The portrayal of the demonstration by Fox News reflects many attempts by right-wing media to describe it as a threat. Protesters have declared a small slice of Seattle an “autonomous zone” after clashes with authorities prompted police to evacuate a police station. Although there were several sightings of armed men, the area remained largely peaceful with people gathering to eat, give speeches and film screenings.
The narrative that takes place this week in the right-wing circle is the story where an armed member of Antifa seizes part of Seattle. City officials said they had not yet interacted with members of Antifa, a loose network of affiliated groups that had a history of clashing with right-wing organizations.
“This is not an armed takeover,” Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan told CNN late Thursday. “This is not a military junta.”
However, President Trump appears to be making use of reports in right-wing media, calling protesters “domestic terrorists” and threatening to use federal forces to rid them of the area.
Despite the President’s description that contradicts reality on the ground, Fox News continues to present a dangerous situation. The publication of altered and misleading images on a large number of traded websites is the latest example – and arguably the most terrible – of that.
Among the photos published by Fox News on the porch were photos showing a protester running past a burning vehicle and a building with the headline “CRAZY TOWN” blaring on the website. The picture, which accompanied a story about the situation in Seattle, was actually taken from last month’s unrest in Minnesota.
In other photos showing the scene in Seattle, Fox News added digitally a picture of a man armed with an assault rifle.
A spokeswoman for Fox News pointed to CNN on Saturday morning for editor’s notes added to network stories published with misleading images.
“A photo collage on the homepage of FoxNews.com which originally accompanied this story included scenes from Seattle’s ‘Autonomous Capitol Zone’ and ruins after the recent riots,” the note wrote. “Collage does not clearly depict these images, and has since been replaced. In addition, recent slides depicting scenes from Seattle mistakenly included images from St. Paul. Fox News regrets these mistakes. . “
The network also gave comments Friday
to The Seattle Times.“We have replaced our photo illustrations with clear pictures of a gunman and a destroyed display case, both taken this week in the Seattle autonomous zone,” Fox News spokesman told the newspaper.
The Seattle Times, however, reported that the statement was inaccurate. The newspaper showed that “the photograph of the gunman was taken June 10, while the images of the smashed display window were given on May 30 by Getty Images.”
Journalist photo ethics expert
said The Seattle Times that Fox News behaved inappropriately when publishing digitally altered images.
“I think it is a shameful propaganda and it is very wrong to represent documentary journalism at a time like this, when disclosure of truth and accountability is very important,” Kenny Irby, photo journalism ethics expert, told the newspaper. “There is no attribution. There is no montage recognition, and that is very misleading.”
Akili Ramsess, executive director of the National Press Photographers Association, told The Seattle Times that “it’s terrible to manipulate this the way they have done it.”
