9 Worst Media Reactions to the Nashville School Shooting

Media cover anti-Christian rampage by trans shooter like anti-trans rampage by Christian

What happened: The mainstream media reacted in typical fashion to the anti-Christian school shooting in Nashville earlier this week, proceeding to lose their minds when police revealed that the murderous psychopath who killed six people, including three children, identified as transgender.

Here are nine of the worst media reactions to the tragedy, in no particular order:

1) Conservatives seize! 

From NBC News: “In the hours after the shooting at a private Christian school in Nashville on Monday, some conservatives rushed to blame the massacre on the suspect’s gender identity, connecting the tragedy to their national crusade against transgender rights.”

One of the examples cited was a (factually accurate) New York Post headline: “Transgender killer targets Christian school.”

2) “More blood’s going to be shed” 

NBC News published another story headlined, “Fear pervades Tennessee’s trans community amid focus on Nashville shooter’s gender identity,” which implied that Nashville police had caused trans people to “fear for their safety” by disclosing the suspect’s gender identity.

The outlet interviewed a trans activist who said the state’s LGBTQ community was “terrified” and offered a chilling prediction: “More blood’s going to be shed, and it’s not going to be shed in a school.”

3) GOP “bullying” to blame 

Left-wing journalist Cenk Uygur said the shooting was the result of “right-wing” bullying. The fact that the killer was transgender, he argued, was proof that conservatives shouldn’t “bully people for who they are.”

4) “Republicans are complicit in these murders”

Nation columnist and MSNBC talking head Elie Mystal blamed the shooting on “the party of literal death” and “everybody who votes for them.”

5) Republicans caused the massacre by banning drag shows for children

Several news outlets attempted to draw a connection between the murderous rampage and the Tennessee government’s ban on drag shows “in public or near children.”

Newsweek reported that the “ban on drag shows [for children]” was “criticized” after the shooting. Twitter was forced to append a fact-check to a tweet promoting the article explaining how the Tennessee laws were being mischaracterized.

ABC News anchor Terry Moran also mischaracterized the laws during a TV segment in which he implied these laws were what motivated the 28-year-old shooter to kill children.

6) The Daily Wire is in Nashville—Q.E.D.

Benjamin Ryan, a freelance journalist for NBC News, felt it was important to report (via Twitter) that “Nashville is home to the Daily Wire, a hub of anti-trans activity.” He deleted the tweet after numerous commenters observed that it was very stupid.

7) “Corporate America” to blame

CNN complained that “most companies declined to speak out” after the shooting in Nashville, while lamenting that some businesses “may not believe [it] is their responsibility or role to weigh in” on political debates over issues such as gun control.

8) A Democratic aide’s call to violence, ignored 

Few mainstream national outlets bothered to report that Josselyn Berry, the press secretary for Gov. Katie Hobbs (D., Ariz.), shared a meme that appeared to condone violence against “transphobes” hours after the Nashville shooter was identified as transgender.

A HuffPost story about the controversy focused almost entirely on the “heavy criticism” from “right-wing” lawmakers who were “using the shooting to spout anti-trans rhetoric.”

The ABC affiliate in Phoenix reported that Berry resigned Wednesday after she “reportedly sent” the “apparent controversial tweet.”

9) Laughing about ice cream with Sleepy Joe

Before addressing the tragic shooting on Monday, President Joe Biden yukked it up with the White House press corps and other guests at an event to promote small businesses.

“My name is Joe Biden [laughter]. I’m Dr. Jill Biden’s husband [laughter],” he said. “And I eat Jenny’s ice cream, chocolate chip [laughter]. I came down because I heard there was chocolate chip ice cream [laughter].”

BONUS: Rep. Katherine Clark (D., Mass.), whose transgender child was arrested in January for assaulting a police officer and vandalizing a historic landmark, attacked “MAGA extremists,” including “politicians and preachers,” for their “cruelty” against transgender Americans and “waging an especially vicious crusade on our kids.”