When Donald Trump arrives open to us, the crowd responds
President Donald Trump was greeted by the crowd when he arrived at the men’s final match of the US Open.
There are many forms of resistance.
Sometimes people take them on the streets in protest, like they did this weekend in Chicago and its suburbs. Sometimes, as governors in California, Oregon, Washington and Hawaii have, they are united in order to ensure that citizens have access to thoroughly vetted vaccines.
And sometimes ABC and ESPN have not muted the full-throat boo chorus that occurred when the US president was on display at the US Open on Sunday.
The request from the American Tennis Association to allow the broadcaster to “restrain the confusion of the president’s attendance in all abilities” was embarrassing. This is not North Korea or Russia, nor is it the work of ABC, ESPN or other broadcasters to embrace President Donald Trump’s ego on stroke. His vice president, cabinet secretary and Republican House leadership cover it.
ABC and ESPN rejected Kowtow. They didn’t stay with Trump when he was screened in the national anthem ahead of the men’s final between Janik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, but they didn’t rule out a response to him. The jealousy and catcall echoing at Arthur Ash Stadium were clearly heard.
ABC broadcast the match, and ESPN energized it with its app.
Refusing to succumb to authoritarian demands is important whether they come from the White House or from the Sports Governing Body. If Trump chooses to go to the US Open, it’s a fair game for ABC and ESPN to respond to the public. Just like in 2000, when then President Bill Clinton went.
To suggest that it wasn’t, helped to overshadow the expectations of the latest meeting, which was completely inappropriate by the USTA and, worse, become tennis’s next great rivalry. Instead of talking about the sinners and Alkaraz, the pre-match focus was on USTA’s clumsy attempts to censor.
ABC and ESPN’s refusal to the reception of Sugarcoat Trump was also important for another reason.
Trump’s most stubborn supporters often get news from outlets (Fox News and X) by giving them two names, considering the facts are inconvenient. These people are given a stable diet of lies about Trump and his most frightening policies and ideas, giving them a worldview that does not reflect reality.
These people say that Chicago is the “world’s murder capital,” with prices falling and manufacturing jobs returning to the US. This propaganda toxic stew helps create the illusion that Trump is so popular and loved by everyone except for the nasty live shows.
Of course, this is not true. Chicago’s homicide rates aren’t even in the top 20 major U.S. cities. Prices remain stubbornly high, and retailers say they have to raise prices even further due to Trump’s tariffs. The latest employment report issued on September 5th showed 12,000 manufacturing jobs losses and continues to decline that year.
The post-voting shows that more people are disapproving both Trump and his policies than they would approve them.
Anything that can stab a misinformation bubble of Trump supporters is good. Hearing a Trump jeer for a few seconds during an open broadcast in the US could potentially not break the fever. But that may make you wonder why his supporters are. Especially if they feel already disillusioned with their growing grocery bill and Trump’s refusal to release the Epstein Files.
A few seconds clip of the president booing on an open broadcast in the US should not be a big deal. But so many guardrails have been erased by Trump and his minions, and it would have been another thing to follow the USTA dict order. Suitable for ABC and ESPN to recognize it.
Follow USA Today sports columnist Nancy Armour on social media @nrammour.
