tl;dr: it’s all about the Benjamins.

Turn on CNN at any point, scroll through the NYTimes, or catch a clip from Saturday Night Live and you’re pretty much guaranteed one thing.

There’s going to be something about Donald Trump.

And there’s no secret how they feel about him.

Or is there?

The Trump Effect

Donald Trump has served as a one-man economic stimulus package for these media players.

During the first three years of Trump, CNN’s profits doubled to over $1 billion.

The NY Times digital business is now bigger than the print business, having brought in $185mm in Q2/2020 compared to $175mm for print. This is on the heels of multiple years of growth…with more than 6.5 million subscribers (many of them coming on board after Trump’s election-which led to a 10x growth spurt.)

And Saturday Night Live? While its death has been proclaimed many times, its place in American popular culture was far lower 5 years ago than it is today.

Now, it’s “must-see.”

The Biden Recession

So while I have little doubt that the bulk of the employees at these entities would prefer Biden to win (if we ever get a result to the election), I wonder what plans they have in place to compensate for the fact that Biden is, well, boring.

What is Don Lemon going to talk about every day, particularly if the Dems take the Senate?

How will the NY Times fill the Op-Ed section if there’s less material to scream about.

And SNL skits on Biden’s forgetfulness?

Country First, Profits Second

One of the main charges against Trump is that he’s selfish, greedy, and doesn’t really put the country first (despite a campaign slogan to the contrary).

The noble talking heads have implored him to do that for years…he hasn’t.

So, if the good of the country requires Trump to lose, but that comes with a serious drop in revenue, profits, and viewers, well…it would just be ironic.