Philadelphia — ABC News’s presidential debate moderators, David Muir and Linsey Davis, are facing significant backlash following their handling of the inaugural debate between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris ahead of the 2024 elections.
The debate, held Tuesday in Philadelphia, saw Trump and Harris clash on key issues including abortion, crime, and the economy. However, the moderators’ approach to fact-checking has drawn sharp criticism from various quarters.
On social media, many observers accused Muir and Davis of displaying a “one-sided” approach to fact-checking. Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) voiced his frustration on X, questioning the fairness of ABC’s fact-checking practices.
“The absolute gall of ABC to keep ‘fact-checking’ ONLY Trump while letting her lie in every answer is infuriating,” SiriusXM host Megyn Kelly tweeted, echoing sentiments of many who felt the moderators were biased.
Sarah Bedford of The Washington Examiner highlighted a specific instance where ABC News’s fact-checking was called into question. Bedford pointed out that Harris’s comment on abortion, which ABC’s fact-checking team supported, was misleading. According to Bedford, abortion at full term is legal in several states, contrary to Harris’s assertion.
Critics also took issue with Davis’s lack of fact-checking against Harris. Some even took to social media to accuse Muir of failing to address falsehoods propagated by Harris, while focusing on challenging Trump. Conservative commentator Dave Rubin labeled Muir a “hack” and criticized his moderation as a “bad comedy.”
