ABC Does it AGAIN

@debrakcarey (19887)
United States
July 20, 2012 1:49pm CST
In the wake of a horrific shooting in a Aurora CO theater that left 14 movie watchers dead (including a 3 month old infant and a six year old girl) ABC says on air that the shooter maybe a Tea Party member because there is a page on a Tea Party site with his name on it. Turns out, the shooter is 24 and the Tea Party member is in his sixties. No research before speaking. The Tea Party memeber had to turn off his phone for all the threatening phone calls. http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2012/07/20/Exclusive-Interview-With-James-Michael-Holmes-Colorado-Tea-Party-Member http://abcnews.go.com/US/mass-shooting-colorado-movie-theater-14-people-dead/story?id=16817842 there is some buzz on the web that the shooter may be linked to OWS but unlike ABC I will not post a link to that without proof. A private investigator's site is reporting his apt. was heavily booby trapped with explosives and he wore a gas mask and bullet proof vest during the shooting.
1 person likes this
8 responses
@Taskr36 (13963)
• United States
20 Jul 12
I was just about to post the same thing. It's disgusting the way the left wing media rushes to blame the tea party every time something like this hits the news. Let's ignore the fact that they didn't check their facts for a second and look at what they really did. As soon as they head the guys's name, they went straight to the Colorado Tea Party's page, looking for that name. They didn't care how common the name was. They didn't bother checking out the other 15 James Holmes listed in the Colorado White Pages. They just said "Hey there's a Tea Partier with that name!" And reported it on the news. Of course they put even less effort into investigating Jared Laughner before pretending he was a Tea Partier that was driven to kill by a freaking MAP.
1 person likes this
@debrakcarey (19887)
• United States
20 Jul 12
I just found out today while discussing this on twitter, that Loaughner was a truther, and ANTI BUSH truther. I looked for verification but did not find any. I also found this: http://patdollard.com/2012/07/report-occupy-black-bloc-member-james-e-holmes-shoots-up-aurora-co-movie-theater-killing-12-and-wounding-50/ So, not only was it NOT a Tea Party member, rather an OWS blac bloc with a bullet proof vest, gas mask and chemicals and explosives to booby trap his apartment. Reports are that he is NOT cooperating with police.
1 person likes this
@debrakcarey (19887)
• United States
26 Jul 12
http://www.westernjournalism.com/obama-indirectly-tied-to-the-colorado-massacre/ Very interesting point of view. See what you think.
@Fatcat44 (1141)
• United States
20 Jul 12
And ABC wonders why they are losing audiences. How about reporting the actual news and doing some actual research.
1 person likes this
@debrakcarey (19887)
• United States
20 Jul 12
I agree, and how about getting rid of those with an agenda? OOPS, there'd be no one to get in front of the camera, would there?
• United States
21 Jul 12
All that I have read or heard regarding this horrific event has not appeared to have any political connections. It has been stressed that James Holmes (the shooter) acted completely alone. Holmes seemed to be more of a recluse and a loner. He did not even acknowledge when his his neighbours said hello.
@debrakcarey (19887)
• United States
21 Jul 12
http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Journalism/2012/07/20/It-Begins-ABC-Ross-Stephanolpoulos-Point-to-Tea-Party-for-Dark-Knight-Shooting There is a video of the initial report on ABC.
• United States
20 Jul 12
That is really awful not only about the shooting but also about the harassment of an innocent person as a result of the media not doing their homework and reporting something without verifying facts. What happened to the days when facts had to be verified before they were reported? If things are not verified, then they are nothing more than rumors, and the media should not spread rumors. If one of the grieving family members had heard the report and decided in a moment of grief to take matters into his or her own hands, then more innocent lives could be destroyed and/or lost, and who would really be at fault?
