CNN is attempting to silence independent media and control the narrative surrounding the first 2024 Presidential debate on Thursday by not allowing the use of CNN’s live broadcast to report and comment on the debate in real time.

This revelation comes after CNN’s Kasie Hunt abruptly cut off Trump’s spokeswoman, Karoline Leavitt, after she brought up Jake Tapper’s history of comparing Trump to Hitler and told people to “Google ‘Jake Tapper Donald Trump.’”

It’s not enough to turn off President Trump’s microphone or to cut off spokespersons in interviews.

Jesse Watters compared this move to slapping a gag order on the Trump campaign. “We knew Trump’s mic would be muted during the debate, but we didn’t know his campaign’s mic would be muted before it,” said Watters.

It appears they took a page or two out of the Democrat playbook regarding gag orders and reaching out to social media companies and YouTube to censor conservatives.

According to Tim Pool, the far-left YouTube contacted him, stating that CNN is not allowing live commentary on the debate and that “they are asking other networks who are doing the exact same thing to abide by certain restrictions.”

Per Voz:

CNN alleges that its request has more to do with image rights than anything else. In the preceding presidential election, Fox also sought to sue those who used its live broadcast to comment on the debate on internet platforms, though it eventually dropped the legal battle.

Tim Pool assured this Monday that what the television network really wants is that “no one breaks its narrative.” The commentator assures that preventing communicators like him from doing live monitoring of the debate with commentary and fact-checking is an attack against the basic principles of civic and democratic participation.

“Now, of course, as with all presidential debates,” Pool assured in a video on his channel, “that is the epitome of civic responsibility, of civic participation. We will be doing live commentary and fact-checking in this presidential debate, as we have done in all the others since the program has existed,” he added.

Watch below:

Tim Pool: I received a message from YouTube last week asking to hop on a phone call to discuss the RNC and the presidential cycle, and I said, sure. I briefly spoke with some individuals at YouTube earlier today who made it clear that CNN reached out expressing concern. I don’t know the full extent, but making it known that YouTube better contact their news programs over the CNN debate.

Now of course, like all presidential debates, which is the epitome of civic responsibility—of civic participation, we will provide live commentary and fact checking on this presidential debate, as we have done for every other, so long as this show has been around. In a show of good faith, YouTube asked me to reach out to CNN to see if there was anything that they would be looking for in this regard because apparently, they are asking other networks who are doing the exact same thing to abide by certain restrictions.

And I said, Okay, I’ll reach out, to which the immediate response was something along the lines of confirming we will not allow anyone on YouTube to use this outside of, you know, CNN granting certain platforms– basically saying, you can’t do this. And my response immediately was commentary on Presidential Debates is the epitome of fair use. Hope that helps.

This Thursday will be particularly interesting. I think that news is big! I can’t really put that succinctly in 80 characters for a YouTube headline, but this is massive that CNN is pulling this move. We saw something similar that Fox News had done; Fox had filed several takedowns on various shows, including ours, but they abandoned their copyright claims, because this is unquestionably fair use.

We have the two people running for the president of this country, one of them the current president, and we’re going to fact check, and we’re going to comment, and we’re going to call them out in real time. If we can’t do that, if no one else can, then that’s severely limiting civic participation, and it’s allowing a biased network that in the past has likened Trump to Hitler to control who can and cannot fact check this man. And as we know, with special rules for this debate, they are seeking to control that narrative. And I believe that is exactly why they reached out to YouTube and why YouTube reached out to me because they don’t want anyone to break their narrative. That’s the dirty game they’re playing. It’s going to be a fun Thursday.