NYT Columnists Face Backlash Over 2024 Debate 'Draw' Call After Jill Biden's Stroke Remark
Updated
Updated · Fox News · May 29
NYT Columnists Face Backlash Over 2024 Debate 'Draw' Call After Jill Biden's Stroke Remark
2 articles · Updated · Fox News · May 29
Two New York Times columnists were mocked anew after Jill Biden said she feared Joe Biden was “having a stroke” during his June 2024 debate against Donald Trump.
Jamelle Bouie and Lydia Polgreen had argued the debate was effectively a draw, even as they described Biden as raspy, stumbling and barely audible while Trump lied repeatedly.
Ten other Times columnists had instead scored Trump as the winner, and critics resurfaced that split after Jill Biden's CBS interview and an Atlantic book excerpt saying she also wondered if Biden had been drugged.
The revived criticism spread across X and among media figures including Dan McLaughlin, Ashley Parker and Andrew Kaczynski; Bouie and Polgreen did not respond to requests for comment.
The June 2024 debate became a turning point in Biden's campaign, with his performance helping drive his exit from the presidential race weeks later.
When a wife fears a stroke but pundits see a draw, how should the media report on a leader's health?
What does the gap between a private health scare and public political analysis reveal about modern journalism?