@debrakcarey (19887)
• United States
20 Jul 12
Wonder if they'll report on THIS? http://patdollard.com/2012/07/report-occupy-black-bloc-member-james-e-holmes-shoots-up-aurora-co-movie-theater-killing-12-and-wounding-50/
@debrakcarey (19887)
• United States
24 Jul 12
And they misrepresented the mother of James Holmes. http://www.politico.com/blogs/media/2012/07/holmes-mother-suggests-abc-news-mischaracterized-her-129835.html
• United States
24 Jul 12
In the article that you linked to, I actually think that both parties are telling the truth. I suspect that the phone call went more the way that the reporter claims rather than the way the mother claims, but I do believe that the mother was referring to herself when she said "you have the right person" as the reporter had initially asked her to verify her relationship to the suspect. However, I can also understand how the statement could seem like she was confirming that her son was the one that committed the crime, even though I doubt that she was. The mother was in shock and was probably not really aware of what she was saying but rather focusing on the fact that she needed to go there and see her son and find out what had happened. That is one of the reasons why I do not think that the media should try to quote family and friends, especially immediately after something like this happens ... many people say and do things during times of extreme emotional stress that they would normally not say and do, and it is not fair to them to make this public and put them on display like that, especially when their reactions could sway public opinion. Give them space and time to process things, and then if they want to speak with the press let them but do not try to force them or trick them into doing it.
@2004cqui (2812)
• United States
23 Jul 12
ABC is not listed as one of my (go to) news sources and now never will! But I've yet to find any traditional news source to be 100% reliable.
@debrakcarey (19887)
• United States
23 Jul 12
Any news source should be investigated by the consumer of news. I don't trust any one to tell me something without a slant to it. BUT here's the hard part; the news consumer (as do all people) has a slant to what they believe as well. This is why the news consumer MUST learn to discern fact from opinion, it takes time, it takes effort and long gone are the days when the news consumer can passively sit and be spoon fed the 'news'. Part of the effort is making yourself aware of the historical and functional facts of any given subject that may be news worthy. Reporting the news is a form of communication. Communication is a two way street. It means the receiver must respond to what is communicated, not just listen but respond, search out the facts, and form their OWN opinion from what is communicated to them. To many people simply receive and never respond.
@koopharper (7601)
• Canada
20 Jul 12
That was just plain irresponsible of ABC. I'm not sure an apology is quite enough. If it was me I would be talking to my lawyer.
@debrakcarey (19887)
• United States
20 Jul 12
I'm with you on that.
@debrakcarey (19887)
• United States
24 Jul 12
http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2012/07/23/media-must-stop-falsely-accusing-tea-party-every-time-tragegy-strikes/ The bias reared its left leaning head in the hours after news of the Colorado shooting broke. In an effort to assign blame and score a coup, ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos and reporter Brian Ross incorrectly tied the alleged Colorado shooter to the Tea Party. Stephanopoulos called it “significant.” What was significant was that the journalistic ethos of Stephanopoulos and Ross in reporting this fact barely reached the level of a fourth grader Googling Justin Beiber’s favorite color. As Stephanopoulos blithely tossed to weather, more enterprising reporters and bloggers quickly proved that ABC News had just linked the wrong man to a deadly event. Mea culpas followed, but the damage was done.
@flowerchilde (12529)
• United States
21 Jul 12
..My husband who's a truck driver so hears a lot of radio.. a lot more news than I do, heard the shooter was a student of research biology.. I don't know if that's been substantiated! It a sad thing to see our 'press' keep doing this type of thing, this makes at least two times, maybe three(?) this same accusation has been reported - tea party connection - to a violent occurrence and story, and comes up totally wRong! It's also a sad world where such terrible things as these shootings occur... (When I wanted to look up this story of such lax 'investigative' reporting/wishful thinking, I checked my email for a mylot notification first!) Thanks!
@GardenGerty (160663)
• United States
20 Jul 12
I am so thankful that we have freedom of the press, but the press should use that freedom to freely research before opening their collective mouth. It makes it seem that they are determined to prove something and that they start with the end, and work backwards trying to make a link, where there is none.
@debrakcarey (19887)
• United States
20 Jul 12
we are supposed to have a free press. But it's been bought by the LEFTISTS and is being used for propaganda. The real free press are the Breitbarts, Malkins and other bloggers who are concerned with the truth of the matter.