The energy inside Madison Square Garden can either amplify or weaponize cheers and boos, but one thing that spectators inside the building won’t allow is anyone attempting to skew their passion for political purposes, whether on purpose or not.
Kai Trump learned that lesson the hard way after her appearance at Game 3 of the NBA Finals alongside her grandfather, President Donald Trump, at Madison Square Garden between the New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs.
Trump became the first sitting president to attend an NBA Finals game, but much of the postgame talk centered on the logistical mess he caused for New Yorkers during the appearance and the reception he received from the New York crowd. A video posted by Kai illustrated a totally different reception from the widespread account of boos.
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The president was shown on MSG’s jumbotron during the pregame singing of the national anthem and received an overwhelmingly loud and negative response as he saluted.
The boos were noticeable inside Madison Square Garden and were also picked up on television as ABC/ESPN cameras barely showed Trump sitting behind protective glass in a suite.
Countless videos surfaced online from fans inside the arena, television personalities, and sports reporters who all noted the volume of the crowd’s negative response. Even Trump himself shared a video of himself being booed on his way to the game.
Kai later shared an Instagram video from the game on Tuesday night and thanked 15 Seconds of Fame, a platform that utilizes uploaded selfies and facial recognition software to find spectators and create videos of their fan experience during the game.
According to a report by Page Six, it was the organization who modified the video and that Kai simply reposted the content she received. That explanation did little to quiet critics who flooded the comments section.
Many users directly condemned Kai for not taking full ownership of the content posted on her platforms. One fan wrote, “Changing the audio is wild though,” wrote one commenter.
The Knicks lost their first game of the series with the Trumps in attendance -Credit:Getty
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A second hoops fan wrote, “She replaced the audio. Editing the boos out is crazy work,” while another added, “Girl, your face says it all. You and Grandpa were BOOED.”
An NBA fan who was inside the building wrote, “The boos rocked the foundation of The Garden,” while another added, “Girl your face says it all. You and Grandpa were BOOED.”
Even after the video’s source was explained, detractors continued to argue that anyone inside Madison Square Garden understood exactly how the crowd reacted, especially someone on the receiving end.