Donald Trump

Trump's Davos 2026 appearance was a masterclass in commanding attention without commanding respect. His January 21st virtual address—where he floated Greenland acquisition, threatened tariffs on European nations, and sparred with reporters—generated a media tsunami that overshadowed every other speaker at the forum.

The coverage arc tells the story: from 508 quotes on January 17th to an explosive 44,701 on January 21st, then a rapid decline to 5,538 by the forum's end. This wasn't sustained engagement—it was a controlled detonation of news value followed by exhaustion.

What's striking is the geographic skew. German publications dominated the source mix, with Schwäbische Post, Deutsche Welle, and N-tv in the top five. European media were processing Trump's return not as American politics but as an existential economic threat.

The sentiment split reveals Davos's verdict: 47.4% negative, only 11.2% positive. Compare this to Macron (59.5% positive) or Mark Carney (89.7% positive) and Trump's reception looks like polite institutional rejection. Davos covered him obsessively but didn't embrace him—they were watching a force they couldn't ignore but couldn't endorse.