Joe Scarborough accused Fox News on Monday morning of playing a direct role in inspiring extremists like Robert Bowers, who is accused of murdering 11 people at a Pittsburgh synagogue on Saturday.
“People on Fox News that talk about the caravan as if this is a big election issue know it’s a lie, know it’s 1,000 miles away. [They] know that the last caravan that they whipped up a frenzy about actually only brought 14 arrests by the end of the caravan.” said Scarborough on “Morning Joe.” “They are spreading hatred across America and at the end of the day … inspiring people like this Pittsburgh mass murderer.”
Mika Brzezinski was broadly in agreement with her co-host.
“[Bowers] also frequently posted about the migrant caravan, a major talking point right-wing commentators and President Trump and his stupid followers running for Republican seats, who tend to just repeat it because they think it will work,” she said. “They know it’s a lie.”
The “Morning Joe” commentary came a day after a Financial Times editor called for a boycott of Fox News, tweeting out that such actions were the only remedy for stopping the “poison.” from the network.
“The most effective thing Americans can do is boycott companies that advertise on Fox,” said Edward Luce. “They bankroll the poison that goes from the studio into Trump’s head. The second is vote.”
The most effective thing Americans can do is boycott companies that advertise on Fox. They bankroll the poison that goes from the studio into Trump’s head. The second is vote.
— Edward Luce (@EdwardGLuce) October 28, 2018
Fox News has dedicated extensive coverage to the migrant caravan and George Soros in recent weeks. Over the weekend, the network moved aggressively to pivot from that, announcing the complete ban of Chris Farrell, who told Lou Dobbs and his Fox Business audience that Soros was controlling the State Department.
“We condemn the rhetoric by the guest on ‘Lou Dobbs Tonight,’” Gary Schreier, senior vice president of programming for Fox Business Network, said in a statement. “This episode was a repeat which has now been pulled from all future airings.”
Reps for Fox News did not immediately respond to request for comment from TheWrap.