CNN is once again under fire for a chyron on one of their news segments. A CNN reporter is standing in front of a burning car lot, while the words underneath him read “Fiery but mostly peaceful protests after police shooting”.
CNN correspondent Omar Jimenez spoke about the measures that police took to disperse the protesters, trying to imply that police aggression was what triggered the rioting. He said that the protests that started because of the police shooting of Jacob Blake were “largely peaceful” during the day, but “became a little more contentious” after nightfall.
“What you are seeing, the common theme that ties all of this together is an expression of anger and frustration over what people feel like has become an all-too familiar story playing out in places all across the country, not just here in Kenosha, Wisconsin,” Jimenez stated.
Twitter’s Reaction
This set off a Twitter firestorm of people denouncing CNN‘s attempt at manipulating their viewers, while also laughing at the amount of cognitive dissonance required to make such an absurd statement:
I don’t want to offend all the other hilariously awful CNN chyrons, but this is the most hilariously awful one by far. pic.twitter.com/c7PvubqDRN
— Cabot Phillips (@cabot_phillips) August 27, 2020
CNN reports Hindenburg mostly safe landing? These guys…
CNN Calls Wisconsin Riots ‘Mostly Peaceful’ As Correspondent Stands In Front Of Burning Building https://t.co/Yzezbu1FAD via @dailycaller— Gov. Mike Huckabee (@GovMikeHuckabee) August 27, 2020
lmao this is the chyron on cnn. they’re literally doing “nothing to see here please disperse” pic.twitter.com/qDCRsSMU3I
— Kyle Kashuv (@KyleKashuv) August 27, 2020
Republican California state Senator Melissa Melendez also commented on CNN’s absurdity: “This is what a Biden Presidency will bring to your city. Hats off to CNN for having the stamina to continue to carry water for democrats.”
Buck Sexton, a conservative talk radio host, said: “It’s impossible to dunk on CNN harder than it dunks on itself.”
Not CNN’s First Mistake This Week
CNN has also been under fire for altering one of their chyrons in the middle of a segment. The Federalist reported that “CNN accidentally displayed an honest chyron Monday afternoon in reporting on the militant mobs terrorizing the Wisconsin town of Kenosha this week after a police shooting of a black man. The chyron however, was taken down after 15 seconds.”
The chyron used the phrase “violent protests”, was taken down, and came back with the word “violent” removed.
