CNN’s Trump Forum was a combative preview of future political coverage

David Zaslav, the CEO of CNN’s parent company, recently defended the network’s decision to host a living town hall featuring former President Donald J. Trump, calling the event “important for America.”

It turned out to be so, but perhaps not for the reasons Mr. Zaslav intended.

In an unruly and at times baffling Wednesday night broadcast, Mr. Trump — appearing on CNN for the first time since 2016 — unleashed a deluge of untruths, sometimes too quickly for his interlocutor, host Kaitlan Collins, to intervene.

Time and time again, Mr. Trump falsely claimed that the 2020 election was rigged. He called E. Jean Carroll a “crazy job” and attacked her in misogynistics. He defended the Capitol rioters on January 6.

Ms. Collins, calm in the face of Mr. Trump’s turbulence, interrupted, interceded, corrected and called out the former president for his lies. He often responded by talking right over her. When Mr. Trump finally lost his temper and mocked Ms. Collins as a “mean person,” some in the live audience applauded.

This was a taste of what American journalism can expect from a 2024 campaign with Mr. Trump, who despite his ubiquity in political life has rarely appeared on mainstream TV outside of Fox News since his departure.

If the 2016 campaign showed that many Americans couldn’t agree on common facts, the Babel-esque nature of Wednesday’s New Hampshire town hall suggested that voters now occupy vastly different universes. Mr. Trump repeated a web of conspiracies about a stolen election and the “nice day” of the uprising at the Capitol, language that would likely confuse half the viewing public and resonate as gospel with the rest.

“The election was not rigged, Mr. President,” Ms. Collins said at one point. “You can’t keep saying that all night.” (He kept saying it.)

Ms. Collins, a rising star at CNN in consideration for a 9 p.m. prominence on the network, was an excellent choice as a moderator. She has been covering for Mr. Trump for years, knows his quirks, and was not intimidated when Mr. Trump tried to bully her.

Even Mr. Trump looked stunned when Ms. Collins asked succinctly, “Do you want Ukraine to win this war?” (He wouldn’t give a straight answer.) She relentlessly pressed whether he should sign a federal ban on abortion, pointing out, “You didn’t say yes or no.” (Again, Mr. Trump wouldn’t say it.)

Yet Mrs. Collins could only do so much as the only reporter on stage. It soon became clear that the mob of Republican and Republican independents was highly skeptical of her efforts to rein in Mr. Trump. The layout of City Hall, which erupted in cheers when the former president taunted Mrs. Collins, made it all the more difficult for her to carry out her assignment. (CNN said it brought the public together in consultation with community groups, faith-based organizations, local Republicans and the Saint Anselm College student government.)

When the broadcast ended — after Mr. Trump briefly shook hands with Ms. Collins and said “Well done” — the cameras cut to a panel of unusually demure CNN analysts.

“We don’t have enough time to fact-check every lie he told,” said host Jake Tapper. Some CNN critics had made the same point before Wednesday’s broadcast, and again after: that it was reckless to allow Mr. Trump to address millions of people live in primetime.

Mr. Trump’s propensity to spread untruths is well established. Even Fox News, which has provided the former president-friendly forums with conservative stars like Sean Hannity and Mark Levin, hasn’t taken Trump live in months.

He is also the de facto leader of the Republican Party, meaning his comments are inherently newsworthy to voters on the cusp of another presidential campaign. CNN said in a statement late Wednesday that City Hall reflected the network’s “role and responsibility”: to get answers and hold the powerful accountable.

Producers and journalists from the other major television channels watched CNN on Wednesday with curiosity, skepticism and perhaps a little trepidation.

If Mr. Trump remains the leading candidate for the Republican nomination, he will appear on their airwaves soon enough.