Fox ‘FAKE’ News Falsely Reported Quebec Mosque Shooting Suspect Was Moroccan

Another tragic instance of hateful violence was reported Sunday. This time a man entered a mosque in Quebec and shot fourteen people as they were praying, killing six of them. This massacre of innocents occurred shortly after Donald Trump signed an executive order banning Muslims immigrants and refugees from entering the United States. The measure was widely condemned as counter-productive to the fight against terrorism. And in some respect it encourages the impression of Muslims as dangerous and undesirable.

Fox News

As the facts surrounding the shooting were still unfolding, Fox News rushed out a story that falsely identified one of two suspects as Moroccan. The story has since been edited to remove that assertion, but it was never corrected. A tweet is still live on the Fox News Twitter account with the same accusation:


[Update 1/31/2017: Fox finally issued a statement expressing regret for their error and they deleted the tweet]

For the record, there is only one suspect. He is a white nationalist Canadian named Alexandre Bisonnette. His social media profile includes “Likes” of France’s fascist Front National leader, Marine Le Pen, and Donald Trump. There was a Moroccan individual who was briefly detained by the police, but who was later identified as a witness. That was all that Fox needed.

This is the sort of defamatory allegation that often finds a place on Fox News. If any event occurs that provides an opportunity to smear their perceived political foes, Fox News jumps on it. Therefore, Democratic protests, or Black Lives Matter rallies, are reported as assemblies of decadent liberals. And anything involving Muslims is automatically turned into a terrorist attack by radical Islamists.

The example shown here is not merely a journalistic mistake. It is representative of Fox’s deliberate intent to demonize Muslims. And that intention is getting support in the White House. Trump’s press secretary, Sean Spicer, referenced the Quebec shooting at the morning briefing. He said that:

“It’s a terrible reminder of why we must remain vigilant and why the President is taking steps to be proactive rather than reactive when it comes to our nation’s safety and security.”

Spicer’s comment makes the false assertion that there is a “reminder” in this shooting that relates to Trump’s policy. Of course, nothing in the Muslim ban implemented by Trump would have prevented this tragedy. That, however, didn’t stop Spicer from exploiting it. His irresponsible statement implies that there was a Muslim connection to the shooting. That falsehood can only exacerbate the bigotry that already infects the Fox News audience and Trump’s Republican Party.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

At a time when victims and their families are trying to cope with this horror, Fox News and the White House are only making matters worse. Their misinformation spreads far more quickly than any attempt to correct it, which they haven’t made. So rather than receiving the sympathy and concern that was warranted, the Muslim community was victimized again by dishonest media and a bigoted administration that is more focused on political advantage than on truth or human decency.

‘I Hope Trump Enjoys Losing’ Says ACLU Director After Donations Skyrocket

Last week Donald Trump issued an Executive Order suspending immigration from seven Majority-Muslim nations. The outcry was swift and furious as hundreds of thousands of Americans across the country took the streets (and airports). The public revulsion to this bigoted proposal became the latest theme for massive anti-Trump protests. Even many Republicans expressed deep disagreement with the White House. Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham issued a stinging joint statement taking Trump to task. They boldly declared that “we fear this executive order may do more to help terrorist recruitment than improve our security.”

Donald Trump

That’s an opinion shared by many national security and counter-terrorism experts. But a surprising confirmation of the widespread opposition to Trump’s ban came Sunday evening with an announcement by the ACLU. As reported by The Hill:

“The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has received more than $19 million [now more than $24 million] since Saturday, and has hundreds of thousands of new members since it took action against President Trump’s executive order […] The average it takes in per year is $3 million to $4 million, according to Reuters reporter Dustin Volz.”

So the ACLU received six times as much in donations in one weekend as they ordinarily receive in a full year. That’s a powerful demonstration of citizens voting with their pocketbooks. It all began with the ACLU filing a lawsuit to challenge the Executive Order. They argued that it unconstitutionally discriminated on the basis of religion. A federal court in New York agreed, issuing an emergency stay finding that there is “a strong likelihood of success.” That ruling prompted this deliciously snarky response from the ACLU’s national director, Faiz Shakir:

“I hope Trump enjoys losing. He’s going to lose so much we’re going to get sick and tired of his losing.”

Indeed, the sentiment against Trump is growing daily. Gallup’s tracking poll shows his net approval plunging eight points, in just five days, with fifty percent disapproving. In the first week of his presidency he has earned the distinction of having the lowest favorability of any new president on record. His own email appeals to supporters reveal that he’s “worried:”

“We thought there would be a huge influx in contributions this weekend, but we were wrong. We need a MASSIVE turnaround immediately if we’re going to hit our goal by tomorrow at midnight.”

The Trump team may suffer further disappointments going forward. The American people do not tolerate official prejudice from their government. Trump tried desperately to spin the order as a safety measure that was not directed at Muslims. However, that contradicts his campaign promise “calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States.” His surrogates Rudy Giuliani and Michael Flynn, Jr. similarly admitted that the order was deliberately aimed at Muslims.

The momentum is growing for Americans committed to the values to which this country has long aspired. The support for the ACLU’s actions affirms those values. And there is no reason the momentum can’t continue. Here is a link to the ACLU’s donations website. Share this article and link with your friends and family. If we remain active in protests and communications with our representatives, we can insure that Trump and his hateful agenda continue to lose, although most of us won’t get sick of it any time soon.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.