While they didn’t spout off in the same unhinged manner as NBC and MSNBC, CNN was similarly displeased with the Kenosha jury finding Kyle Rittenhouse not guilty on all charges on Friday. They reluctantly admitted the defense had a solid argument for self-defense and the prosecution couldn’t breakthrough. But within the first 10 minutes of The Lead, CNN legal analyst Charles Coleman Jr. suggested that white privilege, racism, and a coordinated “infantilization of Kyle Rittenhouse” swayed the jury.
Late in the 3:00 p.m. hour, CNN was feeling discouraged enough that they started to go back to covering other topics like COVID. But as they were wrapping up their conversation of the verdict at the top of the next hour, fill-in host Pamela Brown wondered if Rittenhouse’s age played a role in the verdict.
“Well, Pamela, I don't necessarily think that it's just his age. I think we have to be very clear about what that means,” Coleman prefaced.
According to him, there was a coordinated conspiracy on the courtroom and beyond: “I think that what we have seen throughout the course of this trial, be it from the judge, from right-wing media, be it from the public in many cases, we've seen a consistent infantilization of Kyle Rittenhouse in front of the public.”
At one point, he seemed to suggest Rittenhouse’s tears and possible panic attack were meant to fulfill the big baby narrative. “And I think part of that was strategic by the defense. The way he presented on the stand. The way that he presented in court. To remind the jury that he was young,” he argued.
He then shifted to suggesting Rittenhouse benefited from white privilege and racism:
But in terms of his age, I want to be very clear about something. We've seen many instances where people who were not like Kyle Rittenhouse, and I am referring to race in this instance, took the stand, I'm referring to the exonerated five in New York, also known as the Central Park Five, where they were not treated with the same delicacy and shielded by their age.
“And so there's a certain level of privilege that we have to acknowledge when you talk about how age played a role. I do believe that age was a factor,” he added. “However, I think that it was amplified by the fact that he enjoyed the privilege of being infantilized and I think that also may have resonated with the jury as well.”
Up until that point, CNN had largely been avoiding accusations of racism, possibly to hedge against anther defamation suit if Rittenhouse chose to sue the media.
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The transcript is below, click "expand" to read:
CNN’s The Lead
November 19, 2021
4:09:06 p.m. Eastern(…)
PAMELA BROWN: I am wondering, Charles, you point out his age, you know, Sara, 17-year-old, now 18. Do you think his age played any role in the verdict? The fact he was so young.
CHARLES COLEMAN JR.: Well, Pamela, I don't necessarily think that it's just his age. I think we have to be very clear about what that means. I think that what we have seen throughout the course of this trial, be it from the judge, from right-wing media, be it from the public in many cases, we've seen a consistent infantilization of Kyle Rittenhouse in front of the public.
And I think part of that was strategic by the defense. The way he presented on the stand. The way that he presented in court. To remind the jury that he was young.
But in terms of his age, I want to be very clear about something. We've seen many instances where people who were not like Kyle Rittenhouse, and I am referring to race in this instance, took the stand, I'm referring to the exonerated five in New York, also known as the Central Park Five, where they were not treated with the same delicacy and shielded by their age.
And so there's a certain level of privilege that we have to acknowledge when you talk about how age played a role. I do believe that age was a factor. However, I think that it was amplified by the fact that he enjoyed the privilege of being infantilized and I think that also may have resonated with the jury as well.
