CNN’s Brianna Keilar Asks About Trump Treating ‘Black Journalists, Specifically, Differently Than Other Journalists’

CNN’s Brianna Keilar discussed the controversy surrounding former President Donald Trump being interviewed on stage at the National Association of Black Journalists annual convention on Wednesday.

Sara Sidner began by summing up Trump’s past comments insulting Black journalists and ridiculing their intelligence. “I think, Sara, that’s, it’s a very interesting point that you were making, about some of the reasons why there is the controversy here. Shermichael, I think we don’t know how this is going to go,” Keilar began, adding:

Sara really laid out, former President Trump’s track record with not just journalists, but female journalists of color and particularly Black journalists. Journalism isn’t like normal interactions. You know, you invite someone over to your house for dinner and they’re rude to you. You don’t invite them over again. But we’re kind of used to being places where people are rude to us or don’t aren’t happy with us. And yet, when there is the question of racism, that’s kind of what goes up against the line that he has treated journalists of color and Black journalists specifically differently than other journalists.

Shermichael Singleton replied, “Yeah. Look, I mean, traditionally speaking is a rather contentious, relationship between journalists and politicians. That’s always been the case because politicians don’t like to be questioned. You know, they see themselves as individuals of some level of high authority. You can give credence to that, whether or not you believe that to be true. But the issue of race is not only a problem that, the former president, has to contend with.” He added:

But it is one that the Republican Party has struggled with for quite some time. I mean, back in my early days of politics, when I used to really focus on black outreach, even when you would question, do surveys, do outreach, even door-to-door knocking with Black voters, you would see quite a few would say, you know, I agree with these aspects of what would be traditional conservatism, but it is because of these issues, particularly pertaining to race, that many black people say there’s just no way in the world I could cross over that bridge.

And so I think this is an issue that has become more heightened and sensitive with President Obama and now with Vice President Kamala Harris. And so I think it is incredibly smart, for the former president to not, I wouldn’t say, showcase deference, but to showcase a cultural awareness and understanding in this moment, particularly when we have seen some data that suggests he’s doing better with Black men, Latino men. You don’t want to turn those people off by having negative perceptions as it pertains to race.

Watch the clip above via CNN.