CNN coverage only makes things worse

It shouldn’t be so exciting when a man tells the truth on a network that describes itself as “the most trusted name in news.” Alas.

CNN’S Sara Sidner was confronted Monday night, live on air by an unnamed Minnesota man. He interrupted CNN’S coverage of the protests and riots in Minnesota, which erupted on Sunday following the killing of a 20-year-old Black man, Daunte Wright. This most recent tragedy occurred less than half an hour away from where George Floyd was killed in Minneapolis last year.

“All the press and all the extra s--- y’all do, makes this worse,” the man said, as he chastised CNN on their very own station. “When people want to protest, they shouldn’t do it in front of a (police station), yeah, courthouse … Y’all need to get up out of here with all that twisting up (from) the media.”

Rarely does such a poignant criticism of news media make it onto the very platforms being criticized, but CNN was vulnerable to unexpected truth telling because of its approach to covering protests and riots. The network flies reporters in, drawn to dramatic images of violence and property damage. Like other outlets, CNN will present the area as if it were a war zone, with cops and community members at odds with one another. As the unnamed Minnesota man said to Sidner, “Y’all doing all that extra s*** ... to make people look crazier than what they are.”

Eventually, with television ratings at the top of mind, CNN’S exploitation will be complete. They’ll move on to another tragedy. Meanwhile, the damage done by polarizing news media narratives will continue. The division between cops and communities will be worse. And people will continue to die, just not people CNN cares to talk about.

This cycle played out in Minnesota last year. CNN showed up with cameras to cover the protests and riots focused on the killing of George Floyd, playing up what the network called a “racial reckoning.” CNN also offered a platform for radical calls to defund police departments. When the network decided to fly its employees back home to Atlanta, they left behind a deeply divided Minneapolis. Crime went way up: a 21 per cent increase in violent crime and one of the highest homicide rates in the city’s history. National news media had little interest in covering those tragedies.

Is it really a surprise that Minnesotans might hold a grudge?

With the truth staring her in the face, CNN’S Sidner went into deflection mode. She abruptly showed concern for the safety of the unnamed Minnesota man who was rebuking her employer. “I want you to be careful,” Sidner said, insinuating that the man was in danger of being hit by projectiles because of his proximity to the protests and riots.

The unnamed Minnesota man took that concern as an opportunity to further make his point about misleading media narratives. “Do I look like I’m scared?” he repeated.

As the protests and riots in Minnesota have continued, we’ve seen that CNN’S reporters and staff are the ones who ought to be careful. A group of CNN camera crew members were violently attacked on Wednesday evening at a protest outside of a police station. One CNN employee was even hit in the head with a bottle, causing him to fall down to the ground. The network seems to be making enemies everywhere it goes.

We all have a co-worker or a friend like CNN. You know, somebody who loves talking about problems, and thrives when it’s time to whine or complain. But when it comes to bringing solutions to the table, these guys are useless.

When you’re around an actual problem solver, it’s obvious. Problem solvers want to de-escalate tensions and conflicts. Problem solvers also tell the truth.

Earlier this week, a group of Canadian community leaders launched an exciting new organization called the Canadian Black Directorate (CABD), with the expressed mission to “advance the cause of the Black, Indigenous and visible minority groups in Canada to achieve personal success, economic development and social advancement.” At their launch event, CABD discussed many of the very same issues you’d find on a CNN broadcast concerning racism and injustice. However, CABD differs greatly from CNN in that CABD defines problems in a manner that might actually lead to solutions. At one point, when CABD members were discussing the group’s signature program, the Acorn2oak justice program for at-risk children and youth, the word “solutionist” was used. Imagine that. Solutionist!

Ideally, news media companies like CNN would shed light on both problems and solutions by telling the whole story about what’s happening in our communities. But, if they won’t tell the whole story, then at least don’t make things worse. It’s fair for the public to demand their communities aren’t worse off when the cameras show up. Journalists should be able to live up to that low bar, at least.

IS IT REALLY A SURPRISE ... MINNESOTANS MIGHT HOLD A GRUDGE?