I eagerly await the media’s weeklong festival of self-flagellation for its initial wrong, biased, irresponsible, inexcusably sloppy reporting.
Eh . . . that will be a long wait.
At least the Washington Post, one of the biggest offenders in the original news cycle, covered this development:
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An investigation released Wednesday into an encounter between Covington Catholic High School students and Native American activists at the Lincoln Memorial last month largely supports the students’ accounts of the incident, which prompted immediate and widespread condemnation of the boys after a video of the encounter went viral.
A short video clip showed Nathan Phillips, playing a traditional drum, in an apparent standoff with student Nick Sandmann, who was wearing a “Make America Great Again” hat. The Diocese of Covington and Covington Catholic High School, which arranged the trip, were among those who initially condemned the boys’ actions in the video.
The report, prepared by Greater Cincinnati Investigation, Inc. and dated Feb. 11, employed four licensed investigators for approximately 240 hours to take statements from students and chaperones, as well as to interview third-party witnesses and review about 50 hours of video. Investigators were not able to interview either Phillips or Sandmann in person and instead reviewed the student’s written account.
The investigators said they found no evidence that the students responded in an offensive manner to the black Hebrew Israelites or that they chanted “build the wall.” After asking chaperones, they performed a school cheer, according to the report, to drown out the black Hebrew Israelites.
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Other key findings include testimony that the students felt “confused” when Phillips approached them. Investigators said they found no evidence of “racist or offensive statements by students to Mr. Phillips,” though some performed a “tomahawk chop.”
So, riddle me this:
Have you ever seen the media worse than this?
Where’s Nathan Phillips at the moment? Are NBC and ABC going to have him back on their respective dopey morning shows and demand to know why he lied in his attacks on Nick Sandmann? Why he continued to accuse him of being a racist even as the evidence was mounting that no such thing had happened?
Also, is Savannah Guthrie going to have Sandmann back on and apologize for berating him during his last appearance?
Also: How is this going to play into the upcoming lawsuits against all those who joined in slandering Sandmann and his classmates?
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This whole thing was one of the sorriest media/culture episodes we’ve seen in this country in a long time, and that’s saying something considering how much competition there is for that ignominious distinction. It really never should have been a story in the first place, but these days I guess the shrillest voices on social media set the agenda for everything, and the MSM just follows along.
By the way, the bishop of Covington says he was “bullied” into making a quick and harsh condemnation of the boys before he knew the facts. There is no doubt he did this in response to pressure he felt, but why is a supposed man of God so easy to bully?
I think God deserves some better men than this.
