EXCLUSIVE: Photographer Slams Fox News' Distortion Of His WI Protest Footage
March 04, 2011 11:25 am ET by Justin Berrier
As Media Matters noted on March 3, 2011, Fox News used footage shot by a local Wisconsin photographer to falsely label Wisconsin union protesters as "violent." The video showed protesters confronting Republican State Senator Glenn Grothman as he attempted to enter the Wisconsin capitol building. Although the video clearly showed no violence being committed and in fact, the protesters breaking into chants of "peace" and "peaceful," Fox falsely depicted the crowd as "violent protesters" and an "angry union mob" who "ambush[ed]" Grothman.
In a statement to Media Matters, Phil Ejercito -- the photographer who shot the video -- responded, slamming Fox News' distortion of his material:
It sickens me to see the truth so willfully distorted. In deciding to release this video, I considered how it would be used, but I (perhaps naively) believed that the facts in the video would speak for itself - the people of Wisconsin are angry, Senator Grothman got a well-deserved ribbing, the Walker administration's lockdown of the Capitol is misguided, and Representative Hulsey acted honorably. It is simply astounding that the same faction of the right-wing that would claim that torture in Abu Ghraib was "fraternity hazing" would equate heckling as a "violent attack."
I have been covering these protests 24/7 from the outset, with no legal team or anything to guide me other than a dedication to truth and the people of Wisconsin. I believe I represent a growing grey area between citizen journalism and professional journalism. While I pride myself on the experience and professionalism with which I approach my job, I will admit to being somewhat starry-eyed upon dealing with national media. I initially refused to license my footage to Fox News, politely citing "qualms about the quality of Fox's reporting from here in Madison." Only upon receiving assurances that both Sen. Grothman and Rep. Hulsey would be available to provide context did I acquiesce.
Let there be no ambiguity: I condemn the use of my work to distort the truth about the spirited but non-violent protests here in Madison. I believe that this is a genuinely dangerous narrative that Fox News is helping to create. Prior to Gov. Walker's Feb. 11 unveiling of his budget repair bill, the last time a Wisconsin governor invoked the National Guard in response to labor, seven demonstrators were shot dead in front of the Bay View Rolling Mill. I am deeply disturbed to consider that my work is being misused to establish a fictional narrative of violence by the working families of Wisconsin, and I encourage people to watch the entire clip on YouTube for themselves to understand the full context and decide for themselves what truthfully took place.
Related:
Will Fox News report on the videographers comments about his footage?
Haha, stupid question, beDecent.
I do think Ejercito has learned his lesson--Fox News can't be trusted to do anything honestly, so don't sell them your work, no matter what they say. Make then do their own dirty work.
But I was wondering if anyone can present evidence that Fox described the Agu Ghraib abuse as "fraternal hazing". If it happened I sure didn't see it. And I do notice that the word "faction" is used to attribute words to Fox that I don't think they used. Perhaps I am wrong, I am quite certain that you will let me know if so. If not, crickets.
1)Go to the box at the upper right side of this page that says "Search Media Matters.org".
2)Type in "fraternity hazing torture".
3)Read the results.
[url=Limbaugh agreed it was like fraternity hazing]http://mediamatters.org/research/200405050003[/url]
It seems "alwaysright" saves all of it's energy for misleading and MORONIC questions.
TALK ABOUT CRICKETS....Crickets should be the "alwaysrights" avatar........LMFO!!!
Maybe you can point "alwaysright" to the explanations to "tide comes in tide goes out" and "sun comes up, sun goes down", before it posts these looking for attributions and evidence that FOX's Grand Master BillOtheClown, actually expressed his utter ignorance on their airwaves.
Anyway, I didn't read Ejercito's comment as attributing the words to strictly Fox, but people in that same right-wing media hemisphere, i.e. Rush Limbaugh:
There are pictures of Islamofascists in Abu Gharaib? Funny, all I saw were a bunch of SCUMBAGS torturing brown people.
http://thinkprogress.org/2007/10/16/oreilly-crowley-abu-ghraib/
My retort to the mogwaii: They're probably out there chanting with the teachers, police and firefighters. Admit it, you've lost the issue.
