The Republican National Convention opened this afternoon, with a boosted security presence following the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump.
That has given the proceedings a different tenor of coverage, with Trump expected to appear on the floor Monday night to a rousing reception of delegates and supporters.
Before the Trump rally shooting, correspondents already were looking to a convention that would be more than just a coronation of the Republican nominee, as he has yet to announce his vice presidential running mate. The former president has signaled that will come today.
Now, with the assassination attempt and concerns over the escalation of political violence, media focus will be on the speakers and the extent to which they display messages of unity versus red meat rhetoric.
“The reality is, this whole convention now is going to be really colored by what happened the other, and just the images of him pumping first and saying, ‘Fight. Fight. Fight,’” CNN’s Mark Preston said on Sunday. “I think we are going to see a lot of that happen here over the next four or five days.”
There’s also what is happening on the Democratic side, with President Joe Biden trying to fight off calls for him to step aside following his poor debate performance. Such talk has been sidelined a bit in the wake of the Trump assassination attempt, with Biden giving three statements condemning political violence, but he is scheduled to appear in an interview with NBC News’ Lester Holt this evening, a bit of counter-programming on the GOP convention’s first night.
The schedule. The convention runs from today through Thursday night, when Trump will give his nomination speech. Each day’s proceedings will run from 1:45 p.m. ET to 5:45 p.m. ET, and 6:45 p.m. ET to 11 p.m.
The speakers. The Trump campaign announced a lineup of speakers over the weekend, including celebrity figures like Tucker Carlson, Amber Rose and Dana White, and politicos like Ted Cruz, Ron DeSantis and some of Trump’s VP contenders. Nikki Haley, Trump’s main rival for the nomination, was originally not supposed to speak but reportedly will be a late addition to the lineup. Absent from the list: Former First Lady Melania Trump, who spoke in 2016 and 2020. She is still expected to attend.
Who’s speaking at the Republican National Convention.
Among the speakers expected today are Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) and Sean O’Brien, the president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.
The host city. Milwaukee. The city is not brimming with hotel rooms, and some attendees are staying in places like Lake Geneva, about an hour away. There even were reports that Trump planned to stay in Chicago, the host city for the Democratic National Convention next month. That was denied by his campaign. But there are logistical challenges of hosting a convention in a smaller-sized city.
The show. Like in 2016 and 2020, reality show moments, grand entrances and surprises will be at a premium. Trump already is suggesting that, following his brush with death, he is changing his speech to something more unifying — and that in and of itself will be a story and theme of coverage. The actual theme of today’s proceedings is “Make America Wealthy Again.” The producer of the event is Phil Alongi, a former NBC News producer specializing in special events. He also produced the proceedings in 2016.
Today’s proceedings also will include some convention business, including the approval of the party platform and the vote to formally nominate Trump.
The media footprint. Although there may not be as many journalists in Milwaukee, as news organizations trim their budgets, there will be no scarcity of coverage. Almost 30 years since Nightline anchor Ted Koppel packed up his crew and left the Republican convention midway, noting the paucity of news in such a staged-managed affair, broadcast networks are still planning primetime coverage, along with more extensive carriage of the proceedings on their streaming channels . Cable networks will be focused on Fiserv Arena, with a new entrant, NewsNation, which bills itself as the only network based in the Midwest, the locale of both host cities. And yes, some of the networks, like CNN and CBS News, will still have sky boxes, allowing them to display their logos as a backdrop to the media moment.
While the coverage of what is happening on the convention stage, with its backdrop of the White House, will look similar across channels, the location of anchors, correspondents and commentators will vary. MSNBC, for instance, is keeping many of its star hosts in New York, where they will anchor the proceedings.
