Bernie Sanders still doesn't care about Hillary's damn emails, and says the media shouldn't have, either


On Tuesday's Conan, Conan O'Brien reminded his guest, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), that in one of his first Democratic primary debates against Hillary Clinton, he said he and the American public didn't care about Clinton's damn emails. "What happened is you did not bring it up, [Donald] Trump did bring it up — brought it up a lot, hammered her about it relentlessly — and it turned out there were a lot of people, voters in the country who did care about those emails," Conan said. "Do you wish now that you had made that more of an issue in your campaign?"
Sanders said no, that "it is imperative that we focus on the real issues facing the American people," and Clinton's emails don't make that list. Conan pressed on, asking if it wasn't "somewhat bitter" to watch Trump ignore all the issues Sanders cares about and "get a lot of traction" on Clinton's emails. "Well, Conan, I think that has more to do with the media, frankly, than it does with Donald Trump," Sanders said. Democracy is about discussing the important issues, but what the "media loved was the fact that Trump would say one absurd thing after another, ugly things we have never heard before from a presidential candidate. You know what? That was great TV. That was great TV — CNN's ratings went way up."
"I think the American people have to demand more out of media," Sanders said, "demand that media talk about the issues that impact our lives." He singled out network news, and Conan coughed and joked that this is why he moved to cable — though his network, TBS, is owned by the same division of Time Warner that owns CNN, which Sanders name-checked in his media critique. TV networks and newspapers aren't "dummies," Sanders said. "There are real conflicts of interest in terms of who owns — I mean, we don't talk about it — who owns the media? Well, half a dozen major conglomerates. Do they have vested interests that are in conflict with the public? Yeah, you're damn right they do." Watch below, courtesy of YouTube, owned by the major conglomerate formerly known as Google. Peter Weber
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
DHS preps for major ICE expansion, rankling local law enforcement
IN THE SPOTLIGHT As the Trump administration positions ICE as the primary federal police force, its recruitment efforts have been met with a less-than-enthusiastic response
-
The return of 'Wednesday,' an 'Alien' prequel and a dramatic retelling of the Amanda Knox trial all happening in August TV
the week recommends This month's new television releases include 'Alien: Earth,' 'The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox' and a new season of 'Wednesday'
-
How does a 401(k) hardship withdrawal work and is it smart to take one?
the explainer More Americans than ever are resorting to this option in a pinch
-
NFL gets ESPN stake in deal with Disney
Speed Read The deal gives the NFL a 10% stake in Disney's ESPN sports empire and gives ESPN ownership of NFL Network
-
Samsung to make Tesla chips in $16.5B deal
Speed Read Tesla has signed a deal to get its next-generation chips from Samsung
-
FCC greenlights $8B Paramount-Skydance merger
Speed Read The Federal Communications Commission will allow Paramount to merge with the Hollywood studio Skydance
-
Tesla reports plummeting profits
Speed Read The company may soon face more problems with the expiration of federal electric vehicle tax credits
-
Dollar faces historic slump as stocks hit new high
Speed Read While stocks have recovered post-Trump tariffs, the dollar has weakened more than 10% this year
-
Economists fear US inflation data less reliable
speed read The Labor Department is collecting less data for its consumer price index due to staffing shortages
-
Crypto firm Coinbase hacked, faces SEC scrutiny
Speed Read The Securities and Exchange Commission has also been investigating whether Coinbase misstated its user numbers in past disclosures
-
Starbucks baristas strike over dress code
speed read The new uniform 'puts the burden on baristas' to buy new clothes, said a Starbucks Workers United union delegate