1. LIE
2. RINSE the lie when caught (bury, obfuscate)
3. SPIN the lie (continue to lie, but make it about something related while claiming its not a lie)
4. REPEAT
I hope this photograher's statement makes into the MSM...Rachel are you listening?
Really, fairliberal, you need to listen to and read more than Fox and freerepublic. They make you look really uninformed and foolish.
"Despite what you may have heard about Wisconsin’s finances, Wisconsin is on track to have a budget surplus this year."
Here is Polifact's actual comment, funny I don't see the word tone in there, you know that word you "quoted". Perhaps fabricated would be more accurate.
"There is fierce debate over the approach Walker took to address the short-term budget deficit. But there should be no debate on whether or not there is a shortfall. While not historically large, the shortfall in the current budget needed to be addressed in some fashion. Walker’s tax cuts will boost the size of the projected deficit in the next budget, but they’re not part of this problem and did not create it.
We rate Maddow’s take False"
Maddow and msnbc lied on theis issue, Schultz was part of it too.
For the record, I don't watch much of ANY of the opinion networks. See, unlike you, fairliberal, I have the ability to read things and form my own opinions. Further, I'm not really into the whole hero worship thing.
Get help, really. Your obsession with defending Fox's honor isn't healthy or normal.
Well, as I've said a few times before, they really make me think of the enquirer or the Onion. I am increasingly convinced that it is just satire and nobody gets it but them.
This list could go on for quite a while, but I'm sticking with the big ticket items. You fail to realize with your tit for tat crap that what is at issue here is that lives are being turned upside down because of some knee jerk reactionary Tea Bagger backed by a John Bircher corp., who's sole goal is to rid unions of any power. I applaud the ppl of WI, they are peaceful in their protest, it's only FOX who's looking for a fight! Picking on Teachers, really......They're f**cking teachers! Whatever happened to being #1 or is that only for Republicans to decide what American Exceptionalism is? Last I checked an excellent educational system stood for something!
Tea Partiers repeatedly interrupted the politicians speaking. They prevented the speakers from addressing their "questions" and shouted down anyone who tried to make a point. They accused the speakers of being anti-American, communist, Marxist, fascist, senior-killing, baby-killing, etc.
Most--I say "most" because there were some cases of violence, threats of violence and assault--of the Tea Partiers were non-violent. Rude, obnoxious, disruptive and wrong... but non-violent.
Fox News characterized those demonstrations as patriotic and truly American. They encouraged participation in these, even during their so-called "news" segments. They described the protesters as representing "real America" even though polls showed they only represented a small slice of the population.
For the tens of thousands of protesters in Wisconsin, there have been no more than a few arrests. The protesters have not disrupted the state's business in the assembly or Senate chamber. There have been no threats reported by the politicians, and no arrests for violence. Even the Fox News correspondent who reported that he was "hit" during a live broadcast could not provide video of the event, nor has Fox aired the tape, nor has the correspondent filed any charges or even a report. (Basically, he made it up. He may have been touched or joustled, but he was not hit.)
Now compare the two scenarios. Fox had to go into its archives to find video of a one pushing incident from years ago in another state to "illustrate" their position that these protests are violent. During the Tea Party protests, they used a decade-old photo to pump up their estimates of crowd size.
Whose comments are off the mark?
Considering the tea party's proven history of violence I think you have a great point. The reaction would have been shock at the brutal beating the democrat would have received from the tea partyers.
They did. Remember when Pelosi walked with her Speaker's gavel through the teabagger crowd with the rest of her Democratic colleagues before the passage of health care reform, and they were yelling racist comments at the black congress members and spitting at some of them? You didn't see any Democrats making a federal case out of it, other than mentioning what they experienced.
Not that it'll stop Fox from lying as best they can about this. But hey, at least he's there and trying, so Bravo!
Major fail.
So, shame on you, jpeagle, for lying so blatantly.
I suspect the The Huckster is the candidate for you.
Oh really?You make it so easy, you really do
Interesting that you seem to be saying the teabaggers are extremists and hate-mongers, though. I just thought they were ignorant.
Wow. Can't even be intellectually honest with yourself can you, beagle? You are a miserable, sad man.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/28/congressman-spit-on-by-te_n_516300.html
Tell us how you REALLY feel kabniel. Don't hold anything back.
