A handful of Democratic hopefuls have taken Fox up on its offer. They say it’s a way to reach millions of Americans who may not watch CNN and MSNBC — the two cable news channels on which Democrats appear most frequently — and may be receptive to the Democrats’ message if it comes to them on the channel they watch.
Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders was the first Democrat to appear at a Fox town hall, held in mid-April in Pennsylvania. He drew 2.55 million viewers, more than any other cable news town hall this cycle. Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar appeared at a Fox town hall last week and Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Indiana, has one scheduled for later this month.
The question of whether to appear on Fox News hits at one of Democrats’ central questions — whether to reach out to voters who haven’t traditionally been interested in hearing from them, or instead to focus on cultivating and inspiring voters who already back the party.
Warren said she doesn’t need to appear on Fox to reach voters because since she’s accessible to them and the media in many other ways.
“I’ve done 57 media avails and 131 interviews, taking over 1,100 questions from press just since January. Fox News is welcome to come to my events just like any other outlet. But a Fox News town hall adds money to the hate-for-profit machine. To which I say: hard pass,” she wrote.
Warren has participated in two CNN town halls and has also made multiple prime-time appearances on MSNBC.
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