Discussing recent Denver media coverage of immigration issues with guest Chuck Green, Peter Boyles falsely claimed on his August 2 630 KHOW-AM broadcast that “a big, featured piece about ... immigration” in the Rocky Mountain News on July 30 “didn't say 'illegal.' ” In fact, the News article to which Boyles referred contained the phrase “state laws aimed at curbing illegal immigration,” and the words “illegal,” “illegals,” or “illegally” appeared in the article eight times. Moreover, Green falsely asserted that there was “nothing” on “the major television stations” or “in The Denver Post” about the July 31 arrest of 48 illegal immigrants during traffic stops on Interstate 70. In fact, the Post, KMGH's 7News at 10 p.m., and KDVR Fox 31's Good Day Colorado all reported on the arrests on August 1 or August 2.

From the August 2 broadcast of 630 KHOW-AM's The Peter Boyles Show:

BOYLES: The Post is in trouble, the Rocky is in trouble, and yesterday I used the example -- the Rocky Mountain News ran a big, featured piece about how immigration -- and they didn't say “illegal,” they used the term “immigration,” which is nonsense at its face -- is, “seems.” And then two days later, 48 illegals are caught at the Eisenhower Tunnel between Vail and Eisenhower. Now, how many -- you and I spoke about this yesterday -- how many vans full of people got through?

GREEN: Well, first of all, first of all, that's, that's -- 48 people detained in, in what, four, four vehicles --

BOYLES: Yeah, in four vehicles.

GREEN: -- in four separate? That, that's an average of 12 people in a vehicle.

BOYLES: I thought it was 15, someone said, but either way, what, what I guess --

GREEN: And, and, and that's just four that were stopped. Meanwhile, hundreds or thousands --

BOYLES: Yeah. Now, the big --

GREEN: -- are passing by.

BOYLES: The big story --

GREEN: And that's just -- that's just in one day.

BOYLES: Yeah. The big story in the Rocky was this front page -- how immigration -- and they didn't say “illegal” -- immigration “seems” -- and they talked to some guy that owns a Mexican bus company, some farmers in Weld County -- you can see where my source is here. Then, and it's like well, it “seems” like this isn't, you know, that, that somehow [Gov. Bill] Ritter and [former Gov. Bill] Owens and [Colorado House Speaker Andrew] Romanoff and [Denver Mayor John] Hickenlooper and all these law-abiding characters have really cracked down. And then the next day -- and what's interesting is, I didn't see it in the Rocky, that 48 of these guys -- it doesn't mean it wasn't there, but I searched for it -- 40 --

GREEN: Oh no, not, not just the Rocky, but nothing on the --

BOYLES: OK --

GREEN: -- the major television stations --

BOYLES: All right, so 48 --

GREEN: -- nothing in The Denver Post.

BOYLES: So, so how do we go from a front-page huge piece and then we go to 48 illegals are grabbed, what, 48 hours later, and as you point out, and I think, how many came through -- and it doesn't exist.

Contrary to Boyles' contention that the News did not use the term “illegal,” the article includes the words “illegal,” “illegals,” or “illegally” eight times.

From the article “Immigration traffic appears down” in the July 30 edition of the Rocky Mountain News:

Juan Marcos Rodriguez, of Aurora, waited for the next bus to the border in an otherwise empty lobby of Autobuses Americanos in downtown Denver.

The 46-year-old native of Chihuahua, Mexico, was on his way home -- for good.

“It's getting too difficult to stay,” said Rodriguez, a construction worker who came to the United States illegally in 2003. “It was fine when I got here. It was easy to get work. Nobody bothered you. Now, everyone is asking for documentation. I want to live a more tranquil life.”

Rodriguez is hardly alone, say local business owners who cater to Hispanic immigrants. They say state laws aimed at curbing illegal immigration, along with several high-profile raids in Colorado by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials over the past year, have scared away their immigrant clientele.

[...]

State Rep. Dave Schultheis, R-Colorado Springs, said he was “cautiously encouraged” by news that illegal immigration may be down.

