{"id":41525,"date":"2021-11-16T14:11:58","date_gmt":"2021-11-16T19:11:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nationalcenter.org\/?p=41525"},"modified":"2021-11-17T14:15:15","modified_gmt":"2021-11-17T19:15:15","slug":"kyle-rittenhouse-and-the-liberal-medias-race-against-facts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nationalcenter.org\/ncppr\/2021\/11\/16\/kyle-rittenhouse-and-the-liberal-medias-race-against-facts\/","title":{"rendered":"Kyle Rittenhouse and the Liberal Media’s Race Against Facts"},"content":{"rendered":"

The clock started ticking on August 25, 2020. Amidst widespread rioting, looting and arson in response to the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha Wisconsin, shots were fired that resulted in the deaths of two protesters and serious injury to a third.<\/p>\n

\"Horace<\/a>

Horace Cooper<\/p><\/div>\n

Behind the trigger was Kyle Rittenhouse, a 17-year-old native of Antioch Ill., who had arrived earlier that day with a Smith & Wesson MP-15 rifle, seeking to protect businesses that had been under siege for the prior 48 hours.<\/p>\n

As if a starting pistol had been fired \u2014 the race was on. Media outlets and politicians immediately began pushing incendiary storylines, further inflaming tensions.<\/p>\n

The prevailing story: Kyle Rittenhouse, a vigilante white supremacist, had gone to Kenosha to hunt down peaceful protesters.<\/p>\n

The left leaning publication The Intercept ran an article labeling Rittenhouse an \u201carmed, pro-Trump fanatic\u201d who \u201cchose to travel to Kenosha, Wisconsin, and hunt down anti-racist protesters.\u201d\u00a0That piece made clear to the reader that Rittenhouse wasn\u2019t Black or a \u201cperson of color\u201d; referring to him as \u201cwhite\u201d over 16 times in the article.<\/p>\n

David Leavitt, a self-proclaimed left-wing pundit, tweeted \u201cIf you\u2019re defending Kyle Rittenhouse you might just be a white supremacist.\u201d<\/p>\n

But the media wasn\u2019t alone in these excesses. Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., part of the so-called \u201csquad,\u201d\u00a0took aim at Rittenhouse calling him a \u201cwhite supremacist domestic terrorist.\u201d<\/p>\n

Additionally, Congresswoman Gwen Moore, D-Wisc.,\u00a0claimed that Kenosha Police \u201clet an armed white supremacist walk right past them after shooting people.\u201d Then-presidential candidate Joe Biden even ran an ad against President Donald Trump portraying Rittenhouse as the face of the white supremacy movement.<\/p>\n

Cases like these reinforce what many already know about the left: They seek out stories to exploit for political gain, often before the facts are out.<\/p>\n

Building a false narrative is an effective tool to galvanize support and drive voters to the ballot box. In this case, it seems to have worked. Prosecutors rushed to indict Kyle Rittenhouse, ultimately overcharging him in their haste.<\/p>\n

Joe Biden defeated President Trump in part by tying him to \u201cwhite supremacists\u201d such as Rittenhouse. Shortly thereafter, a January 2021 nationwide survey conducted by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs showed that almost half of Democrat respondents believed \u201cmilitant far right extremist groups\u201d and \u201cviolent white nationalist groups\u201d in the United States posed the largest threat to national security\u00a0\u2014 over the likes of China, Russia, North Korea and ISIS.<\/p>\n

Fast forward 14 months, and the Rittenhouse trial is complete. Both the defense and the prosecutors have made their case and the left\u2019s narrative has all but collapsed in the courtroom. It looks likely that Rittenhouse may walk away conviction free after Judge Schroeder dismissed the charge for carrying a dangerous weapon while under the age of 18.<\/p>\n

We know now that all the people who were shot that day were white, and video footage has shown clearly that Rittenhouse acted in self-defense after being pursued by violent protesters, was struck with a skateboard, as another brandished a firearm toward him.<\/p>\n

In other words, a 17-year-old boy was miscast as a white supremacist for over a year by the media and elites in Washington based on almost no evidence.<\/p>\n

Tragically, the media may have won this race. Despite the mountains of evidence that may ultimately vindicate Rittenhouse, Justin Blake \u2014 the uncle of Jacob Blake \u2014 tells all who will listen that Kyle is guilty and that even an acquittal only \u201cshows that you can shoot Caucasians who support us\u201d and \u201cride down every African-American community and just have fun, like you\u2019re going hunting or something.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sadly, there are many people who will believe this lie. How, after all the evidence and facts that have been presented at the trial, can people believe this to be true? How can they continue to believe Kyle Rittenhouse is a white supremacist?<\/p>\n

The answer is clear: In today\u2019s America, the facts do not matter as much as the story.<\/p>\n

If Kyle Rittenhouse is acquitted of his charges, we can only hope the aftermath doesn\u2019t result in a similar turn of events as the protest over Jacob Blake\u2019s shooting did.<\/p>\n

Rather than feed this cycle \u2014 the media would serve America well by telling her the truth. Because if America burns again, there is only one winner: division and further separation.<\/p>\n

\n

 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Horace Cooper<\/a> is a legal fellow at the National Center for Public Policy Research and co-chairman of the Project 21 black leadership network. This was first published by Newsmax<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

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New Visions Commentaries reflect the views of their author, and not necessarily those of Project 21, other Project 21 members, or the National Center for Public Policy Research, its board or staff.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The clock started ticking on August 25, 2020. Amidst widespread rioting, looting and arson in response to the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha Wisconsin, shots were fired that resulted in the deaths of two protesters and serious injury to a third. 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