The media has a fever and the only prescription is more Donald Trump.
Since the business mogul launched his presidential campaign back in June, cable news networks have helped propel Trump to become the frontrunner of the Republican party. The sometimes bombastic and unusual antics of a presidential candidate have caused news networks to flock to the GOP frontrunner and cover many of his campaign events live.
All the news coverage of Trump has resulted in a lot of free air time for the GOP frontrunner. The New York Times reported while Trump has spent less compared to most candidates on campaign ads, he has received nearly $2 billion in free media coverage. That is compared to the $10 million the Trump campaign spent on campaign ads.
Trump fever spread throughout cable news early on in the campaign. Back in July, CNN had a Trumpgasm which resulted in the network saying "Donald Trump" 239 times in a span of 24 hours.
Morning Joe has been accused of having a cozy relationship with Trump and acting as cheerleaders for the New York businessman. The show's hosts pushed back at the criticism and defended themselves by stating they are just analysts who were the only ones who foresaw the Trump phenomena. Although, Morning Joe isn't the only one who has embraced the constant Trump coverage.
Fox News host and conservative personality Sean Hannity has learned to embrace Trump. Hannity has interviewed Trump numerous times and often would host one-hour specials with the GOP frontrunner the night before a primary.
Despite all this media coverage on Donald Trump, the media has only been able to provide the analysis that "Donald Trump is Donald Trump."