Megyn Kelly says networks like CNN are partially responsible for Capitol riot

Megyn Kelly says media outlets like CNN are partially to blame for the harrowing Capitol riot earlier this month because they ‘checked their objectivity’ when covering Donald Trump and the public ‘lost trust’ in their coverage. 

The former Fox News show host blamed the media for sharing biased reporting on Trump, claiming it led to a loss of trust in news giants like CNN.  

‘They hated him so much, they checked their objectivity, and it wasn’t just CNN, all of them did. They just couldn’t check their own personal feelings about him,’ Kelly said in an interview with BBC Newsnight Saturday.

‘The media destroyed itself, but Trump certainly helped. He sort of set a trap that walked right into and it worked really well,’ she said. 

Megyn Kelly says media outlets like CNN are partially to blame for the January 6 Capitol riot because they failed to cover Donald Trump fairly. ‘They hated him so much, they checked their objectivity, and it wasn’t just CNN, all of them did,’ Kelly said in an interview tih BBC Newsnight Saturday

Speaking on the January 6 Capitol riot (above) that left five dead she said: ‘Part of the reason we saw what happened at the Capitol here two weeks ago is because there had been a complete lack of trust in the media’

She said she noticed a shift in CNN’s initial coverage of Trump to how it ensued after he won the election.   

‘I remember listening to all of [Trump’s] disparaging comments about CNN when he first became a national figure as a presidential candidate, and I watched a lot of CNN even though I was on Fox. And I was like this is unfair. CNN may be a little boring, but it’s fair and it’s factual. It’s not biased against Trump. Then they spent the next four years proving him right – proving me wrong,’ she said.

She said CNN’s coverage compared to that of Univision reporter Jorge Ramos, who believed they should openly describe Trump and his behavior as racist, sexist and misogynist.

‘I think too many journalists agreed with that at their own peril,’ Kelly said. 

‘Part of the reason we saw what happened at the Capitol here two weeks ago is because there had been a complete lack of trust in the media, and people don’t know where to turn for true information, they don’t trust the media anymore. And it’s a major problem,’ she added 

Kelly said she first disagreed with Trump when he was running for president in 2016 and started to attack CNN for their coverage. She said: ‘I was like this is unfair. CNN may be a little boring, but it’s fair and it’s factual. It’s not biased against Trump. Then they spent the next four years proving him right – proving me wrong’

Before the riot took place Trump held a rally where he encouraged his suporters to walk to the Capitol. A view of his supporters scaling the west wall of the US Capitol on January 6

However, Kelly, who left Fox News in 2014, received major backlash for her comments.

One Twitter user said only Trump was behind the January 6 riot where a MAGA mob stormed the Capitol building. In the chaos a total of five people were left dead.  

‘Trump led to the storming of the Capitol. Period. This is dangerous and false from Kelly, and I can’t believe the BBC is reporting it as if there’s a germ of truth to it,’ one Twitter user said.

‘No @megynkelly actually, he sucked so bad and veered so far from the norms of legal, democratic governance that it was difficult for media to report on him even halfway honestly without sounding like they had a vendetta against the guy,’ another Twitter user hit back.  

Backlash! Twitter users hit back following her interview that claimed CNN played a role in encouraging the Capitol riot rather than Donald Trump himself. ‘No @megynkelly actually, he sucked so bad and veered so far from the norms of legal, democratic governance that it was difficult for media to report on him even halfway honestly without sounding like they had a vendetta against the guy,’ one Twitter user hit back

‘Megyn Kelly reminding you that when the President lies 100s of times and encourages rejection of certified democracy that it’s logical to blame the media for their bias against liars,’ John Fugelsang, the host of SiriusXM’s show ‘Tell Me Everything’, said.

‘He tried to attempt a coup and his rageful rhetoric incited his followers. People were fed lies by outlets like Fox News And OAN that undermined people’s faith in our free and fair election. The fact that she would be spreading propaganda like this is unconscionable,’ another said. 

After Kelly left Fox in 2014 she joined NBC where she held the third-hour slot of the Today show from September 2017 to October 2018, when the show was canceled following a controversial segment on blackface.