Five Sinclair reports on the Kenosha protests didn’t mention the right-wing gunman who killed two protesters
Written by Zachary Pleat
Published
Updated
Update (9/1/20): This article has been updated with two more Sinclair reports that began airing on August 31.
Update (9/2/20): A September 1 report by Sinclair national correspondent Kristine Frazao finally mentioned the alleged gunman who killed two protesters on August 25 in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Five separate nationally aired Sinclair Broadcast Group reports on protests against the police shooting of Black resident Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin, did not mention that a right-wing 17-year-old had allegedly killed two people and severely wounded a third during the protests.
On August 23, police in Kenosha were recorded shooting Blake multiple times in the back at close range, sparking nationwide outrage and protests. Blake is reportedly paralyzed and has suffered other extensive injuries from the police shooting, and he had also been shackled to his hospital bed by police. NBA players, led by the Milwaukee Bucks, conducted a strike on August 26 to draw attention to the injustice. Right-wing media, especially Fox News, have attempted to justify the police shooting of Blake.
The protests against the police violence became deadly the night of August 25 not because of violence from the protesters, but because of violence directed at them. The alleged shooter, who came from out of state and brought a rifle, was shown on graphic footage firing into a crowd of protesters attempting to stop him after he already shot one person. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that the suspected shooter’s social media presence indicated that he considered himself to be part of a self-styled militia. The newspaper also reported that the armed vigilante group was openly supported by police who tossed them water bottles and thanked them for their help. He is also reportedly a Trump supporter and was in the front row of a Trump rally in January. The alleged shooter was arrested in Illinois and has been charged with multiple counts of murder. Fox News is, in a new low, defending these shootings as well.
But many viewers of the Sinclair-owned or -operated stations who learned about the Kenosha protests from reports by Sinclair national correspondents Kristine Frazao and Ahtra Elnashar would not know about these fatal shootings.
In an August 27 report, Frazao failed to mention the shootings allegedly committed by the 17-year-old suspect, instead dishonestly framing the protesters seeking justice as the source of violence in the community. This misleading report aired on at least 27 Sinclair stations in 27 states including the Green Bay/Appleton market in Wisconsin, according to a transcript search of the Kinetiq video database.
Citation From the August 27, 2020, edition of KHGI's NTV News at 5
KRISTINE FRAZAO (SINCLAIR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT): Throughout this summer, we have seen example after example of peaceful protests. Wednesday night, a historic one, with the pro sports world taking a stand, including the Milwaukee Bucks boycotting their playoff game.
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FRAZAO: But polls show the support for other types of protest waning. In Washington, D.C., diners who did not raise their fists in solidarity with protesters surrounded and shamed.
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FRAZAO: So how will those demands [for social justice] be met? Experts say it will mean less violence and more coming together, even if that means continued protest.
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FRAZAO: This issue has been at the center of President Trump’s reelection campaign, as he tries to make the case this country needs more law and order, pointing to the protests as something you’d see more of if Joe Biden were elected president.
The reality is they are happening as Donald Trump is president, most recently in Wisconsin after a Black man, Jacob Blake, was shot in the back seven times by police. Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden supporting the protests but also speaking out against what he calls needless violence.
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FRAZAO: Listen to this Wisconsin man’s response after the windows of his restaurant were smashed in.
(VIDEO BEGINS)
RESTAURANT OWNER: Are they trying to get Trump reelected? I’ve got a family to support.
PROTESTER: These people don’t represent our movement.
RESTAURANT OWNER: Well, I’m sorry, but they’re part -- they’re with you.
(VIDEO ENDS)
FRAZAO: Who they’re with, and against, a notion that may be on voters’ minds as well.
The following day, Sinclair national correspondent Ahtra Elnashar reported on the Kenosha protests. But Elnashar also failed to mention the shooting that killed two people, while calling some of the protesters violent. Elnashar’s report aired on at least 50 Sinclair stations in 37 states, including Wisconsin.
Citation From the August 28, 2020, edition of WPEC's CBS 12 News at 6:00
AHTRA ELNASHAR (SINCLAIR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT): Unrest once again breaking out following the shooting of Jacob Blake by police in Kenosha, Wisconsin. From Oakland to Atlanta, and outside the White House, some protesters turning to violence or destruction, something Jacob Blake’s parents say needs to stop.
