Cross posted to the MRC's NewsBusters blog
In the aftermath of Ohio passing a law that tries to increase the number of school staff with guns by lowering the hours of required training, CNN hosts Brianna Keilar and Don Lemon both gave air to complaints about the new law without including supporters.
Lemon also displayed the latest example of how the liberal news network that claims to care about fact-checking and accuracy does not bother to correct liberal guests when they make outrageously inaccurate statements as Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) claimed that most guns are used for suicides.
On Monday night, as Lemon spoke with Senator Stabenow about the possibility of a gun bill passing the Senate in response to recent mass shootings, he brought up the issue of trying to help people with mental disorders and noted that the Senator's father had died of suicide. Senator Stabenow began her response: "No question. And I think for so many of us, whether that's a gun violence issue -- and, by the way, the majority of guns are used in suicides. And so there's a lot of ways in which gun violence is going on in this country..."
Even though Americans buy almost 20 million guns a year, which is vastly higher than the number of gun-related suicides, at about 24,000, Lemon did not challenge her claim as he followed up by cuing her to fret over Governor Mike DeWine (R-OH) signing a bill to make it easier for school staff to qualify for gun permits:
LEMON: Governor DeWine -- Mike DeWine signed a bill into law just today that reduces hours of training school staff need to carry a gun from 700 hours to 24 hours. I mean, what effect do you think this is going to have on his state?
STABENOW: You know, Don, I thought I misread that when I first saw it. I don't know what to say. When you lower the training for people -- you want more people with guns in the school urging teachers to get guns, and then you dramatically -- not just a little bit -- they went from 700 to whatever -- 24 -- whatever it was, dramatically lower the training -- how in the world does that make sense with the situation that we're in right now? I don't know. It doesn't make any sense to me.
The next morning on New Day, an entire segment was devoted to letting a guest voice concerns about the new Ohio law. Even though many schools already have had armed teachers for years without problems, Michael Weinman of the Fraternal Order of Police of Ohio worried that Ohio teachers might not receive enough training on keeping their guns out of the hands of students:
WEINMAN: Well, most of the shooters in these school shootings are students. The students are going to learn who these teachers are that are carrying these weapons. So these weapons are being brought into the school by these staffers. ... So you're bringing in a gun into a scenario where, you know, this student could get to it. And when it comes to an active shooter situation, you know, are these teachers going to be proficient enough to be able to be on target and not strike other students in a crowded cafeteria or a gym or an auditorium, or something like that there's going to be mass chaos when this shooting occurs?
Keilar then followed up by commenting that she was surprised that "a lot of" the teachers she speaks with have indicated they are comfortable with the idea of guns in their schools.
The misinformation on Don Lemon Tonight was sponsored in part by Whole Foods, and CNN's New Day by Lincoln. Their contact information is linked.
Transcripts follow:
CNN's Don Lemon Tonight
June 13, 2022
11:46 p.m. Eastern
DON LEMON: This is personal for you. As I understand, your father needed some help, but the support for mental health issues is -- just wasn't there at the time. Right?
SENATOR DEBBIE STABENOW (D-MI): No question. And I think for so many of us, whether that s a gun violence issue -- and, by the way, the majority of guns are used in suicides. And so there's a lot of ways in which gun violence is going on in this country, and when we talk about the mental health side of things, you're talking about helping people so they don't feel hopeless and commit suicide. You know, my dad was bipolar and didn't get the services he needed. ...
LEMON: I'm glad you mentioned schools because there are other, you know, parts of the country -- governors are making their own -- states are making their own moves. Governor DeWine -- Mike DeWine signed a bill into law just today that reduces hours of training school staff need to carry a gun from 700 hours to 24 hours. I mean, what effect do you think this is going to have on his state?
STABENOW: You know, Don, I thought I misread that when I first saw it. I don't know what to say. When you lower the training for people -- you want more people with guns in the school urging teachers to get guns, and then you dramatically -- not just a little bit -- they went from 700 to whatever -- 24 -- whatever it was, dramatically lower the training -- how in the world does that make sense with the situation that we're in right now? I don't know. It doesn't make any sense to me.
LEMON: Yeah. Boy, you were right -- from 700 hours to 24 hours, and we'll see how it plays out. You know, let's hope -- let's hope for the best with this one. Thank you, Senator. I appreciate you joining.
(...)
CNN's New Day
June 14, 2022
7:22 a.m.
BRIANNA KEILAR: What about room for accidents? Is there any room for accidents in classrooms here? What do teachers need, if they were to be armed, to be proficient at reducing that?
MICHAEL WEINMAN, FRATERNAL ORDER OF POLICE OF OHIO: Well, quite frankly, we -- law enforcement in Ohio gets at least 46 hours of training on the range in our basic academy, and we have to requalify every year. That's not happening in this bill. And then also, what our officers are taught is whenever you have a gun, you're bringing a gun into that scenario that could be used against you. So you're taught weapons retention -- you're taught to fight for that gun. And now you're going to have a teacher, you know, could be sitting on a carpet reading to their students and have a zero-retention holster with this gun, so none of that is covered in this bill.
KEILAR: What do you think -- considering maybe some missteps or some things that are unaccounted for -- I mean, obviously, I think the goal of this bill is to protect students, right? I think we can agree the goal of this bill is to protect students. You're worried there are so many unintended consequences that are possible. What would school look like, in your opinion, with those unintended consequences if this goes into effect?
