FIRST ON FOX – Flagship newscasts on ABC, CBS and NBC spent over 46 minutes covering President Donald Trump pardoning Jan. 6 defendants but barely found time to mention former President Joe Biden issuing preemptive pardons for his family, according to a new study.
During the final hours of his administration last week, Biden issued preemptive pardons for relatives James B. Biden, Sara Jones Biden, Valerie Biden Owens, John T. Owens, and Francis W. Biden. That same day, Trump signed off on pardoning more than 1,500 charged with crimes stemming from the Jan. 6, 2021, attack at the U.S. Capitol, shortly after retaking office.
The Media Research Center analyzed flagship morning and evening newscasts on ABC, CBS, and NBC from Inauguration Day on January 20 through the morning of Jan. 22 to determine how the pardons were covered. While the pair of orders occurred on the same day, coverage was not exactly balanced.
The conservative media watchdog found that ABC, CBS, and NBC spent 46 minutes and 32 seconds on the Trump pardons, compared to only three minutes and 32 seconds on Biden’s preemptive pardons.
ABC’s "Good Morning America" and "World News Tonight" spent 15 minutes and 30 seconds on the Trump pardons compared to a brief 34 seconds on Biden.
"CBS Mornings" and "CBS Evening News" devoted 16 minutes and 32 seconds to Trump's pardons compared to only 64 seconds on pardons handed out by Biden, while NBC’s "Today" and "Nightly News" spent 14 minutes and 30 seconds on Trump and less than two minutes on Biden.
Trump previously promised that he would be "acting very quickly" on his first day in office to pardon the so-called "hostages," a move that angered critics and prompted criticism that he was excusing violence against police. Biden preemptively pardoning his family was also criticized by political rivals, but it received only a sliver of the coverage his successor got.
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Trump opened up about pardoning the Jan. 6 defendants last week during an exclusive Oval Office interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity.
"Why did they get a pardon?" Hannity asked.
"A number of reasons," Trump said. "Number one, they were in there for 3-and-a-half years, a long time, and many in solitary confinement… treated so badly. They were treated like the worst criminals in history."
"And you know what they were there for? They were protesting the vote," he continued. "You should be allowed to protest a vote."
Hannity said nobody should be allowed to "invade the Capitol," but the president insisted they have served their time.
"These people have served, horribly, a long time," Trump said, claiming most of the incidents with police were "minor."
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Trump added that he was "very clear" about his plans, while Biden previously dismissed the idea of preemptive pardons.
Biden was asked in 2020 about reports that then-President Trump was considering preemptive pardons for members of his family and even himself.
"Well, it concerns me in terms of what kind of precedent it sets and how the rest of the world looks at us as a nation of laws and justice," Biden told CNN anchor Jake Tapper at the time.
Fox News Digital’s Chris Pandolfo and Diana Stancy contributed to this report.