WASHINGTON — The Democratic National Committee will not partner with Fox News for the upcoming primary debates, citing a story in the New Yorker that reported on the close ties of the news channel to President Donald Trump.
DNC Chairman Tom Perez said in a statement that “recent reporting in the New Yorker on the inappropriate relationship between President Trump, his administration and Fox News has led me to conclude that the network is not in a position to host a fair and neutral debate for our candidates. Therefore, Fox News will not serve as a media partner for the 2020 Democratic primary debates.”
Perez said he had been talking to the news channel about partnering on a debate along with other outlets.
MSNBC, NBC News and Telemundo will partner for the first primary debate, scheduled for some time in June, while CNN has the telecast rights to the second in July.
Bill Sammon, senior VP and managing editor of Fox News in Washington, said, “We hope the DNC will reconsider its decision to bar Chris Wallace, Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum, all of whom embody the ultimate journalistic integrity and professionalism, from moderating a Democratic presidential debate. They’re the best debate team in the business and they offer candidates an important opportunity to make their case to the largest TV news audience in America, which includes many persuadable voters.”
The Washington Post first reported on the Democrats’ decision.