Fox News host Bill O'Reilly interviewed a former biker gang leader about a recent biker shootout in Waco, Texas that left nine people dead. O'Reilly's interview with his white guest was a sharp contrast to interviews the host regularly has with African-American guests, where he lectures them about black violence, culture, and family structure.
On May 17, authorities arrested roughly 170 bikers following the deadly shootout between biker gangs and police in Waco, Texas that left nine people dead and 18 wounded outside of a restaurant. According to The New York Times, “Law enforcement officials and gang experts said the conflicts between two motorcycle groups, the Bandidos and the Cossacks, led to the shooting.”
During the May 19 edition of his show, O'Reilly interviewed former Bandidos biker gang member Edward Winterhalder to comment on the bloody shootout. During the discussion O'Reilly asked Winterhalder about alleged violence and criminal activity among biker gangs and allowed Winterhalder to explain uninterrupted that “there is a lot of different types of individuals in a motorcycle club” but most are law abiding citizens who “are just regular guys who have jobs, families, and kids ... the only thing they're guilty of is having a little too much fun on the weekends”:
But when discussing violence in the black community and recent police shootings of unarmed black men, O'Reilly regularly conducts contentious interviews with African-American guests where he blames black culture and family structure for violence and poverty in the inner city.
During the recent protests in Baltimore, O'Reilly hyped black crime statistics and declared “personal behavior” is the problem behind violence and arrests of blacks. In 2014, O'Reilly invited Martin Luther King III to talk about recent police shootings against unarmed black men where O'Reilly suggested that instead of protesting police shootings, African-Americans should wear t-shirts that say “don't get pregnant at 14.” Following the 2012 killing of unarmed teen Trayvon Martin, O'Reilly demonized the teen claiming that he died because he looked “how gangstas look,” referring to his wearing of a hooded sweatshirt.