Conservative radio host deceives Fox viewers
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Dear Media Corps member,
Conservative talk radio host Bill Cunningham appeared on Fox News' "Hannity and Colmes" last night to speak about the death of African-American Nathaniel Jones after four white police officers beat him Sunday. Sean Hannity introduced him as "a great American with a full report from the great station, WLW," Cincinnati's Clear Channel station. Cunningham deceived viewers about the facts of the case, repeatedly claiming Jones had died due to his obesity though the coroner's report has not been released. Urge other networks not to follow Fox News' lead by inviting Cunningham as a "local expert" on the incident. (If you're not a member of the Media Corps, click here to join. As a Media Corps member, you'll receive more alerts like this one in the future.)
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ABC News "At the end of the day, this man died of heart failure because he was a blimp and a poor imitation of Notorious B.I.G." insisted Cunningham. Meanwhile, his own radio station reported: "The coroner is expected to release an official cause of death in the next several days." Whether the cause of death turns out to be related to the beating or not, Cunningham's comments were premature and deceptive. Instead of seeking more information so an accurate determination could be made, Cunningham jumped to the conclusion that no police misconduct had occurred, despite numerous recent deaths in Cincinnati's African-American neighborhoods. Cunningham dismissed host Alan Colmes' questions about whether the police had been adequately prepared to de-escalate situations involving mental illness or drug use. Colmes said: "This is the fourth time in seven years that confrontations between Cincinnati police and individuals who were or appeared to be mentally ill have ended fatally. The fourth time in seven years. Doesn't that concern you and shouldn't that be looked into? Is that a pattern?" Cunningham's reply: "All of us could be mentally ill." When Colmes pressed him on the fatalities, Cunningham explained them as follows: "Because crazy people do crazy things. When someone that weighs 350 pounds that looks like Haystack Calhoun tries to take your head off, you can't call a T.O. baby and say, 'Wait for the taser, wait for the stun gun, wait for mental health experts.' "He was on top of him like a bat suit. And this refrigerator weighed 350 pounds and he was pummeling the officer nearly to death. And I'm proud of what the cops did and I want them to do more of it." Later in the show, Cunningham locked horns with the show's other guest, defense attorney Milton Grimes:
CUNNINGHAM: I'll bet you a dozen Krispy Kreme doughnuts this guy died of congestive heart failure, because he weighed almost 400 pounds. Cunningham ended his appearance with this insult toward Grimes: "People like you are destroying the inner cities by paying degenerates, paying idiots or poverty pimps. Talk to Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson, Grimes. Talk to Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson [the anti-Jesse Jackson, Christian Coalition member who advocates boycotting the NAACP]." Fox News treated Bill Cunningham as a reasonable local expert instead of a race-baiting ideologue. Then they let him get away with making outrageous claims without any evidence. Often, other news networks are tempted to follow Fox's lead. Before that happens, encourage them instead to find a guest who will provide their viewers with honest facts and context:
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ABC News We can't let Fox News be a bridge for deceptive, fringe pundits to get onto mainstream news shows. Thanks for sounding the alarm before they sneak through.
Sincerely,
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