Even though the gun rights rally in Richmond, Virginia on Monday saw absolutely zero violent incidents, both ABC’s World News Tonight and NBC Nightly News saw fit to taint their reports on the event with images from the Charlottesville, Virginia violence where white nationalists and left-wing protesters clashed.
During NBC’s opening tease, anchor Lester Holt dipped into the Charlottesville comparison early. “The massive protest, tens of thousands rallying against new proposed gun control laws at Virginia's capitol,” he announced. “Police on high alert after the governor declared a state of emergency saying he feared another Charlottesville.”
Luckily, Holt turned it around by the time he got to the report later in the program. “A massive pro-gun rally taking place under a state of emergency and a blanket of security brought thousands of protesters to the state capital in Virginia today, but none of the violence that officials feared,” he admitted.
To Holt’s credit, that was the fastest any of the broadcast networks got to the fact there was no violence during their evening newscasts.
But that lack of violence meant the liberal media had to insert some, just as NBC correspondent Gabe Gutierrez did for his report. “Virginia's governor had declared a state of emergency hoping to avoid a repeat of the deadly protest in Charlottesville in 2017,” he reported, as video of a brawl in Charlottesville played.
Adding: “Last week, several suspected white supremacists were arrested. Federal authorities say at least some of them had planned to attend today's rally.”
Meanwhile, on ABC, anchor David Muir began the segment with his usual sensationalism:
But to the other news this Monday night, and to that state of emergency in Virginia, as thousands gathered for a gun rights rally in Richmond. Weapons were banned from the rally site. People closely screened as they passed through a single entrance. On the other side of the fence, many heavily armed. And ABC's Victor Oquendo is right there in Richmond tonight.
Muir said that as the on-screen headline over his shoulder read, “gun rally showdown.” In reality, there was no showdown, it wasn’t the wild west. But those false works stayed on the screen as correspondent Victor Oquendo invoked Charlottesville once more.
“Amid fears of a repeat of the deadly violence at the unite the right rally in Charlottesville in 2017, and the FBI warning about possible violence, Governor Ralph Northam declared a state of emergency, banning all weapons from the capitol grounds,” Oquendo reported, as a video of a car driving into a crowd flashed on the screen.
Now, it’s one thing to show the Charlottesville footage before the event because there was speculation about a repeat. But since the rally was peaceful and the speculation was proven unfounded, there was no need to share the violence. They should have instead shown more of the peaceful protesters.
The transcripts are below, click "expand" to read:
ABC’s World News Tonight
January 20, 2020
6:36:21 p.m. EasternDAVID MUIR: But to the other news this Monday night, and to that state of emergency in Virginia, as thousands gathered for a gun rights rally in Richmond. Weapons were banned from the rally site. People closely screened as they passed through a single entrance. On the other side of the fence, many heavily armed. And ABC's Victor Oquendo is right there in Richmond tonight.
[Cuts to video]
(…)
VICTOR OQUENDO: Amid fears of a repeat of the deadly violence at the unite the right rally in Charlottesville in 2017, and the FBI warning about possible violence, Governor Ralph Northam declared a state of emergency, banning all weapons from the capitol grounds.
Authorities arresting seven alleged white supremacists last week, saying some of them were planning on attending.
(…)
NBC Nightly News
January 20, 2020
7:00:58 p.m. Eastern [Opening tease]LESTER HOLT: The massive protest, tens of thousands rallying against new proposed gun control laws at Virginia's capitol.
UNIDENTIFIED MAN: It’s infringing on every right that we have.
HOLT: Police on high alert after the governor declared a state of emergency saying he feared another Charlottesville.
(…)
7:08:07 p.m. Eastern
HOLT: A massive pro-gun rally taking place under a state of emergency and a blanket of security brought thousands of protesters to the state capital in Virginia today, but none of the violence that officials feared. Gabe Gutierrez is in Richmond.
[Cuts to video]
(…)
GABE GUTIERREZ: Virginia's governor had declared a state of emergency hoping to avoid a repeat of the deadly protest in Charlottesville in 2017. Last week, several suspected white supremacists were arrested. Federal authorities say at least some of them had planned to attend today's rally.
(…)
A gun safety group cancelled its own demonstration today after what it called credible threats to public safety.
(…)
