Editor's Note, 04/05/21, 8:55 p.m. Eastern: Following this story's publication, NBC News had change of heart as Monday's NBC Nightly News decided to take note of Green's radical views. However, CBS continued to omit his history during its report on the Evening News.
On NBC, Capitol Hill correspondent Kasie Hunt conceded that Green "praised Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan" in social media posts.
The original post can be found below.
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The media quickly lose interest in investigating the political beliefs of murderers if they don’t happen to be right-wing white guys. Last Friday afternoon, a black man who called himself a follower of Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, rammed his car into the Capitol building barricades, killing one police officer and injuring another. But on this morning’s broadcasts, both NBC and CBS completely omitted that inconvenient detail.
After months of wailing over fears of right-wing extremism, NBC and CBS couldn’t be bothered to note the radical beliefs of the attacker. Instead, both networks used their reports to fret about the January 6 attack and push for more fencing around the Capitol.
“The Capitol Police community is shattered by violence again weeks after the January 6th insurrection with one officer dead after that attack. There's fear the Capitol building will continue to be a target,” NBC’s Kasie Hunt began, adding a little while later: “It all comes after the trauma of the January 6 Capitol Insurrection, which led one Capitol Police officer dead, and led to extra scrutiny, after many felt the Capitol Police were unprepared."
After pushing for more barricades, Hunt finally addressed the suspect at the tail end of her report, but refused to report on his social media posts on Farrakhan:
Meanwhile, as authorities try to determine the suspect's motive, police visiting this Virginia home three hours outside Washington where Green grew up. The Washington Post reports his family issued a statement Saturday pointing to his depression and potential mental illness saying he was not a terrorist by any means. Green's family declined to respond to NBC's request for comment…
CBS This Morning wasn’t any better, reporting on the deadly attack similarly to NBC, calling it “Capitol security concerns.” Correspondent Jeff Pegues only devoted the last few lines of his report to the suspect, again without mentioning his radical left-wing ties: “In a statement obtained by The Washington Post, Green's family said that he suffered from depression and potential mental illness. The investigation continues into the attack.”
ABC was the only network to briefly mention Green’s social media posts on Farrakhan:
PIERRE THOMAS: Today, authorities are still trying to determine the motive of suspected killer Noah Green. Sources telling ABC News police have been focused on Green's Facebook posts where he's discussed losing his job and being in a state of duress. Green's family told The Washington Post he was not a terrorist, but suffered from depression and potential mental illness. According to sources, police are also looking into Green's apparent obsession with Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, and scriptures about the end of the world….
CBS's bias was paid for by Amazon while NBC's was paid for by Colgate. Contact them at the Conservatives Fight Back page here.
Read the ABC transcript below:
Good Morning America
4/5/2021
PIERRE THOMAS: This morning, Capitol Police admitting they're reeling from Friday's vicious attack which killed one officer and injured another when this car crashed into a barricade.
CAPITOL POLICE: Please keep the United States capitol police family in your thoughts and prayers.
THOMAS: After the tragic death of 18-year veteran of Capitol Police Officer Billy Evans, the only bit of good news this weekend is the release of fellow injured officer Ken Shaver. Today, authorities are still trying to determine the motive of suspected killer Noah Green. Sources telling ABC news police have been focused on Green's Facebook posts where he's discussed losing his job and being in a state of duress. Green's family told The Washington Post he was not a terrorist, but suffered from depression and potential mental illness. According to sources, police are also looking into Green's apparent obsession with Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, and scriptures about the end of the world. The union representing Capitol Police saying this weekend, the force is approaching a crisis in morale, and that officers are struggling to meet their mission. The National Guard remains at the Capitol, but in the wakes of Friday’s attack, the recent scaling back of fencing, now in question. Some congressional leaders say everything about security must now be reassessed, including how much fencing will remain. TJ a lot of tension in this city.