BTW, recommend you put together a little more coherent sentences when you accuse others of being "ignorant". The way it works is you post incoherent comments, call others ignorant, then normal people reading your posts say to themselves; "Humm, how can this guy call others ignorant in the very same post he displays ignorance?". Let me know if you can't understand this.
You're a joke kabniel. You most likely have no friends because you are obviously a super-inflated egomaniac - well perhaps you could have some acquantiances if you pay them enough. Here's a clue, genius. Normal people don't wanna hang with conceited high browed snobs like you.
BTW, I don't recall sniveling to you so I call you a LIAR on this. You're a three-time loser. A liar, an egomaniac, and a liberal. Oh yeah, you're an idiot too. Sorry I almost forgot that one.
Now, stop bothering me with claims of how high your IQ supposedly is loser - unless you can prove it? Ah, nevermind. I already know too much about your pathetic existence.
Man, you are funny! You should take that on the road, you would be a hit! Do you write your own material, or do you have a writer? Whatever, I wish you the best in your comedy career! I almost spilled my beer laughing at this, it was great...
That's just patently not true. I get my news from various sources on the internet, and its been widely covered that the protesters are protesting because the so-called 'Budget Repair Bill' repeals the right to collective bargaining for a large segment of public workers. This part of the bill was snuck in, it had not been discussed by the republicans as they campaigned for midterm 2010. Furthermore, the bill allows the state to sell heating plants under no-bid conditions: that planned theft against the citizens of WI also was not brought up during the 2010 midterm campaign.
imo this whole stinking bill should be tabled until the recall elections are conducted, and now that the gop has revealed their true plans for WI, the voters should be given their chance to vote a do-over, with full information this time. What in the world is our democratic form of govt good for, if candidates don't accurately describe their positions and plans before an election, and only reveal their evil intentions once they've been voted in? That's not representative democracy, friends, that's fraud and worse, it is despotism. And if it truly has happened with funding from the industrial giant, the brothers Koch, it is also incipient fascism.
FoxLies will continue breathing, and lying every hour of every day. Anyone who watches FoxLies and hasn't realized by now that all the talking-head pretty foxes are pathological liars looking to garner the votes of the simpletons, is a simpleton. By definition.
But, ease up on the paid trolls around here. Be glad if you have a job. Maybe it's the only work the trolls can get.
Do YOU have ANY PROOF or just more babbling of a right-wing loony..
Welcome to my online photography home! I'm Philip Ejercito, 29 year old freelance photographer based in Madison, Wisconsin. For full coverage of the Wisconsin budget/labor battle, please visit and help support an amazing group of dedicated local independent writers, photographers, and videographers who have been working non-stop to document and share these historic events...
How's this pearl? Ejercito's own words from above. "......the people of Wisconsin are angry, Senator Grothman got a well-deserved ribbing, the Walker administration's lockdown of the Capitol is misguided, and Representative Hulsey acted honorably."
Let me know if I need to explain this to you.
As for berating, same thing. What's the message and what's the motive for each?
Please, explain.
None of that says he is "pro-union."
Even a judge agreed that "the Walker administration's lockdown of the Capitol is misguided"
None of that says he is "pro-union."
Even a judge agreed that "the Walker administration's lockdown of the Capitol is misguided"
There is no "secondly" it is just second. Please learn the language if you plan on staying in this country. You can speak your "language" in your home, that's fine, but in public you need to speak English, ok?
From Scout Prime at First-Draft.com
The rest of the Grothman story:
Madison.com has raw video of Republican Senator Glenn Grothman being chased by protesters. I was there and also shot video of what occurred.
Madison.com however doesn't bother to show how it was resolved. That is that Democratic Representative Brett Hulsey along with marshals were able to defuse the situation and have the protesters move back and form a corridor for Sen Grothman to leave.
Here is the rest of the story:
Democratic Representative Nick Milroy Tackled By Police During Attempt To Enter Wisconsin Capitol (VIDEO):
http://huff.to/fxzLRm
Democratic Representative Nick Milroy Tackled By Police During Attempt To Enter Wisconsin Capitol (VIDEO): http://huff.to/fxzLRm
Dare I say these people are idiots?
Fox and Friends (of corporate fascism)