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The False and Exaggerated Claims Still Being Spread About the Capitol Riot https://greenwald.substack.com/p/the-false-and-exaggerated-claims
Insisting on factual accuracy does not make one an apologist for the protesters. False reporting is never justified, especially to inflate threat and fear levels.
The more consequential the event, the less justified, and more harmful, serial journalistic falsehoods are.
The more consequential the event, the less justified, and more harmful, serial journalistic falsehoods are.
After these two NYT articles, this horrifying story about a pro-Trump mob beating a police officer to death with a fire extinguisher was repeated over and over, by journalists on television, in print, and on social media.
The problem with this story: it is false in all respects.
The problem with this story: it is false in all respects.
Just look at this short excerpt of how we drowned in a totally false story for a full month -- one that was crucial to the narrative because only Sicknick could be said to have been killed by deliberate violence by pro-Trump protesters. Watch:
The fire extinguisher tale was far from the only false or dubious claim that the media caused to circulate about the events that day. In some cases, they continue to circulate them. This matters for so many reasons, especially what's being done in the name of these fears.
One can — and should — condemn the January 6 riot without inflating the threat it posed. And one can — and should — insist on both factual accuracy and sober restraint without standing accused of sympathy for the rioters. https://greenwald.substack.com/p/the-false-and-exaggerated-claims
No matter your views on how to think about the Jan 6 Capitol riot, there is no question the US media drowned the country in false but crucial tales for a full month: not just the fabricated fire extinguisher story but many other key facts, all in the same narrative direction.
Given how widespread these false stories were and how crucial they were in shaping perceptions - they were cited often in the impeachment process - it's quite revealing how little effort there is to explain what happened let alone prominently retract it. https://greenwald.substack.com/p/the-false-and-exaggerated-claims
I also find it odd, and more than a little disturbing, how little interest there is in the question of whether the point-blank shooting by a police officer of unarmed Ashli Babbitt was justified.
Especially after the police protests of last summer, the indifference is striking.
Especially after the police protests of last summer, the indifference is striking.
