Legacy media outlets spent much of the first half of 2024 insisting President Biden was still sharp and claimed videos suggesting otherwise were "cheap fakes" until his disastrous debate performance forced an immediate about-face.
In one of the biggest media stories of the year, multiple legacy outlets were left with egg on their faces after creating yet another credibility crisis for the fourth estate.
The media largely seethed in February after the release of Special Counsel Robert Hur's damning report on Biden's handling of classified documents that described him as a "sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory."
The New York Times went with the "Republicans pounce" framing when covering Biden's reported memory issues, Jeffrey Toobin returned to CNN to insist Hur made "unnecessary points" about Biden’s advanced age, and MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow gushed that everything is fine because Biden still "rides a bike."
Hours after the damning report, the president held a last-minute White House press conference and remained defiant — becoming clearly agitated when he faced questions about his age and memory. Declaring his memory was "fine," Biden then referred to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi as the "president of Mexico." Biden then went off script and took questions from reporters at random, prompting a combative exchange with CNN correspondent MJ Lee, who asked about Americans who are concerned about his age.
Vice President Kamala Harris later attacked Hur’s report as "politically motivated" and "gratuitous, inaccurate and inappropriate," and the word "gratuitous" caught on as a liberal media talking point.
In June, The Wall Street Journal irked liberal pundits when it published a bombshell, "Behind Closed Doors, Biden Shows Signs of Slipping," that detailed interviews with more than 45 people over the course of several months who felt the president had lost a step.
The report was promptly dismissed by much of the mainstream press. Democrats, including Nancy Pelosi, who later helped lead the behind-the-scenes charge to take Biden off the ticket, lashed out at the story. MSNBC's "Morning Joe" declared the report was a "Trump hit piece on Biden," and left-wing media watchdog group Media Matters called the report "comically weak."
Then-CNN media reporter Oliver Darcy was furious, writing in his left-leaning newsletter that the "story questioned Biden’s mental acuity, playing into a GOP-propelled narrative that the 81-year-old president lacks the fitness to hold the nation’s highest office."
"The Wall Street Journal owes its readers — and the public — better," Darcy fumed, repeating the White House narrative that such concerns about Biden's fitness were simply laundered GOP talking points. Biden was out of the race less than two months later.
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Later in June, White House officials insisted a series of videos that appeared to show Biden freezing up or appearing lost were actually "cheap fake" smears pushed by bad actors. Biden has been plagued with videos from various events that appear to show him "confused."
One video showed him turning away from the group of world leaders at a D-Day anniversary event in France to speak to a parachuter. Another video appeared to show him being uncertain of when it was time to sit down, and another video showed him being led off the stage by former President Obama at a fundraising event. According to the White House, it was all just bad-faith efforts to discredit Biden.
But Biden had nowhere to hide during his disastrous performance at the presidential debate against then-candidate Donald Trump on June 27. He appeared confused, pale, repeatedly struggled to articulate his message and lost his train of thought mid-sentence on multiple occasions.
The debate forced Biden’s media allies to turn on him, and everyone from pundits on CNN and MSNBC to the New York Times’ editorial board called for him to step aside after years of insisting he was sharp as a tack.
Biden and his allies blamed the debate disaster on having a cold, jet lag, being tired and even that he was distracted by Trump speaking into a muted microphone. They ultimately landed on a "bad night" as the talking point to justify the debacle.
Following weeks of adamant declarations from Biden and his campaign that he was staying in the race, the president eventually dropped out and endorsed Harris for president. She swiftly wrapped up the nomination, setting off a furious race to the campaign finish.
The press that spent weeks calling for him to step aside in the wake of the debate suddenly showered him with praise. Late-night host Stephen Colbert enthused he was a "great president." CNN's Van Jones nearly became emotional on the air. And the excitement of liberal media figures on the air over Harris' ascendance was impossible to deny.
"What a man, what a patriot. What an act of selfless devotion to your country," MSNBC's Maddow said, setting the tone for how liberal pundits would react.
While the ordeal came to a head in 2024, the press had dismissed concerns about Biden’s fitness for office for years.
In 2022, one of the more memorable examples came when White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre laughed off a question about Biden's physical and mental well-being during an interview with CNN. Then-host Don Lemon asked, "Does the president have the stamina, physically and mentally, do you think to continue on even after 2024?"
"Don, you're asking me this question," a visibly stunned Jean-Pierre exclaimed. "Oh my gosh. He's the President of the United States."
The press secretary then laughed and said she sometimes struggles to even keep up with Biden.
"That is not a question that we should be even asking," she added. "Just look at the work he does. And look how he's delivering for the American public."
After several gaffes in 2023 — including Biden falling at the Air Force Academy commencement ceremony in June, referring to the Grand Canyon as one of the "nine" wonders of the world and claiming he was at Ground Zero the day after 9/11 in September despite records showing he was in Washington, D.C., that day — Harris was asked about whether the president's age is a concern.
"I would say that age is more than a chronological fact," Harris said in an interview for the New York Times' Dealbook Summit in November 2023, adding that he is "absolutely authoritative" during his meetings.
Harris went on to lose to Trump on Election Day after she emerged as the Democratic nominee without any true primary process.
How much have things changed in a momentous 2024? The New York Times published a lengthy piece on Dec. 18 about the frailty of Biden as he prepares to leave office.
"He looks a little older and a little slower with each passing day. Aides say he remains plenty sharp in the Situation Room, calling world leaders to broker a cease-fire in Lebanon or deal with the chaos of Syria’s rebellion," the Times reported. "But it is hard to imagine that he seriously thought he could do the world’s most stressful job for another four years."
Fox News Digital’s Joseph A. Wulfsohn, Andrew Mark Miller, Aubrie Spady, Jamie Joseph, Lawrence Richard and Emma Colton contributed to this report.
