As political coverage turns into a circus of speculation over Joe Biden’s final months as president, the national media seems entirely absorbed by whispers, rumors, and tabloid drama. Meanwhile, Donald Trump’s wild antics as the current president play out in full view, yet barely register as newsworthy disruptions. It’s as if the collective attention of elite political journalists is glued to gossip about Biden, while chaos unfolds on the public stage.
Let’s be clear: debates over Biden’s condition or supposed “cover-ups” have little to do with genuine political news. For most Americans, the speculation swirling around Biden’s health is nothing more than background noise the sort of chatter that doesn’t touch daily life. Attempts to tie these whispers to either the outcome of the 2024 or 2028 elections are nothing but delusions spun by media personalities hungry for clicks and TV appearances.
Since January, Biden has been out of office. In his place sits a leader whose policies have eroded the separation of powers, battered the economy, and whose public statements range from bizarre to inflammatory. Trump’s social media is a steady stream of accusations and all-caps tirades questioning, for example, whether Kamala Harris paid Bruce Springsteen for a campaign appearance, or calling for investigations into celebrities. Yet this daily spectacle barely draws serious scrutiny from the very media now laser-focused on Biden’s medical charts.
Having spent years at a Murdoch tabloid, I recognize gossip when I see it. What we’re witnessing now, though, is gossip masquerading as investigative journalism. Outlets like Axios, Politico, and cable news anchors including CNN’s Jake Tapper have helped inflate the story of Biden’s decline into a self-important media event. The latest “revelations” are recycled for every panel, podcast, and dinner party among D.C.’s elite.
It’s telling that these same media circles ignore assaults on the regulatory system, attacks on civil rights, and unprecedented executive overreach. They would rather chase “scandals” about Biden’s health than confront the real abuses happening in government today.
Recently, Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson took their book tour on the road, regaling high-profile hosts and hyping up their “bombshell” story of the Biden administration allegedly hiding the president’s health issues. Thompson himself performed a self-congratulatory monologue at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, admitting that journalists “missed a lot of this story” and suggesting the public should trust the media because they at least admit their mistakes. But the truth is, stories of presidential health concealments are nothing new from Grover Cleveland’s secret surgery, to FDR’s wheelchair, to JFK’s chronic illnesses, to Reagan’s Alzheimer’s symptoms in office.
What’s different now is the sheer scale of the media echo chamber, powered by social platforms and a new breed of political influencer. Instead of covering real news, the media seems eager to entertain, distract, and whip up scandals. Meanwhile, Trump’s administration wages war on the regulatory state, rolls back civil rights, and threatens democratic institutions barely a blip in the news cycle. When a real crisis appears, the focus remains on Biden’s prostate cancer diagnosis, transformed into months of manufactured outrage and “cover-up” accusations.
Unlike Republicans, who close ranks around their leaders, Democrats are left squabbling over narratives pushed by their own side. The “scandal” becomes not just an attack line from the opposition, but an instrument of self-sabotage. The country is left with a media industry that amplifies drama, chases shadows, and misses the true story all while the real issues slip quietly out of sight.
