Good lord, here comes another act of preemptive cowardice in service of ensuring the most powerful man in the world enjoys his appearance before a crowd he can’t control or doesn’t own. Here’s Ben Rothenburg of tennis-focused blog Bounces with the scoop:

An internal email sent by the U.S. Tennis Association leadership to U.S. Open broadcasters, obtained by Bounces, requested that broadcasters censor any possible protests or other reactions to President Donald Trump’s presence at Sunday’s U.S. Open men’s final between Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz.

Here’s the key text from the USTA email obtained by Bounces:

“With respect to Broadcast Coverage, the President will be shown on the World Feed and the Ashe Court Feed during the opening anthem ceremony. We ask all broadcasters to refrain from showcasing any disruptions or reactions in response to the President’s attendance in any capacity, including ENG [Electronic News Gathering] coverage.”

Yeah, that’s just sad. The USTA already scheduled Trump’s visit to coincide with the National Anthem part of the programming to better hide the boos behind the expected cheers for the American flag and the singing of the national anthem. But sooner or later, the camera is going to pan to Trump and even a stadium loaded with millionaires and influencers is going to send at least a few boos Trump’s way.

The nice thing about this cowardly ask is that it’s just an ask. It’s not a demand. It’s not part of the broadcasting agreement. And while it could certainly play a factor in future contracts if ABC and/or ESPN go rogue and revel in the boos cascading down on Trump’s whiny shoulders, there’s nothing in this email that threatens anything more than future unhappiness if broadcasters do not comply with the email.

What’s tacitly admitted here by this set of instructions is that the USTA fully expects Trump to be booed, possibly quite frequently. After all, the last time he showed up at the US Open — shortly after his announcement of his campaign for president — he spent most of his time being loudly booed by the New York crowd.

He hasn’t gotten any more popular during the ten years between US Open appearances. Sure, he’s president again, but he’s actually far more polarizing this time around. Those covering Trump’s return to the US Open (as the guest of Rolex, no less) should not only broadcast audible booing, but comment on this reaction and who it’s directed at. After all, broadcasters don’t shy away from naming the target of audible booing when it’s an athlete on the field/court. Why should they pretend the thing that’s happening right at that moment simply doesn’t exist just because the USTA has opted for preemptive capitulation to a bully who does nothing but punch down?

Anyway, this is the real reason you’ve read this entire post: footage of Trump being booed at the 2025 US Open. It happened and even if ESPN won’t show it to you, journalist (and US Open attendee) Marisa Kabas of the always-essential The Handbasket has got you covered. Enjoy!

BREAKING: Trump makes his first appearance at the US Open. There were audible boos and a few light claps. Important to stress the stadium is at most 10% full and the start time has been pushed to 2:30pm ET.

— Marisa Kabas (@marisakabas.bsky.social) 2025-09-07T17:46:50.751Z

NEW — Trump, along with Jared Kushner, Pam Bondi and others stand for the National Anthem. Crowd boos as the American flag is unfurled on the court. Stadium is still only about 50% full.

— Marisa Kabas (@marisakabas.bsky.social) 2025-09-07T18:40:15.150Z

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