pin Gaynor down on the number of protective masks the federal government has acquired and sent out to hospitals. Gaynor wouldn’t even venture an estimate. “You understand though, of course, that the inability of the federal government to give a number in terms of masks alarms people,” Tapper said. “Without a number, it doesn’t fill people with confidence.” Tapper then pressed on other urgent supply issues, to little avail; “Again,” he said, “nobody’s doubting the sincerity of your effort, but the lack of numbers is alarming.” Wrapping up, Tapper wished Gaynor well. “Please let us know if there’s anything we can do to help,” Tapper said. “God bless you, and good luck in this.”