Watergate scandal stages a TV comeback amid the cr

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Watergate scandal stages a TV comeback amid the crisis facing Trump

Viewers of cable news network MSNBC frequently see host Chris Hayes in a promotional spot where he stands outside the Watergate complex in Washington, the site of the 1972 Democratic National Committee headquarters break-in that led to the undoing of the Nixon presidency.



“Watergate — you know its name because of reporters who never stopped asking questions,” he intones over images of the structure’s familiar architectural details made ominous by history. “Now, who knows where the questions will take us.”

Hayes wasn’t even born when the corruption uncovered by Washington Post reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein led to the resignation of President Nixon in 1974. But each day of reporting on the possible collusion between Russia and President Trump’s campaign draws TV news comparisons to the 45-year-old Watergate saga, which has returned to the cultural conversation.

Such terms as special counsel, executive privilege and impeachment have seeped back into the political lexicon in a big way. Thursday’s testimony of fired FBI Director James B. Comey before a Senate committee drew nearly 20 million viewers — a massive audience for daytime TV — much like the Watergate hearings did in 1973 when daily coverage rotated between ABC, CBS and NBC.

Renewed interest in the greatest political scandal in American history is already spurring a rush in the TV business to revisit the era. Watergate gives networks a familiar title to help draw big ratings as well as burnish their news legacies at a time when their legitimacy has been challenged by the Trump administration.

Both ABC News and MSNBC have prime-time specials on Watergate airing this weekend to coincide with the anniversary of the break-in of Democratic National Committee headquarters at the complex.

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