The mainstream media's top 10 missteps in 2021
Media pundits and publications spun on inflation, critical race theory, and more
Throughout 2021, the mainstream media has been caught or forced to correct multiple stories that turned out to be misleading or not true. From debunked stories such as the Steele dossier to new concerns over inflation, mainstream outlets badly reported on some of the biggest news stories of the year.
Here are the top 10 most outrageous examples of the mainstream media reporting false or misleading stories this year.
Omitting details on the Ma’Khia Bryant police shooting.
In April, videos
emerged of a police officer shooting a Black teenager named Ma’Khia Bryant in Columbus, Ohio, after Bryant lunged at another girl with a knife.
However, various media outlets originally
neglected to mention the fact that Bryant was wielding a knife at the time of the shooting, with some even
claiming that Bryant was "unarmed." In the New York Times coverage of the incident, the article
included civil rights attorney Ben Crump’s original claim that Bryant was an "unarmed" girl. The quote was later corrected, though the story still framed Bryant’s knife as a police claim rather than it being observable from bodycam footage.
Although some news reports did acknowledge that Bryant held a knife, a few also attempted to spin or obscure other details of the shooting. NBC initially
edited the 911 call that led to the shooting, omitting the caller warning about a girl "trying to stab" others. Other sources, such as MSNBC’s Joy Reid, CNN and ABC's "The View," also downplayed the events, depicting it as a schoolyard fight.
CNN airs fake single mom story
In August, CNN
spotlighted a woman, Dasha Kelly, who claimed to be the single mother of three children who were concerned about being evicted from their home after the federal moratorium was set to expire. In addition to promoting the story, CNN also advertised the GoFundMe account used to support Kelly, which raised approximately $230,000.
Shortly afterward, however, Kelly clarified that she was not the mother of the three children, but was instead their father's girlfriend. The funds were later suspended, but Kelly also managed to appear on the network with Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo.
President Biden later announced a new moratorium on evictions despite potential constitutional conflicts.
The mainstream media's top 10 missteps in 2021
