Trump policies fueling a 'huge surge' in interest at legal outlets

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (not pictured) after meeting at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, U.S., December 29, 2025. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

In 2026, attorneys are not only earning a living practicing law or teaching at university law schools — many of them are also working for media outlets. CNN employs Elie Honig, a former federal prosecutor for the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), as a senior legal analyst — while MS NOW often brings on ex-DOJ prosecutors Joyce White Vance and Barbara McQuade for legal analysis when a major court ruling is handed down or President Donald Trump issues an executive order that has legal ramifications.

In an article published on New Year's Day 2026, The Hill's Surina Venkat reports that legal outlets — from Bloomberg Media's Bloomberg Law to the U.S. Supreme Court-focused SCOTUSblog to law school websites — is seeing a major spike in interest during Trump's second presidency.

"The Trump Administration's first year in office kicked off a variety of legal challenges and policy changes spanning federal spending practices to sweeping tariffs, prompting Americans to scramble to understand the size and scope of these reforms," Venkat explains. "The chaotic environment has led news outlets covering the American legal and judicial system to pivot, pursuing different coverage strategies to break down complicated industry topics for readers. As a result, readership and engagement has spiked at several publications."

Venkat notes that since his return to the White House 11 and one-half months ago, Trump "has instated dozens of policies and executive orders challenging existing legal precedent." And those orders are giving Bloomberg Law a lot to talk about.

Cesca Antonelli, editor-in-chief of Bloomberg Industry Group, told The Hill, "As the regulatory and policy landscape changes, and the pace of change accelerated, we had to be in more places, and we had to be more nimble."

Bloomberg Law, Antonelli added, is seeing a "huge surge in interest in the law and in regulations of all kinds from both consumers and companies" because "the federal government and states have been operating at a much faster pace than in the past."

"If you can speak with depth and thoughtfulness on these issues," Antonelli told The Hill, "you win readers. It's not just litigation that is driving reader interest, but more so the idea that government itself has a crucial impact on lives and jobs and work."

Read Surina Venkat's full article for Bloomberg News at this link.

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