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ELNASHAR: At the Democratic National Convention last week, George Floyd’s brother emphasizing the right way to protest.
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ELNASHAR: Many protesters not only speaking out against racism, but also against President Donald Trump, though Blake’s mother says she has the utmost respect for the president.
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ELNASHAR: Blake’s father Friday morning expressing his gratitude for his recent conversation with the Democratic presidential ticket, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.
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ELNASHAR: On this 57th anniversary of the March on Washington, a massive crowd gathering in the nation's capital calling for social justice. In that crowd was Jacob Blake’s family.
A second report from Frazao began airing on Sinclair stations Sunday night. Frazao led off her report with the shooting death of a member of a right-wing group in Portland, Oregon, yet when she pivoted to the ongoing protests in Kenosha and Jacob Blake’s family calling for peace, she once again failed to mention the killings of protesters there. Frazao’s second report aired on at least 52 stations in 37 states, including Wisconsin.
Citation From the August 30, 2020, edition of WRSP's Fox Springfield News at 9
KRISTINE FRAZAO (SINCLAIR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT): Tensions boiling over following the shooting death of a man believed to be attending a pro-Trump rally in Portland, Oregon, a city that’s had protests for nearly the last 100 nights.
In Kenosha, Wisconsin, the family of Jacob Blake continues to call for justice after police shot and paralyzed him. Blake's father, in the nation’s capital Friday, said systematic racism is on trial.
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FRAZAO: While many demonstrations remain peaceful, President Trump is honing in on those that don’t, retweeting a video from this weekend calling protesters, quote, “disgraceful anarchists,” and calling on Washington, D.C.’s mayor to make arrests and to clean up the city.
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FRAZAO: This week, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul and his wife were surrounded by protesters in Washington, which he later called “an angry mob,” as images like this bolster one of the Trump campaign’s central messages, the need for more law and order, often blaming Democrats. Joe Biden’s campaign fighting back, blaming the president for escalating tensions.
On Monday evening, Frazao reported that Trump is preparing to visit Kenosha, but she still omitted the slaying of two protesters in the city. At the time of this update, this report had aired on at least 34 Sinclair stations in 31 states, including Wisconsin.
A report Frazao gave the same morning, which aired on at least 56 stations in 40 states and Washington, D.C. -- again including Wisconsin -- was particularly disgraceful. In her report, Frazao noted that Black Lives Matter protests of police violence against George Floyd and others have gone on for nearly 100 days, “during which time more lives have been lost.” Yet, as she played video of a protest in Kenosha, the only lost life she mentioned was that of a supporter of a violent far-right group in Portland, Oregon.
Citation From the August 31, 2020, edition of WJAR's NBC 10 News Sunrise @ 5 a.m.
KRISTINE FRAZAO (SINCLAIR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT): Calls for change growing louder. In Washington this weekend, five police officers were injured after protesters lit fires and threw bricks and other projectiles. Nearly 100 days after the death of George Floyd, protests around the country continue, during which time more lives have been lost. In Portland, Oregon, over the weekend, a man believed to be attending a pro-Trump rally was shot and killed. The Trump administration blaming local leaders.
...
FRAZAO: This back-and-forth battle [between Trump and local mayors] already playing out on the campaign trail. The president retweeting a video from this weekend in D.C., calling protesters, quote, “disgraceful anarchists,” calling on the mayor to make arrests and to clean up the city.
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FRAZAO: Both President Trump’s and Joe Biden’s campaigns expected to ramp up the messaging around this unrest and this violence. Look for President Trump to hammer home his rhetoric on the need for more law and order and for Biden and his team to repeat this phrase: “We are currently living in Donald Trump's America.”
Sinclair Broadcast Group’s national correspondents have a documented history of ignoring the violence committed against Black Lives Matter protesters, and instead focusing on instances of property destruction and accusations of violence allegedly committed by the protesters.
Does Sinclair believe that the lives of Black Lives Matter protesters don’t matter? With at least five distinct reports from Sinclair national reporters which have mentioned the Kenosha protests but omitted the slaying of two protesters there, Sinclair seems to have made an editorial decision to leave this information out of its national-level reporting.
Fox News, led by its prime-time host Tucker Carlson, has already positioned itself to defend the vigilante violence against protesters in Kenosha. How far behind is Sinclair Broadcast Group, which has for months vilified many protesters as violent while refusing to report that they suffer from violent attacks?