CNN Holds Dramatic Reading of Trump Trial Transcript with Reporters Playing Michael Cohen and Prosecutor

Cameras are not allowed inside the Manhattan courtroom where Donald Trump’s hush money trial is taking place, but CNN did their best to put you “inside the courtroom” by having reporters perform a reading of the trial transcript, which included ex-Trump lawyer Michael Cohen testifying for the prosecution.

CNN’s Abby Phillip and Laura Coates brought on legal analysts Joey Jackson and Mercedes Colwin to read as Cohen and prosecutor Susan Hoffinger, respectively.

The pair kept to the promise of paging through the testimony “word for word.” Voices off-camera covered the “objections” and “sustained” throughout the trial. Jackson even kept the “uhs” uttered by Cohen in his reading.

Cohen’s testimony included his allegation that he had directly spoken to Trump about hush money payments made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels to conceal an alleged affair. Trump has denied any affair and knowledge of hush money payments. He’s facing more than 30 felony counts for falsifying business records.

Jackson read Cohen’s testimony that Trump declared, “women will hate me,” when he feared the Daniels story might come out, but “guys may think it’s cool.” He later read a bit when Cohen was asked about an alleged conversation he had with Donald Trump about Melania Trump, and he said he “won’t be on the market long,” a question that was objected to, but Judge Juan Merchan overruled.

“Abby, we’re talking Oscars over there, let me tell you right now,” Coates said after the exchange.

The reading took a little less than half an hour, and then it turned to analysis. Phillip and Coates said they held the reading to review better the moments where each legal team went in the wrong or right direction.

Watch above via CNN.