“CBS Evening News” anchor Norah O’Donnell told viewers that up to $2 billion in property destruction by Black Lives Matter activists in recent months came with their “mostly peaceful” protests.
Wednesday’s coverage was reminiscent of MSNBC’s Ali Velshi’s reporting on “The 11th Hour With Brian Williams” in May, along with CNN correspondent Omar Jimenez’s reporting from Kenosha, Wisconsin, in August.
“The protests in late spring were mostly peaceful, but damage from looting and arson will cost $1 [billion] to $2 billion in claims,” Ms. O’Donnell said while citing an Axios report on the costs. “That’s according to the Insurance Information Institute. And that would eclipse the previous high, the 1992 riots that followed the acquittal of four officers in the beating of Rodney King.”
The “peaceful” qualifier has been spotlighted by media watchdogs and members of the Trump administration as an example of industry bias.
Mr. Velshi was mocked by critics for saying, ’this is mostly a protest. It is not, generally speaking, unruly,” while a giant arson fire raged behind him in Minneapolis.
Similarly, a CNN chyron read “FIERY BUT MOSTLY PEACEFUL PROTESTS AFTER POLICE SHOOTING” while Mr. Jimenez reported from Kenosha after the police shooting of Jacob Blake.
NewsBusters noted, however, that Ms. O’Donnell was the “only broadcast journalist to report the statistic on-air.”
ABC’s World News Tonight and NBC Nightly News both chose not to report the statistic, the media watchdog reported.
.@CBSEveningNews was the only broadcast network tonight to report on how the “mostly peaceful” protests have led to upwards of $2 billion in damages nationwide. But they only gave it 26 seconds. pic.twitter.com/wPjLG2a6oI
— Nicholas Fondacaro (@NickFondacaro) September 16, 2020
• Douglas Ernst can be reached at dernst@washingtontimes.com.
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