Kamala Harris' media attack may be her October surprise

Kamala Harris The media whirlwind of the past few days may not move the needle much in Donald Trump's tight race.

Still, in all of the vice president's briefings over the past week, a moment reminiscent of Bill Clinton's last night's Univision town hall may prove to be the most memorable in terms of grabbing voters' attention.

“She connected, she humanized herself by the way she listened more and talked less to this poor woman,” a top Hollywood publicist says of Harris' interaction with a sobbing Ivett Castillo, who told Harris and viewers of the Enrique Acevedo-moderated primetime event of the death her undocumented mother six weeks ago and the shadow in which the “immigrant subgroup” lives.

“The viral moment when the vice president approached her at the end of the town hall is more important than anything else, everything that was said last night,” the columnist said.

Last week, Harris significantly increased her media presence following criticism that Trump was too dominant in the conversation.

Many Hollywood supporters have been happy with her recent media moves, but they still wonder what impact it will have on a media landscape that is constantly fighting for attention. With Trump refusing to hold another debate, there are no more major events that could attract a mass audience.

“In recent weeks, he has had to break through information silos. In this way, you can reach the undecided,” notes an experienced Democratic political activist, whose number is estimated at less than 10% of voters who have not yet chosen any candidate. “Web interviews, podcasts, all that stuff is good, but it's the unexpected, like calling The Weather Channel, drinking a beer with Colbert, that's the takeaway.”

Harris' schedule alternated between mainstream media and more apolitical tracks.

Mathew Littman, a former Biden speechwriter who heads a group of creative professionals involved in Democratic politics called The Working Group, said Harris' visit to Call her, daddy podcast and her meeting with Howard Stern is what a campaign should do.

“There is a strategy on this,” he said. “These complaints from the legacy media (that Harris is not cooperating with them) are absolutely ridiculous.” It reflects where the voters he needs to reach are now, he said.

“Not only do I think it's a good idea, but we should have done it a long time ago,” he said.

He noted that Trump has given some difficult interviews in traditional media; his appearance before the National Association of Black Journalists was one of only a few. “Did he do something where no one asked him a hard question? The truth is you don't have to anymore,” he said.

The idea is to reach voters who may not be paying attention or are still persuaded.

The Call her, daddy for example, the podcast is the second largest podcast on Spotify and, according to Edison Research, its audience is 76% under the age of 35. Host Alex Cooper also said her audience is politically diverse. Additionally, Cooper has a social media presence that amplified Harris' performance, including a behind-the-scenes post on TikTok.

“The Stern interview was a highlight, it felt very natural,” said the wealthy Democratic donor, who regularly attended the vice president's media tour and spent more than hours in talks with Stern, who is openly opposed to Trump. “But it's still a process,” he added, referring to Harris' efforts to reach the undecided groups she needs in early voting and on Election Day.

“Maybe a Taylor Swift rally with (Bruce) Springsteen could happen, some social media event, whatever it is, needs an October surprise that attracts persuadable voters,” Deadline's media director says, noting two of VP's Greatest Celebrity Endorsements.

Additionally, over the course of the Harris campaign's pursuit of non-heritage media, it has become obvious in tone, language and outcome that this is a different kind of election in terms of standards of conduct and association. “She had the courage to play Stern, who did a gay-themed piece on Cocktober the very next day, and Call her daddy which is so dirty,” said the longtime media and political consultant. “The days of fierce opposition on this issue are behind us.”

Additionally, as Deadline exclusively reports, Harris' VP nominee Gov. Tim Walz recorded a session on Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes and Will Arnett's bromance podcast Thoughtless which is expected to be published in the next week or so. He is also scheduled to appear in the program Fox News Sunday this weekend, for the second week in a row.

To that end, a Hollywood insider thinks Trump “failed this week” as a comedy podcast guest Glaring and insulting the Motor City at the Detroit Economic Club. But despite the media's actions, the vice president's poll numbers have remained flat across the country, and Trump's numbers are rising in some battleground states.

The Trump campaign did not respond to Deadline's request for comment on the former president's and Harris' media stops.

Trump tried to blunt the impact of Harris' performances. He refused to sit down with 60 minutesbut after The Interview with Harris appeared on Monday night, he broke down in tears when he heard the magazine's redaction of one of her responses. Magazines routinely redact interviews, but Trump claimed he was trying to help Harris and, reflecting his previous attacks on the press, called on CBS to lose its broadcast license over it.

RELATED: FCC Chair Slams Donald Trump's Calls to Lose CBS License Over '60 Minutes' Interview with Kamala Harris

Later that week, after a Univision town hall, Trump's allies quickly spread the false claim that she had used a teleprompter. Univision Acevedo debunked these claims shortly after the town hall aired, but they continued to be repeated by figures like Vivek Ramaswamy and news outlets like Newsmax.

Highlighted by a scheduled appearance in Detroit next week with the ever-explicit radio host Charlamagne tha God, Harris will continue her schedule of media hits. An October 23 CNN town hall with Anderson Cooper in Pennsylvania – instead of the now-dead debate with Trump – is also on the calendar.

As Harris has beefed up her media coverage after absorbing criticism for a small number of interviews, her campaign has shown that Trump largely chooses friendly media. “After withdrawing from 60 minutes and giving 27 straight interviews to conservative media outlets, it is unfortunately clear that Trump would prefer to hide in safe spaces and avoid real questions about his harmful agenda and failed divisive leadership,” Harris campaign chairwoman Jen O'Malley Dillon said in a statement Thursday.

Trump hasn't agreed to his CNN town hall yet, but I will do a taped Fox News town hall in Georgia on October 15 with Harris Faulkner and an all-female audience.

Still, some political veterans say that no matter how well-financed and powerful Harris's campaign is, the vice president must enter the lion's den in the final days of the race to win over the voters she needs, galvanize male voters into blackmail and strike down Trump ahead of his MAGA base.

“If she really wanted to show she was fearless and ready to take action, she would have gone on Fox with Bret Baier one-on-one and maybe even with Megyn Kelly,” says a Democratic source, adding that HBO In real time with Bill Maher could be another good foray into more conservative and male-centric territory.

“This is how you win an election this close: a surprise attack and direct interactions with voters, like a Univision town hall,” exclaims the media executive. “Harris has to flip the table to win the match.”