CBC News has apologized for spreading false information about the Covington Catholic School students two months after the network first reported on it.
In January, CBC reported that after the Washington, DC March for Life, a group of students made an offensive chant in the face of a Native American protester, categorizing the students as “teenage bullies.”
The CBC is now acknowledging this claim was false.
A viral video showed what appeared to be one student, wearing a “Make America Great Again,” hat blocking the path of Nathan Phillips, who was counter-protesting at the pro-life rally.
As the video went viral, the students were accused of making offensive and racists remarks at Phillips and trying to start a confrontation with him.
The claims from Phillips and others were widely circulated by the media, including the CBC, including that the students allegedly chanted “build the wall” in Phillips’ face.
These claims any other similar claims reported on my various media outlets turned out to be false, as an independent investigation concluded.
CBC admitted its reporting against the students was actually based on comments from Phillips himself, which was not disclosed to the public at the time, and reported on as if it were fact.
The Covington student at the centre of the now infamous photos and videos, Nick Sandmann, is suing American media giant CNN for over $250 million for reporting similar claims to make what his lawsuit characterizes as“vicious” and “direct” attacks against him.
CBC ended its short retraction by apologizing for characterizing the students as “teenage bullies” at the time.
Seeing that its false reporting caused significant damage to the students and spread a false narrative to the public, It remains unclear why CBC would so eagerly report on unverified claims in the first place.
