Fox Affiliate Apologizes for Deceptive ‘Kill a Cop’ Edit: ‘Honest Misunderstanding’

 

Baltimore Fox affiliate WBFF apologized today for a deceptive edit on a protest video that made it sound like police protesters were chanting “kill a cop” when they were actually changing “’til killer cops are in cell blocks.”

In a note on their website, they say they made an error:

We here at Fox45 work hard every day to earn your trust and bring you fair and comprehensive news from around the country. Although last night’s report reflected an honest misunderstanding of what the protesters were saying, we apologize for the error.

WBFF apologized and pulled the story after being contacted by Tawanda Jones, whose brother Tyrone West was killed by Baltimore City Police last year. WBFF spoke with her and even conducted an interview with her. When her interviewer said they “mistakenly reported” what she said, she asked, “How could that be a mistake?”

Jones said it’s pretty clear that if you listen to the entire line, they’re obviously not saying “kill a cop.” She repeatedly insisted that she would never say something like that because she’s not anti-cop, she supports good cops, she just wants to see the bad ones get appropriately punished.

Watch the interview below, via WBFF:

And you can watch both WBFF’s edit of the chant and the unedited version here:


[image via screengrab]

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Josh Feldman is a Senior Editor at Mediaite. Email him here: josh@mediaite.com Follow him on Twitter: @feldmaniac