WEINMAN: Well, most of the shooters in these school shootings are students. The students are going to learn who these teachers are that are carrying these weapons. So these weapons are being brought into the school by these staffers. It doesn't even have to be a teacher. It can be any employee at the school board, employees. So you're bringing in a gun into a scenario where, you know, this student could get to it. And when it comes to an active shooter situation, you know, are these teachers going to be proficient enough to be able to be on target and not strike other students in a crowded cafeteria or a gym or an auditorium, or something like that there's going to be mass chaos when this shooting occurs?
KEILAR: I wonder, Michael, I've been surprised now -- whenever I run into a teacher, I ask them what they would think about carrying a weapon -- I know this is entirely anecdotal -- but I personally have been surprised that a lot of them are comfortable with it.
(...)
On Thursday morning, Fox News Channel forthrightly informed their viewers that police in Richmond, Virginia, believe they stopped a mass shooting plot by two illegal immigrants that would have targeted July 4th celebrations. CNN, MSNBC, and the other networks have barely touched the story and mostly buried the illegal immigration angle.
At 7:54 a.m., Fox & Friends set up a three-minute interview with Richmond police chief Gerald Smith:
RACHEL CAMPOS DUFFY: Well. just days after the horrific parade attack in Highland Park, police in Richmond announcing they foiled plans for another mass shooting on the 4th of July.
STEVE DOOCY: They say it was a tip from a "hero citizen" anonymous which led to the arrest of two illegal migrants before they could carry out the plan on the 4th of July.
After Chief Smith recalled that his officers began investigating the suspects after an anonymous tip from someone who overheard them, Doocy followed up by noting that one of the two had been deported several times: "They're both in this country illegally, and one of them has been deported a number of times, and yet he keeps coming back,..."
A Nexis search finds only two instances when CNN has mentioned the story -- once on Wednesday afternoon and again that evening when host Erin Burnett interviewed Chief Smith in a five-minute segment. In neither case did CNN anchors mention that they were illegal immigrants or even that they were being charged for being non-citizens in possession of firearms.
These details were withheld from CNN viewers even though when Chief Smith gave his press conference earlier that day, he was asked about the fact that one suspect had been deported several times.
MSNBC buried the story early Thursday morning on Way Too Early, but did at least mention that the perpetrators were in the country illegally.
Fox & Friends was sponsored in part by Sleep Number, Farmers Insurance, and Choice Hotels. Let them know you appreciate their support for news sources that do not hide relevant information from their viewers.
Transcript follows:
Fox & Friends
July 7, 2022
7:54 a.m. Eastern
RACHEL CAMPOS DUFFY: Well. just days after the horrific parade attack in Highland Park, police in Richmond announcing they foiled plans for another mass shooting on the 4th of July.
STEVE DOOCY: They say it was a tip from a "hero citizen" anonymous which led to the arrest of two illegal migrants before they could carry out the plan on the 4th of July.
BRIAN KILMEADE: Richmond police chief Gerald Smith joins us now. Chief Smith, can you rebuild how the tip got to you and what you did after and what you found when you got there?
GERALD SMITH, RICHMOND POLICE CHIEF: Sure, the tip came in on July 1st from what you described as a "hero citizen" and what I describe as a "hero citizen." They contacted our second precinct, and our officers in the second precinct took the call. They didn't blow it off -- they sat there on the phone and listened, took copious notes, and, at that point in time, our investigation started. Within a few hours, our officers were knocking at that residence wanting to know what was going on. And from that point on, once inside, our officers started to see other evidence that corroborated the hero citizen's statement. And the investigation continued until we locked up two individuals. And we prevented a disaster, I think. There is no other term I can think of to describe the citizen who called up but a "hero." One phone call prevented a tragedy.
CAMPOS DUFFY: This is exactly what you -- we've been saying we need to have happen -- it's amazing. So this hero citizen overheard a phone call? is that correct?
SMITH: No, hero citizen heard conversation between the suspects -- a conversation. They had contact -- direct contact -- and heard this plan and knew that they had to do something. You know, many of us go by our day every day, but this person said, "No, I'm not going to go on with my life -- I'm going to stop and make this phone call."
DOOCY: Sure. You see something, you say something. Obviously, this person said something. Officers went to this location, and they found two AR's, one handgun, over 200 rounds of ammunition. And we've also got this shot of these two suspects. They're both in this country illegally, and one of them has been deported a number of times, and yet he keeps coming back, and now, you know, you guys are lucky you were able to avert tragedy by these guys.
SMITH: Yeah, that's true. And, you know, we know that there are -- there's work to be done with the immigration policies throughout the country, but officers just, well, officers were just concentrating on the behavior -- they were looking at the criminal behavior that actually they had to concentrate on, and that made the difference. We can't get into the immigration issues that surround the country -- we had to look and we had to prevent that violence from occurring.
CAMPOS DUFFY: Gerald, really quick --
SMITH: I have to commend the officers.
CAMPOS DUFFY: No motive yet?
SMITH: I'm sorry?
CAMPOS DUFFY: No motive?
SMITH: No motive, no motive, but the officers -- we did know there was the intent -- the intent was clear -- the intent was to cause a mass shooting and to take lives and to do damage unto untold depths. We have no idea the depths of what this citizen hero prevented.
DOOCY: And they certainly did. Chief, thank you very much for joining us today from Richmond.
. Margaret Buckley
