The choice interviewers make in how they approach newsmakers can greatly impact the tone and direction of the conversation. Fox News anchor Bret Baier demonstrated this in his interviews with former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. While Baier challenged Trump last year, receiving praise for his tough questioning, his approach to Harris was notably different in her first formal sit-down with the network. Baier interrupted Harris more frequently and asked more pointed questions, particularly about immigration and policy decisions.
In Baier’s interview with Trump, the anchor started with a softball question about the most important issue facing the country and allowed Trump to speak uninterrupted. However, in his interview with Harris, Baier’s first question about the number of illegal immigrants released into the country was more direct, leading to multiple interruptions as he sought a specific answer. The conversation devolved as Baier pressed Harris about policy decisions that allowed criminals into the country.
Despite his warm-up question to Trump, Baier transitioned to more difficult inquiries about Trump mishandling classified materials, pushing back on falsehoods and vulnerabilities. At times, Baier sounded exasperated with Trump, particularly when discussing the 2020 election results. In contrast, Baier’s interview with Harris lacked the familiarity he displayed with Trump, and he was more animated and interruptive, perhaps to satisfy Fox’s conservative base wanting to see her under pressure.
Baier interrupted Harris more frequently than Trump, possibly due to time constraints imposed by the Harris campaign. The Harris interview focused on specific areas like the border and President Biden’s mental acuity, with Baier questioning when Harris noticed Biden’s diminished faculties. Harris pivoted the conversation back to Trump being on the ballot, indicating a desire to move away from discussing Biden. The interviews with Trump and Harris showed a clear discrepancy in Baier’s approach, with the former being more wide-ranging and the latter more focused and interruptive.
Overall, Baier’s handling of the two interviews highlighted his ability to adapt his style based on the newsmaker and the expectations of the audience. While his questioning of Trump was more challenging and layered, his interview with Harris was more confrontational and interruptive. The difference in Baier’s treatment of the two top candidates for president raised questions about bias in his interviewing style and how it may have influenced the tone and direction of the conversations. Ultimately, the interviews highlighted the complex decisions interviewers make in shaping the narratives and dynamics of their interactions with newsmakers.
