Tim Walz says Harris campaign media strategy fell way short

Former vice statesmanlike campaigner Gov. Tim Walz said the Kamala Harris campaign's media strategy fell abbreviated during an interrogation past week, criticizing the campaign's absorption connected accepted media venues during the campaign. 

As podcast big and erstwhile Montana Sen. Jon Tester argued that the run didn't usage Walz effectively, Walz said his statement spoke to a broader constituent astir the Democratic Party not entering "every media environment," including podcasts and section media. He said, "My God, they're not watching ‘Meet the Press,’ they're listening to you guys, arsenic they're going somewhere, listening."

The erstwhile Democratic vice statesmanlike campaigner spoke to Tester and writer Maritsa Georgiou, hosts of the "Grounded" podcast, connected Thursday astir the 2024 run and the Democratic Party's adjacent steps. 

Though Harris did speak to immoderate podcast hosts, she besides visited accepted media outlets specified arsenic CNN and CBS' "60 Minutes," and waited weeks aft her run motorboat to bash media astatine all.

"I deliberation you got to flood the zone," Walz said. "And I would reason we didn't see, you know, the vice president erstwhile she got successful beforehand of people, and I ticker her talking to young people, she was magnetic with them. She was optimistic. She was hopeful. But successful today's world, you got to person a batch of that, oregon it gets mislaid successful the noise. And if you deliberation you're conscionable going to bash a, you know, a '60 Minutes' interview, and that's going to get across, boy, that's not it."

Tim Walz suggested connected a podcast that the Harris campaign's media strategy successful 2024 was ineffective. ((Photo by Amanda Stronza/SXSW Conference & Festivals via Getty Images))

HARRIS TEAM COMPLAINS MEDIA ASKED VP 'DUMB' QUESTIONS:' 'A DISSERVICE TO VOTERS'

Walz added that helium didn't hold with those arguing that the Democratic Party needed to find a "Joe Rogan of the left," but said the enactment needed to beryllium "in places wherever a scope of similar idiosyncratic similar Joe Rogan is getting retired there."

Harris' "60 Minutes" interrogation became the ground of a suit filed by President Donald Trump against CBS and its genitor company, Paramount Global. Trump's squad and CBS stay astatine an impasse arsenic they effort to resoluteness the president's $20 cardinal suit against the institution done mediation. 

Fox News Digital confirmed that Trump rejected a $15 million connection to settee his lawsuit, according to a root acquainted with the matter. The president's ineligible squad is besides demanding astatine slightest $25 cardinal and an apology from CBS News. Trump's attorneys adjacent floated different suit against the company.

Walz said successful March that the run shouldn't person played things truthful safe.

Tim Walz speaks astatine the Today, Explained unrecorded podcast astatine the Vox Media Podcast Stage presented by Smartsheet astatine SXSW connected March 8, 2025, successful Austin, Texas.  (Rick Kern/Getty Images for Vox Media)

CLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF MEDIA AND CULTURE

"I deliberation we astir apt should person conscionable rolled the dice and done the municipality halls, wherever (voters) whitethorn say, ‘You’re afloat of s---, I don’t judge successful you.' I deliberation determination could person been much of that," Walz said during an interview with Politico.

Walz argued that Democrats "are much cautious" successful engaging with the media than Republicans, portion adding that helium felt arsenic if the run was ne'er ahead, comparing it to a "prevent defense" strategy during a shot game. 

"In shot parlance, we were successful a forestall defence to not suffer erstwhile we ne'er had thing to suffer due to the fact that I don’t deliberation we were ever ahead," helium said, which bolsters reporting pursuing the predetermination that interior Democratic polling showed Harris lagging down Trump successful the lead-up to Nov. 5," the Minnesota politician said. 

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Fox News' Joseph Wulfsohn and Emma Colton contributed to this report.