Fact Check: Are major news networks refusing to air Trump's July 16 speech?
WASHINGTON, DC: Ahead of President Donald Trump’s speech at the White House tonight, a rumor circulating on social media platforms claimed that the major television news networks are refusing to air his program. Let us analyze the viral rumor and fact-check the authenticity of the claim.
Claim: Major TV networks are refusing to air Donald Trump's speech
According to the rumor, ABC, NBC, CBS, and Fox News were among the TV networks "refusing" to air the president's speech on primetime TV.
A Facebook post that amplified the rumor, along with an image that included the TV networks' logos, read, "ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC have all stayed silent on whether they'll carry the speech, ignoring repeated press inquiries."
"Even more embarrassing for the White House, network schedules for Thursday at 9 PM still show regularly scheduled programming in Trump's slot. It's not even clear if the White House has formally asked the networks to preempt their shows at all."
As of this writing, listings for all of the TV stations mentioned in the claim show regularly scheduled programming on their TV listings for July 16 and do not mention airing the president's address.
Fact Check: No official confirmation from the TV networks
However, the claims are pure speculation and unsupported by evidence. The social media posts claiming that "not one major network agreed to air" Trump's address are also unsubstantiated.
The White House announcement of the address was also reported by CNN, but made no mention of whether the network would air it.
There is also no confirmation from either the Trump administration or the networks; hence, the claim is rated as unconfirmed.
White House announcement of Donald Trump's speech
The claim surfaced after the White House made an announcement on social media that Trump would give a speech at 9 PM EST on July 16, but did not provide any further details.
According to Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt's statement on the matter, Trump was set to speak about "protecting the integrity of our elections."
According to the White House announcement about the address on social media on July 13, the speech would be available to view on the White House's official social media accounts, YouTube channel, and its website.
A live stream of the speech will also be hosted by C-SPAN.
