Once the not-guilty verdict was handed down in the Kyle Rittenhouse trial, we knew it was time to hunker down immediately and brace for media outrage.
We also knew that it was time to keep a close eye on Thread King Drew Holden’s Twitter feed:
Ya, thread’s coming.
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
Been waiting a while for this. https://t.co/fI9yeIpyJX
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
So have we. And now it’s here.
And it’s even better than we hoped it would be:
🧵THREAD🧵
It’s time to revisit the coverage of Kyle Rittenhouse.
With the news that he has been acquitted on all counts, don’t forget the ways that Dems and the corporate press came together to craft a false narrative in his case.
Let’s break down how we got here⤵️
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
We need to start with the media coverage that framed this case in the public mind.
To the press, Rittenhouse was as good as guilty when the news broke. So naturally, to @CNN, the people he shot in self defense were heroes & those defending him had “justified murder.” pic.twitter.com/jsMxd4547N
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
This wasn’t just limited to CNN. @nytimes put out what amounts to a hit piece on Rittenhouse because his “social media accounts showed strong support for officers.”
They even put out a piece about how right-wingers attacking protestors was some sort of phenomenon. pic.twitter.com/f3yqKRxGUA
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
Never to be outdone, @MSNBC said the shooting was white supremacy and then went on to blame – who else – President Trump for “fueling violence,” sowing “chaos and disorder” and “encouraging vigilante justice” (peep that last guest) pic.twitter.com/vrBT4IGPai
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
Perhaps no one in the media has spent more time sharing inaccurate information than @JoyAnnReid. This was no exception.
She lumped Rittenhouse in with “white nationalist mobs” and accused Trump of “ethnic cleansing” (!!) for daring to defend Rittenhouse. pic.twitter.com/gtl1HLnLDZ
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
Once again, @briantylercohen hosts a show called “No Lie” and yet spouts nonsense and misinformation in a nearly unparalleled way. pic.twitter.com/haIMNecZ0p
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
You may remember that, later on in the news cycle, President Trump spoke about Rittenhouse, suggesting he acted in self defense.@AP took this as an opportunity to fact check that, dinging Trump for – I kid you not – defending someone who “opposed racial-justice protestors” pic.twitter.com/hYVGLDsjMO
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
Speaking of fact checks, here’s @PolitiFact claiming that Trump lied when he said Rittenhouse was trying to get away from protestors and was attacked – both details have since been confirmed by video.
Will you update your inaccurate post, Politifact? Or the gun charge details? pic.twitter.com/eAER1xtknv
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
@NPR picked up on a similar sentiment, knocking Trump for “claiming, without evidence, that it appeared the gunman was acting in self-defense.”
Now we’ve had a court of law confirm it was using videos and context many of which were available at the time. pic.twitter.com/nFERWhOrvv
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
Again, the framing of what happened was always preposterous. Here’s @Yamiche from NPR claiming that the takeaway was meant to be “that ifs okay for a 17-year old to shoot people on the street who are unarmed, who are at a protest.”
This is impossible to square with the facts. pic.twitter.com/HWkWy4MiOa
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
@washingtonpost and @AaronBlake made the same case. While they might’ve forgiven Trump had he only declined to denounce Rittenhouse, that he would “volunteer defenses” for someone who acted in self-defense was simply beyond the pale.
This is meant as straight news coverage. pic.twitter.com/4P19tVgQ6m
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
Also, as a call out, this type of deceptive coverage is still going on.
During the trial, @Reuters described someone who attacked Rittenhouse as the “survivor of shooting by U.S, teen” while @CBSMornings said Rittenhouse “murdered two men” (h/t @BecketAdams) pic.twitter.com/6cGZd5F9xC
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
I don’t know that one could even call this commentary from @NYMag journalism. pic.twitter.com/jRPsdSex9f
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
I don’t have space for all the awful coverage, but here’s a smattering from @USATODAY (doesn’t sound like it), @CBSNews (interesting the trending Twitter topics that make headlines) and @thedailybeast (“fanatic”).
The takeaway audience were meant to have was clear.
And wrong. pic.twitter.com/Jmna4dP878
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
Of course, in any thread about willful deception and heinous lies, you’ve got to leave some room for politicians. Drew Holden did, of course:
Perhaps the most famous accusations came not from the media but from elected representatives.@AyannaPressley called Rittenhouse a “white supremacist domestic terrorist” while @IlhanMN just went with “domestic terrorist.”
I ask earnestly: is this not libelous? pic.twitter.com/cKIG3yCaVu
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
The now-President, @JoeBiden, called Rittenhouse a white supremacist absent evidence.
I want to pause to drive that point home: the most powerful man on the planet used his influence & authority to libel a teenager while said teenager faced spurious, politically driven charges. pic.twitter.com/Qjt7sSGD7S
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
It’s hard to keep track of all the Democratic elected officials who baselessly accused Rittenhouse of being some variety of evil.
Here @RepSwalwell and @JamaalBowmanNY both call Rittenhouse a terrorist while @ChrisMurphyCT calls him a “deranged white nationalist” pic.twitter.com/hVrITb6xFj
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
@RepDonBeyer spreads a whirlwind of disinformation here, as we now know that those killed weren’t peaceful, protestors or murdered.@RepJeffries makes a similar category of error and then, just days ago, doubled down (and then some) with his own suggestion of lawlessness. pic.twitter.com/h82xW0YZ4f
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
And no thread would be complete without the blue-checks:
The most unhinged content – as ever – came from lefty blue checks across Twitter.
This from @tribelaw captures much of the sentiment. pic.twitter.com/82l5MPhJ4A
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
You had to know @JRubinBlogger would be here. pic.twitter.com/qddCRMxVwa
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
Given his track record, I think this sentiment means that @MaxBoot will be suggesting regime change in Kenosha any day now. pic.twitter.com/DM8gz8fBfn
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
There were so many bad takes in the early days of this story. I can’t possibly get to them all, but here are a few more from:@BetoORourke (good luck on that gov run)@ananavarro (again with the “white supremacist”)@AAPolicyForum (sheesh)@greg_doucette (“white nationalist”) pic.twitter.com/hfS3GS5JFk
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
It’s still just scratching the surface, but Drew Holden is only one man.
My two cents is that the world would be better if more men with guns showed up to town when the criminal anarchists descended and the police were told to stand down.
But even if you think differently, it is impossible to square this coverage with what actually happened.
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
All of this misinformation will only serve as an accelerant for America’s contentious conversations around race at a time when race relations are cratering.
And these brazen lies were told when a young man’s life quite literally was hanging in the balance.
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021
A permanent stain on our media, our government, and our ostensible intellectual betters.
A list of potential defendants in upcoming defamation lawsuits. #KyleRittenhouse https://t.co/lrN5xOhvld
— Shane Vander Hart (@shanevanderhart) November 19, 2021
Everyone who played a part in the sliming of Kyle Rittenhouse had better hold onto their wallets, because they deserve to pay for their sins through the nose.
My takeaway from this: I hope that Rittenhouse has a good attorney experienced in libel cases for the work ahead.
And I hope that everyday people remember the power the media & politicians have to destroy the life of an innocent man.
— Drew Holden (@DrewHolden360) November 19, 2021