161020_donald_trump_getty_1160.jpg

Getty

Did Trump just launch Trump TV?

After Wednesday night’s third and final presidential debate, on cable and network television, Trump surrogates rushed to spin Trump’s assertion that he would not accept the results of the November election, and some cable television post-debate panels descended into screaming matches.

But on Donald Trump’s Facebook page, which had already livestreamed a pre-debate show, followed by the debate itself for a little fewer than 200,000 concurrent viewers, and a post-debate program full of panels, pre-recorded bits and complete with anchors and all the other trappings of a news program, an alternate reality was being established.

Proclaiming itself an antidote to the “mainstream media” which Trump has said is guilty of tipping the scales of this election against Trump and the American people and in favor of a Clintonocracy, the nearly three hours of programming on Facebook cycled through Trump surrogates, family members and former Apprentice cast members, all of whom praised Trump endlessly.

Right Side Broadcasting Network, a conservative online media network that live streams Trump rallies, filmed the pre- and post- debate show, on which the common refrain was: “The mainstream media is against us.” Another common refrain following Trump's debate performance: “By far his best debate. A clear and decisive victory.” Trump adviser Boris Epshteyn, who served a a co-host along with Trump adviser Cliff Sims, declared it “the greatest Republican debate performance since Abraham Lincoln.”

During their post-debate show, the show's hosts and guests repeated the oft-debunked claim that Trump said he was against the Iraq War, thanked Trump repeatedly for being inspirational, and expressed their excitement for the inevitable Trump presidency.

They also, at one point, suggested that Clinton Foundation money was used for Clinton’s “white teeth,” though Trump’s looked whiter, actually.

The livestream “news” report appeared to “break” for pro-Trump advertisements and repeatedly asked for campaign donations, and it featured exclusively Trump surrogates and his family members, along with several former contestants of “The Apprentice.”

Ivanka Trump made an appearance in a call for campaign donations before the debate, and both Eric and Donald Trump Jr. appeared afterward to talk about what they thought was a decisive win for their father.

The post-debate show also featured cameos from The Blaze show host Tomi Lahren and Fox News’ Jeanine Pirro, which could signal the types of personalities who might be on a more permanent media venture if Trump loses in November.

Rumors have swirled about a Trump TV venture that could emerge if Republican nominee Donald Trump loses the election in November. Skeptics have painted a dark picture for the business prospects of any new cable news networks, but large- scale digital media companies are still attracting significant capital and making significant revenue; it remains to be seen how much longevity they will have.

On Wednesday, Trump campaign CEO and former Breitbart chairman Steve Bannon said of the rumors: "Trump is an entrepreneur."

The program was a safe haven for Trump surrogates Jason Miller, Katrina Pierson, Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Kellyanne Conway, who often face a tougher job defending Trump on cable news panels and on network appearances. On Trump TV, the hosts high-fived Trump surrogate A.J. Delgado when she repeated her favorite line from the debate, and asked Eric Trump how he felt seeing his dad onstage.

Miller, who is Trump’s senior adviser for communications, cautioned against viewers for what they might see in the mainstream media in the next coming days, and other guests advised Trump supporters avoid looking at the polls.

“We know who almost everyone in the media is rooting for. And they’re supporting Crooked Hillary Clinton,” Miller asserted. “So of course they’re going to come after Trump. “ …That’s the kind of thing we’re up against.”

As of Thursday morning, the livestream had attracted 8.7 million cumulative views on Facebook, which counts a view as someone who watches the video for longer than three seconds.

This post has been updated to clarify Right Side Broadcasting's role in the livestream.