Dan Rather Trumped Election Prognosticators

The media is still trying to figure out how they were so wrong about predicting Donald Trump’s historic election as president of the United States.

Much of the media had Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton easily ascending to the office of the presidency, only to eat crow when Trump shocked the world on Election Day.

But veteran TV journalist Dan Rather foresaw Trump’s potential ascension from real estate mogul and reality TV star to the most powerful position in the free world. In an interview I conducted with Rather this past January during the Television Critics Association Winter press tour before the first Republican primary vote for Trump was cast, the current host of AXS TV’s The Big Interview told me that Trump’s ability to take advantage of the media and his unconventional outreach to a segment of America virtually ignored by both the Republicans and the Democrats could lead him to the White House.  

Below is Rather’s fortuitous assessment of Trump’s political success: 

R. Thomas Umstead

R. Thomas Umstead serves as senior content producer, programming for Multichannel News, Broadcasting + Cable and Next TV. During his more than 30-year career as a print and online journalist, Umstead has written articles on a variety of subjects ranging from TV technology, marketing and sports production to content distribution and development. He has provided expert commentary on television issues and trends for such TV, print, radio and streaming outlets as Fox News, CNBC, the Today show, USA Today, The New York Times and National Public Radio. Umstead has also filmed, produced and edited more than 100 original video interviews, profiles and news reports featuring key cable television executives as well as entertainers and celebrity personalities.