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TV news outlets keep relying on border b-roll when reporting on Trump's mass deportation plan, but that misses the point

Journalists warn that it is misleading to air border footage when discussing deportations: “This is not a border story”

Written by Torri Lonergan

Published

Broadcast and cable networks are misleading viewers by playing b-roll of the border during their coverage of President-elect Donald Trump’s mass deportation plan. Some journalists warn that these visuals misrepresent the plan, as it will extend far beyond migrants currently crossing the border. 

Trump has pledged to deport all undocumented immigrants — along with some legal immigrants — living in the United States. Border imagery misleadingly frames mass deportation as a border security policy impacting new migrants, but in reality the plan would impact families and communities across the country.

  • Journalists warn against misleading coverage of Trump’s mass deportation plan, which would have major consequences within the country

    • Trump promised to go far beyond closing the border — he pledged to deport all undocumented immigrants living in the United States. Trump pledged to deport between 11 million and 21 million people, which he and other officials have indicated would include immigrants who have lived here for decades and immigrants who have children or spouses who are U.S. citizens. Trump has even promised to deport some legal immigrants. This would impact communities across the country, exacerbating labor shortages in major industries and putting 22 million people at risk of having their mixed-status family torn apart. [The Guardian, 11/8/24; NPR, 8/14/24; NBC News, 12/8/24; Media Matters, 11/18/24; American Immigration Council, 10/2/24; Pew Research Center, 7/22/24]
    • Some journalists say that media are too focused on the border. The Bulwark reported that an NBC News journalist spoke out against playing b-roll of the border during its mass deportation coverage, saying, “Stop showing just the border—show churches, show schools, show hospitals.” Another journalist, Univision’s Enrique Acevedo, said, “This is not a border story—it’s a national story that will have economic impact on entire industries.” [The Bulwark, 1/8/25]
    • Media Matters previously found national TV news airing b-roll of the southern border when reporting on unrelated immigration news. Broadcast and cable news networks used border footage when reporting on President Joe Biden’s executive actions establishing a pathway to citizenship for noncitizen spouses and children of U.S. citizens. This policy had nothing to do with border security; it applied only to immigrants who have lived in the United States for 10 years or more. [Media Matters, 9/20/24]

  • TV news is using border b-roll during coverage of Trump’s mass deportation plan

    • While discussing mass deportation, ABC’s World News Now showed an image of a Border Patrol agent at the border wall, even though host Lionel Moise noted that the Trump administration plans to target “undocumented immigrants in communities far away from the border.” [ABC, World News Now, 11/27/24]

    • ABC’s Good Morning America played b-roll of migrant caravans during a segment on Trump’s mass deportation proposal. Host Michael Strahan referred to Trump’s deportation proposal as “a border crackdown” while introducing the segment. [ABC, Good Morning America, 11/27/24] 

    • ABC’s GMA3 played b-roll of the border while correspondent Selina Wang outlined Trump’s plans to potentially “target all undocumented immigrants” for deportation. [ABC, GMA3: What You Need to Know, 11/20/24]

    • CBS Mornings played b-roll of migrants at the border while reporting on Trump’s plan to deport members of mixed-status families. [CBS, CBS Mornings, 12/9/24]

    • NBC Nightly News played b-roll of Border Patrol agents searching migrants at the border while teasing an upcoming segment on Trump’s mass deportation proposal. [NBC, NBC Nightly News, 12/8/24]

    • Fox News Live played border b-roll during a segment on how the Trump administration will carry out mass deportations. [Fox News, Fox News Live, 11/17/24]

    • Fox Report played b-roll of migrants at the border during a segment predicting that Trump’s mass deportation plan would deport only criminal migrants. [Fox News, Fox Report, 1/5/25]

    • MSNBC’s Morning Joe showed photos of the border wall during an interview on Trump’s mass deportation plan. [MSNBC, Morning Joe, 12/31/24]

    • CNN This Morning played b-roll of the border during a segment on Trump’s mass deportation plan. [CNN, CNN This Morning, 11/8/24]