On CNN, Lois Beckett Calls Out Media's “Dramatic Failure” To Report Facts About Gun Violence

Beckett: “Mainstream Media Has Not Done A Good Job Of Even Covering The Basic Data” On Gun Violence

Written by Media Matters Staff

Published

From the January 10 edition of CNN's Reliable Sources:

BRIAN STELTER (HOST): Part of the reason why the NRA may chose not to say yes to interviews is because they have their own media outlets. And Lois let me ask you about this as well because I find it really telling they have had NRA news for over a decade. Very forward thinking by this organization. They have YouTube channels. They have radio shows. They get their own message out to their own supporters. They don't have to go on a CNN, perhaps. 

LOIS BECKETT: That's true. But I think it's important to emphasize again that mainstream media has not done a good job of even covering the basic data on this. 

STELTER: Give me an example by that.

BECKETT: After Sandy Hook Pew did a survey asking Americans if gun violence had gone up or down over the last twenty years. The majority of Americans thought that gun violence had gone up when it was down more than 50 percent. Just a dramatic failure of the media to inform people about the most basic fact about gun violence in America. 

STELTER: We have too little data you say to cover this story effectively? 

BECKETT: Well many media outlets don't even use the data that we do have. That's a problem.