CNN host Jake Tapper on Wednesday tore into Fox News for a misleading tweet and headline that took a comment he made about the terrorist attack in New York City out of context.
On Tuesday afternoon, Tapper addressed reports that the suspect yelled “Allahu Akbar” after exiting his vehicle.
“The Arabic chant ‘Allahu Akbar, ‘God is great.’ Sometimes said under the most beautiful of circumstances and too often we hear of it being said in moments like this,” Tapper said on his CNN show.
Fox News pounced on Tapper’s description of the phrase as “beautiful” without noting that Tapper said that it was used in a different way during the Tuesday attack.
Fox News Insider published the headline, “CNN’s Jake Tapper: ‘Allahu Akbar’ Can Be Said Under ‘Most Beautiful’ of Circumstances.” The body of the article uses Tapper’s full quote, but the context is not noted in the headline.
The network promoted the story with a since-deleted tweet that read, “@CNN’s Jake Tapper Says ‘Allahu Akbar’ Is ‘Beautiful’ Right After NYC Terror Attack,” according to the Huffington Post. Fox also shared the story on Facebook with a description that reads, “CNN anchor Jake Tapper said the Islamic phrase ‘Allahu akbar’ can be said ‘under the most beautiful of circumstances’ just minutes after a terrorist attack in New York City.” That social media post is still up.
Tapper tore into Fox News for “lying” and argued that Fox News is transforming into a right-wing outlet similar to InfoWars.
Fox News is lying. I said it can be said at beautiful moments (wedding, birth) and too often at times like this (horrific terrorist attack). https://t.co/rQx3r0za6I
— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) November 1, 2017
“Allahu Akbar” is a prayer; if we don’t understand how radical Islamic terrorists justify their evil using religion, West cannot defeat it
— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) November 1, 2017
.@FoxNews chooses instead to deliberately lie about what I said. Following the slime-coated path of @DailyCaller and @infowars. Disgusting.
— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) November 1, 2017
And yes, I know they do this all the time. Still, literally the day after this horrific attack that they would launch this smear — it’s sick
— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) November 2, 2017
There was a time when one could tell the difference between Fox and the nutjobs at Infowars. It’s getting tougher and tougher. Lies are lies https://t.co/stYjntoJUq
— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) November 2, 2017
Tapper noted that the misleading headlines started with a post in the Daily Caller.
Here's where the lie started, with @NGivasDC at @DailyCaller who isn't familiar with how an adjective modifies a noun. https://t.co/I3nA89wj4N
— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) November 2, 2017
Fox News updated its story to include an apology from former Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), who criticized Tapper for calling the phrase “beautiful” on Fox News’ “The Five.”
In retrospect I don't think I gave @jaketapper a fair shake tonight. My bad.
— Jason Chaffetz (@jasoninthehouse) November 1, 2017
The network also included a comment from Fox’s Dana Perino, who said that Tapper was trying to point out that terrorists pervert their religion to justify violence.
“I do think it’s important that we don’t talk about the suspect as deranged or mentally ill. He is evil,” Perino said. “And this is about good vs. evil. It’s not about religions vs. religions.”
Who needs the Russians to pervert, distort and divide? We have homegrown propagandists for the job.
Good of Tapper to try, but it’s hard to push back a deluge of shit.
That horse left the barn years ago, Jake. Let’s not pretend that Fox “News” has ever been anything other than the propaganda arm of the Republican Party. I think they should change their name to the “Ministry of Truth.”
Well , Fox Shrews = Fake News .
“Tapper tore into Fox News for ‘lying’ and argued that Fox News is transforming into a right-wing outlet similar to InfoWars.”
This is news to him? And he’s a reporter? (Or was once.)
Tapper’s mistake was trying to be fair and balanced.