With the 2024 presidential election officially less than a year away, former CNN president Jeff Zucker had a stern warning for all Americans: "Democracy is very much on the line."
“We’re at a critical time in America,” Zucker told me at the Yahoo Finance Invest conference on Tuesday in New York City. “This is as serious a time for American democracy as we've seen in maybe 250 years."
People should not discount the possibility of Donald Trump coming out on top in a head to head with President Biden — those who do are "fooling themselves," he said — and be aware of the consequences of a second Trump administration.
“Election denial is rampant in this country,” he said, referencing House Majority Leader Steve Scalise refusing to say whether the 2020 election was legitimate during an interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos.
Several lawmakers, including those in leadership positions, have declined to verify the outcome of the 2020 election, added Zucker, who is now CEO of RedBird IMI, a $1 billion investment fund focused on media, sports, and news.
The longtime media exec admitted that he had been too caught up in polls in the past; instead, journalists should focus on digging deep in their reporting.
"We just have to recognize that there's a reason that they want to take down the media," he said. "They don't want the media to ask Steve Scalise five times whether or not Joe Biden won the election."
Winning the trust of the public means focusing on the issues instead of the horse race of the year-long election process. “Seek the truth and don't give air and time to those who lie … Over time, the truth will win out,” Zucker said.
Speaking of truth, dispelling misinformation and disinformation on social media will prove, yet again, to be a challenge this election season. Much of that focus will be on X, formerly known as Twitter, which is still struggling with misinformation on the platform more than a year after Elon Musk took over the company.
“I do think that Twitter, X, does need to take a look at what has happened in the last year,” he said. “I'm not sure it's the reliable source of news and information that we always thought it could, should, and would be.”
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Seana Smith is an anchor at Yahoo Finance. Follow Smith on Twitter @SeanaNSmith. Tips on deals, mergers, activist situations, or anything else? Email seanasmith@yahooinc.com.
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