Trump Trial Day 1... Americanswers!
Americast
BBC
4.3 • 3.1K Ratings
🗓️ 22 April 2024
⏱️ 32 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In the latest edition of Americanswers, we get down to basics at the start of Donald Trump’s first criminal trial.
Who are the jurors selected to decide Trump’s fate? Who protects them? And how are they being targeted online?
Today’s opening statements mark the first criminal trial against a president in US history, as Trump stands accused of trying to cover up hush-money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels before he won the 2016 election.
HOSTS: • Sarah Smith, North America editor • Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenter • Marianna Spring, disinformation and social media correspondent • Anthony Zurcher, North America correspondent
GET IN TOUCH: • Join our online community: https://discord.gg/qSrxqNcmRB • Send us a message or voice note via WhatsApp to +44 330 123 9480 • Email Americast@bbc.co.uk • Or use #Americast
US Election Unspun: Sign up for Anthony’s new BBC newsletter: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-68093155
This episode was made by George Dabby with Catherine Fusillo and Claire Betzer. The technical producer was Gareth Jones. The series producer is George Dabby. The senior news editor is Sam Bonham.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds, music radio podcasts. |
| 0:04.6 | Hello, it's Justin in the Worldwide Headquarters of Americast in London, England. |
| 0:08.0 | It is Mariana, aka Misinformation, also in the worldwide headquarters of |
| 0:12.7 | America. |
| 0:13.7 | And it's Anthony here in the Bureau of the BBC and Washington, D.C. |
| 0:18.0 | And Sarah, where are you? |
| 0:19.7 | I'm in Lower Manhattan and I'm here in New York for the very good reason that I am just around the corner from the |
| 0:24.7 | courthouse where the Donald Trump criminal trial is going to get going properly |
| 0:29.2 | today. They selected a jury last week. This is when the legal arguments and the witnesses start. This is the beginning, |
| 0:36.2 | really, of the first criminal trial of any former president ever. And so yeah, it's no wonder I'm here to watch it. This is what we'll be talking about in this |
| 0:44.8 | episode the Trump trial will be our main focus and we'll start with this voice note that we got from |
| 0:49.6 | Richard in Northern Ireland about the effect of social media on the trial. |
| 0:53.0 | Now, although the current and first of these trials is not being televised, |
| 0:58.0 | it's certain to attract intense social media interest. |
| 1:02.0 | Now we saw the influence of such enormous social media coverage during the |
| 1:06.4 | Johnny Depp, Amberher defamation trial. This included character assassinations specifically aimed at polarizing popular opinion for or against the two people involved. |
| 1:19.0 | In this environment can the US legal system possibly provide for a fair trial and literally avoid creating a complete and utter circus? |
| 1:29.0 | Spicely as Trump himself is a skilled ringmaster and his most fervent supporters would likely harness social |
| 1:36.4 | media to influence the outcome. |
| 1:39.0 | So that is a very perceptive question from Richard there and it's one I think that falls squarely in your ballpark |
| 1:45.6 | Mariana. Yeah thank you so much Richard. I think that you know let's start by talking about that |
| 1:50.4 | Johnny Depp and the herd trial you mentioned because in some ways that very much felt like a sort of trial by Tik-Tock trial by social media |
... |
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