Fox News complains Democrats aren't talking about 'Black Lives Matter' enough

On Wednesday, Fox News host Laura Ingraham tried to claim that Democrats are downplaying the Black Lives Matter movement during their convention, even though the message of racial justice has been prominent throughout the event.

Since the convention began on Monday, the conservative network has been fumbling for a line of attack against the Democrats.

On the first night, Fox complained that there were “problems” with First Lady Michelle Obama’s speech. One “problem” cited was that Michelle Obama understated the death toll from the coronavirus, because her comments were pre-recorded. By the time her speech was aired, an additional 20,000 Americans had died as a result of the pandemic, which occurred on Donald Trump’s watch.

On night two, Fox took the Democrats to task for avoiding the issue of rising crime rates, which also occurred under Trump. Those numbers mark a reversal of the the positive trend Trump inherited from his predecessor, President Barack Obama.

Fox News’ complaint that Democrats were avoiding the Black Lives Matter movement was a flip-flop from their broadcast on Tuesday night, when Ingraham hosted two guests to attack Democrats for discussing the theme of “systemic racism.”

“Dems Barely Mention BLM During Convention,” the chyron on Fox read on Wednesday night, during a segment that aired at the end of the convention.

“The Black Lives Matter group has been mentioned about six times,” said Ingraham, who went on to allege there was a “disconnect” between prime time addresses and daytime caucus meetings from party activists who purportedly have mentioned the group more often.

Ingraham’s complaint came soon after Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) had accepted the party’s nomination as its vice presidential nominee and specifically mentioned racial injustice.

“There is no vaccine for racism. We have got to do the work,” said Harris. “For George Floyd, for Breonna Taylor, for the lives of too many others to name. For our children, and for all of us.”

Other speakers similarly addressed the topic of how to address racial injustices, even when they did not directly use the term “Black Lives Matter.”

Earlier in the evening, President Barack Obama noted that “Black Lives Matter” so “no child in this country feels the continuing sting of racism.”

“Vote for justice for George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery, because Black Lives Matter,” said Sec. Hillary Clinton.

Discussing the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic downturn, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) noted that “both crises are falling hardest on Black and Brown families.”

On the first night of the convention, the family of George Floyd was featured prominently at the convention. Noting other victims of police violence, Philonise Floyd said, “they should all be alive today.” There was also a moment of silence to honor “souls we lost to hate and injustice.”

First Lady Michelle Obama, referencing Donald Trump’s history of racism, noted in her keynote speech that “stating the simple fact that a Black life matters is still met with derision from the nation’s highest office.“

In contrast to the Democrats, Trump has inaccurately referred to Black Lives Matter murals as a “symbol of hate.” Fox News has bolstered Trump for years and has aired thousands of hours of racist and bigoted programming.

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.