In the before times, whenever there was a dispute about an event video was seen as the great arbiter.
But as technology has progressed, doctoring video (and audio) is as common as a bad call by an umpire. In short, “proof” can be easily manipulated.
Which is to say: Who knows whether Donald Trump was booed or cheered when introduced Sunday at the Super Bowl?
One amateur sleuth, John O’Connell, made a persuasive and widely shared case that “Trump at the Superbowl was soundly booed and hissed. Heard clearly international coverage and commented on in multiple countries.”
The American viewers who watched on Fox, which carried the Super Bowl, didn’t hear the boos because the pro-Trump network overlayed canned “cheers,” O’Connell surmised.
When challenged, O’Connell posted a video recorded by “someone who was actually there.” One problem: The account of the person who recorded it is inactive.
Maybe it’s the work of the X owner, Elon Musk, who is known to censor content he does not like. Maybe O’Connell and the thousands of others who shared the video were hoodwinked.
But the video, taken of Trump as he saluted during the singing of the national anthem by Jon Batiste, was clearly shot from inside the Super Bowl, and it showed a mixture of cheers and boos. That’s important to note, as many have tended not to make the distinction that before Trump was shown on the Jumbotron, he was introduced during pregame festivities. Each appearance produced a different reaction, or so we think.
The second video, shot when Trump was on the field, was more hostile toward the president. One fan can be heard yelling “Thank You, Donald” to the president, followed by another shouting “Traitor.” Boos followed though it’s unclear if they were directed at the president or the guy calling him a traitor.
“Sky News just showed it but edited out any booing disgraceful manipulation,” one person replied.
Of course, there is some wish casting involved. Judging from his X timeline, O’Connell, for example, is rabidly anti-Trump. The second video, meanwhile, was posted from the account “Occupy Democrats.”
A warm reception for Trump should’ve been expected. His approval rating has never been higher. The wider culture has embraced him (players kneeling in solidarity with Black Lives Matter protesters have been replaced by players celebrating with the “Trump dance”).
He won a majority of the vote in the state where the game was played (Lousiana) and the states where the two teams play (Pennsylvania and Missouri). So, it was a home-state advantage for the president.
Trump, of course, only heard cheers. He even suggested that the unmistakable boos directed at Taylor Swift were because she endorsed Kamala Harris in 2024. (“MAGA is very unforgiving,” he wrote on Truth Social.)
In the end, it seems Trump was both booed and cheered. So both sides are right (or wrong, depending on how you cast such things).