“I think it's more of a perception that Colorado is tough on illegals,” he said. “We need to continue our efforts to toughen up our laws and keep up with other states, like Arizona and Georgia, that are working to pass strict legislation to curb illegal immigration.”

[...]

The effects of immigration enforcement were first felt last fall when Weld County farmers complained that they were running short of workers. Earlier that year, the state legislature passed a package of bills to curb illegal immigration.

In southern Colorado, farmers contracted for prison inmates to work their fields because they feared the state's strict new immigration laws were keeping migrant laborers away.

Some employers were especially concerned about a law that went into effect Jan. 1 that requires employers to verify Social Security numbers and maintain proof that their workers are in the country legally.

Farmers and contractors believe that the political climate in Colorado and other Western states is keeping away immigrant workers -- both legal and illegal.

For Richard Falcon, owner of a satellite dish company on South Federal Boulevard in Denver, fewer workers means fewer customers. He said his business is down by more than 60 percent.

About 90 percent of his business is done with Hispanics, he said, some of them in the country illegally. [emphasis added]

Furthermore, contrary to Green's assertion that there was “nothing” on “the major television stations” or “in The Denver Post” about the July 31 arrests, the Post, 7News, and Fox 31 covered the story on August 1 and 2.

As the Post reported on August 1, “Recently trained Colorado troopers arrested 48 suspected illegal immigrants in a sweep along Interstate 70 on Tuesday near the Eisenhower Tunnel, officials said.” The article continued:

“That's a good big number for us,” said Jeff Copp, federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement district chief based in Denver.

It was the first roundup by Colorado State Patrol officers deputized by ICE to process suspected illegal immigrants.

[...]

All of the immigrants who were detained were from Mexico, ICE spokesman Carl Rusnok said. An infant who is a U.S. citizen was with one family of illegal immigrants, Rusnok said. The baby was to return to Mexico on Tuesday, he said.

Similarly, Fox 31 co-anchor Heidi Hemmat stated that "[t]he Denver Post reports the troopers arrested 46 [sic] suspected illegal immigrants yesterday on I-70 near the Eisenhower Tunnel."

From the August 1 broadcast of KDVR Fox 31's Good Day Colorado:

HEMMAT: State troopers crack down on illegal immigration, making dozens of busts along I-70 yesterday. Immigration officers recently trained the troopers to process suspected illegal immigrants. The Denver Post reports the troopers arrested 46 suspected illegal immigrants yesterday on I-70 near the Eisenhower Tunnel. All of the suspects are from Mexico; they are going to a detention center in Aurora, then they will be deported. Meanwhile, border-crossing deaths are on the rise this summer. This year, 155 people have died trying to cross the U.S.-Mexico border. That's up 22 percent from last year.

Finally, 7News mentioned the arrests on two consecutive broadcasts.

From the August 1 broadcast of KMGH's 7News at 10 p.m.:

ANNE TRUJILLO (co-anchor): An immigration raid along I-70 in the Eisenhower Tunnel leads to 48 arrests. Immigration Customs Enforcement tells us all of the women and children were deported to Mexico; the remaining men are being held in detention. Now, “New at 10” on 7News, it's because of that raid and others that a group decided to hold a prayer vigil tonight at Denver's inner-city parish. They want the raids to stop, saying the raids are terrorizing people and breaking up families. These members of the Immigrant Rights Coalition would like to see tax dollars spent on education and health care.

From the August 2 broadcast of KMGH's 7News at 5 a.m.:

JIM HOOLEY (co-anchor): Colorado state troopers newly trained to focus on illegal immigrants arrest 48 alleged illegal immigrants. The arrests came after traffic stops along I-70 earlier this week. Immigrations Customs Enforcement tells us all of the women and the children were deported back to Mexico; the remaining men now are being held in detention. And the raid has caused some members of the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition to question the arrest. They are concerned about certain races perhaps being targeted for the traffic stops. In the meantime today, a prayer vigil was held last night for those affected by the raids. They want those raids to stop, saying that the raids are terrorizing people and breaking up families. These members of the Immigrant Rights Coalition will like to see tax dollars spent on education and health care.