Shocker: Shooting Targeting Socially Conservative Group Largely Embargoed By The Media
Somehow, I think the media coverage of the shooting at the Family Research Council’s Washington DC office would have been different it it had been, say, a shooting at the Planned Parenthood offices.
ABC was the only broadcast network that offered a full story on the FRC office shooting on Wednesday night. They led with the story and gave it two and a half minutes. None of the network newscasts reported the breaking detail that shooter Floyd Corkins volunteered for six months at the D.C. Center for the LGBT Community, adding depth to his political motivation.
On NBC Nightly News, Brian Williams gave the story just 17 seconds: “In Washington today, police say a man with a gun walked into the offices of the conservative lobbying group the Family Research Council, and opened fire. He never made it past the lobby. He shot a security guard in the arm before the guard was able to subdue him.”
On CBS Evening News, substitute anchor Bob Schieffer offered 20 seconds: “A gunman opened fire today at the Washington headquarters of the Family Research Council, a conservative Christian lobbying group. The man shot a security guard in the arm before that guard and others tackled him, and he was arrested. Police say that the suspect made negative comment about the council’s work just before the shooting.”
I don’t like the idea of using these shootings for political point scoring, but the media’s double standard for things like this is just atrocious.
Meanwhile, at Hot Air, Mary Katherine Ham pointed out this morning that it took CNN nearly three hours to switch to coverage of the shooting:
