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[[Right-wing politics|Right-wing]] [[conspiracy theory|conspiracy theories]] about the crime were debunked by [[law enforcement]],<Ref name=eugenekiely /><ref name=politifact /><ref name="Wash Exam One Last Time">{{Cite news |url=http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/one-last-time-that-seth-rich-story-is-garbage/article/2623382 |title=One last time: That Seth Rich story is garbage |last=Adams |first=Becket |work=[[The Washington Examiner]] |access-date=2017-05-17}}</ref> and by [[fact-checking websites]] including: [[PolitiFact]],<ref name=politifact /> [[Snopes.com]],<ref name=:4 /> and [[FactCheck.org]].<ref name=eugenekiely /> These conspiracy theorists falsely stated Rich [[2016 Democratic National Committee email leak|leaked DNC emails in 2016]].<ref name=WaPo10Aug16>{{cite news |last1=Hermann |first1=Peter |last2=Williams |first2=Clarence |date=August 9, 2016 |title=WikiLeaks offers reward for help finding DNC staffer's killer |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/wikileaks-offers-reward-in-killing-of-dnc-staffer-in-washington/2016/08/09/f84fcbf4-5e5b-11e6-8e45-477372e89d78_story.html |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |accessdate=May 21, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author1=Fox News |title=Assange implies murdered DNC staffer was WikiLeaks' source |url=http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/08/10/assange-implies-murdered-dnc-staffer-was-wikileaks-source.html |accessdate=May 21, 2017}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/17/us/seth-rich-dnc-wikileaks.html |title=How the Murder of a D.N.C. Staffer Fueled Conspiracy Theories |last=Bromwich |first=Jonah Engel |date=May 17, 2017 |work=[[The New York Times]] |access-date=May 17, 2017}}</ref> U.S. intelligence concluded Russia was behind the leak as part of [[Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections|2016 U.S. elections interference]].<ref name=eugenekiely>{{Cite news |url=http://www.factcheck.org/2017/05/gingrich-spreads-conspiracy-theory/ |title=Gingrich Spreads Conspiracy Theory |work=[[FactCheck.org]] |date=May 22, 2017 |access-date=May 23, 2017 |first=Eugene |last=Kiely |publisher=[[Annenberg Public Policy Center]]}}</ref><ref name=politifact>{{cite news |url=http://www.politifact.com/punditfact/statements/2017/may/23/newt-gingrich/claim-slain-dnc-staffer-seth-rich-gave-emails-wiki/ |work=[[PolitiFact]] |title=The baseless claim that slain DNC staffer Seth Rich gave emails to WikiLeaks |date=May 23, 2017 |first=Lauren |last=Carroll |editor1-first=Katie |editor1-last=Sanders |publisher=[[Tampa Bay Times]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Cyber-spying: Bear on bear |url=http://www.economist.com/news/united-states/21707574-whats-worse-being-attacked-russian-hacker-being-attacked-two-bear-bear |work=[[The Economist]] |date=September 22, 2016 |accessdate=May 21, 2017}}</ref> The fabrications were described as [[fake news]] and falsehoods, by ''[[The New York Times]]'',<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/24/business/media/seth-rich-fox-news-sean-hannity.html|title=Sean Hannity, a Murder and Why Fake News Endures|first=Jim|last=Rutenberg|date=May 24, 2017|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref> ''[[The Washington Post]]'',<ref name=fakenewsstillworks>{{Cite news |author=[[David Weigel]] |date=May 20, 2017 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/05/20/the-seth-rich-conspiracy-shows-how-fake-news-still-works/ |title=The Seth Rich conspiracy shows how fake news still works |publisher=[[The Washington Post]] The Fix blog |access-date=2017-05-21}}</ref> and the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]''.<ref name=shalby>{{citation|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|date=May 24, 2017|title=How Seth Rich’s death became an Internet conspiracy theory|url=http://www.latimes.com/business/hollywood/la-fi-ct-seth-rich-conspiracy-20170523-htmlstory.html|first=Colleen|last=Shalby}}</ref>
[[Right-wing politics|Right-wing]] [[conspiracy theory|conspiracy theories]] about the crime were debunked by [[law enforcement]],<Ref name=eugenekiely /><ref name=politifact /><ref name="Wash Exam One Last Time">{{Cite news |url=http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/one-last-time-that-seth-rich-story-is-garbage/article/2623382 |title=One last time: That Seth Rich story is garbage |last=Adams |first=Becket |work=[[The Washington Examiner]] |access-date=2017-05-17}}</ref> and by [[fact-checking websites]] including: [[PolitiFact]],<ref name=politifact /> [[Snopes.com]],<ref name=:4 /> and [[FactCheck.org]].<ref name=eugenekiely /> These conspiracy theorists falsely stated Rich [[2016 Democratic National Committee email leak|leaked DNC emails in 2016]].<ref name=WaPo10Aug16>{{cite news |last1=Hermann |first1=Peter |last2=Williams |first2=Clarence |date=August 9, 2016 |title=WikiLeaks offers reward for help finding DNC staffer's killer |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/wikileaks-offers-reward-in-killing-of-dnc-staffer-in-washington/2016/08/09/f84fcbf4-5e5b-11e6-8e45-477372e89d78_story.html |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |accessdate=May 21, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author1=Fox News |title=Assange implies murdered DNC staffer was WikiLeaks' source |url=http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/08/10/assange-implies-murdered-dnc-staffer-was-wikileaks-source.html |accessdate=May 21, 2017}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/17/us/seth-rich-dnc-wikileaks.html |title=How the Murder of a D.N.C. Staffer Fueled Conspiracy Theories |last=Bromwich |first=Jonah Engel |date=May 17, 2017 |work=[[The New York Times]] |access-date=May 17, 2017}}</ref> U.S. intelligence concluded Russia was behind the leak as part of [[Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections|2016 U.S. elections interference]].<ref name=eugenekiely>{{Cite news |url=http://www.factcheck.org/2017/05/gingrich-spreads-conspiracy-theory/ |title=Gingrich Spreads Conspiracy Theory |work=[[FactCheck.org]] |date=May 22, 2017 |access-date=May 23, 2017 |first=Eugene |last=Kiely |publisher=[[Annenberg Public Policy Center]]}}</ref><ref name=politifact>{{cite news |url=http://www.politifact.com/punditfact/statements/2017/may/23/newt-gingrich/claim-slain-dnc-staffer-seth-rich-gave-emails-wiki/ |work=[[PolitiFact]] |title=The baseless claim that slain DNC staffer Seth Rich gave emails to WikiLeaks |date=May 23, 2017 |first=Lauren |last=Carroll |editor1-first=Katie |editor1-last=Sanders |publisher=[[Tampa Bay Times]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Cyber-spying: Bear on bear |url=http://www.economist.com/news/united-states/21707574-whats-worse-being-attacked-russian-hacker-being-attacked-two-bear-bear |work=[[The Economist]] |date=September 22, 2016 |accessdate=May 21, 2017}}</ref> The fabrications were described as [[fake news]] and falsehoods, by ''[[The New York Times]]'',<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/24/business/media/seth-rich-fox-news-sean-hannity.html|title=Sean Hannity, a Murder and Why Fake News Endures|first=Jim|last=Rutenberg|date=May 24, 2017|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref> ''[[The Washington Post]]'',<ref name=fakenewsstillworks>{{Cite news |author=[[David Weigel]] |date=May 20, 2017 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/05/20/the-seth-rich-conspiracy-shows-how-fake-news-still-works/ |title=The Seth Rich conspiracy shows how fake news still works |publisher=[[The Washington Post]] The Fix blog |access-date=2017-05-21}}</ref> and the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]''.<ref name=shalby>{{citation|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]|date=May 24, 2017|title=How Seth Rich’s death became an Internet conspiracy theory|url=http://www.latimes.com/business/hollywood/la-fi-ct-seth-rich-conspiracy-20170523-htmlstory.html|first=Colleen|last=Shalby}}</ref>


Rich's parents urged the public to stop spreading the conspiracy theories.<ref name=washpostparents>{{cite news |title=We're Seth Rich's parents. Stop politicizing our son's murder. |work=[[The Washington Post]] |date=May 23, 2017 |first1=Mary |last1=Rich |first2=Joel |last2=Rich |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/were-seth-richs-parents-stop-politicizing-our-sons-murder/2017/05/23/164cf4dc-3fee-11e7-9869-bac8b446820a_story.html |access-date=May 23, 2017 |quote=We ask those purveying falsehoods to give us peace, and to give law enforcement the time and space to do the investigation they need to solve our son’s murder.}}</ref><ref name=sethrichparents>{{Cite news |url=http://forward.com/fast-forward/372070/seth-rich-parents-refute-new-claims-on-wikileaks-contact/ |title=Seth Rich Parents Refute New Claims On Wikileaks Contact |work=[[The Forward]] |access-date=2017-05-17}}</ref><ref name=":3" /> They accused conspiracy theorists of politicizing their son's death for political gain, and called them "sociopaths" and "disgusting".<ref name=washpostparents /><ref name=sethrichparents /><ref name=":3">{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/family-of-slain-dnc-staffer-fights-back-against-conpiracy-theories-with-cease-and-desist-letter/2017/05/20/6da279c2-3d6f-11e7-8854-21f359183e8c_story.html |title=Family of slain DNC staffer Seth Rich sends 'cease and desist' letter to Fox News contributor|last=Stein|first=Perry |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=May 20, 2017 |access-date=2017-05-21}}</ref> They requested a [[retraction]] and apology from [[Fox News]],<ref name=Cease /> and sent a [[cease and desist]] letter to the investigator Fox News used.<ref name=:3 /><ref name=politifact /><ref name="Cease" /> This investigator admitted he had no evidence, and Fox News issued a retraction.<ref name=eugenekiely /><ref name=politifact /><ref name=FoxRetraction>{{cite news |date=May 23, 2017 |url=http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2017/05/23/statement-on-coverage-seth-rich-murder-investigation.html |publisher=[[Fox News]] |title=Statement on coverage of Seth Rich murder investigation |quote=On May 16, a story was posted on the Fox News website on the investigation into the 2016 murder of DNC Staffer Seth Rich. The article was not initially subjected to the high degree of editorial scrutiny we require for all our reporting. Upon appropriate review, the article was found not to meet those standards and has since been removed. We will continue to investigate this story and will provide updates as warranted. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170523182512/http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2017/05/23/statement-on-coverage-seth-rich-murder-investigation.html|archive-date=May 23, 2017}}</ref>
Rich's parents condemned the conspiracy theorists who exploited their son's death for political gain and called them "sociopaths" and "disgusting" for continuing to post the debunked theories.<ref name=washpostparents>{{cite news |title=We're Seth Rich's parents. Stop politicizing our son's murder. |work=[[The Washington Post]] |date=May 23, 2017 |first1=Mary |last1=Rich |first2=Joel |last2=Rich |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/were-seth-richs-parents-stop-politicizing-our-sons-murder/2017/05/23/164cf4dc-3fee-11e7-9869-bac8b446820a_story.html |access-date=May 23, 2017 |quote=We ask those purveying falsehoods to give us peace, and to give law enforcement the time and space to do the investigation they need to solve our son’s murder.}}</ref><ref name=sethrichparents>{{Cite news |url=http://forward.com/fast-forward/372070/seth-rich-parents-refute-new-claims-on-wikileaks-contact/ |title=Seth Rich Parents Refute New Claims On Wikileaks Contact |work=[[The Forward]] |access-date=2017-05-17}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/family-of-slain-dnc-staffer-fights-back-against-conpiracy-theories-with-cease-and-desist-letter/2017/05/20/6da279c2-3d6f-11e7-8854-21f359183e8c_story.html |title=Family of slain DNC staffer Seth Rich sends 'cease and desist' letter to Fox News contributor|last=Stein|first=Perry |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=May 20, 2017 |access-date=2017-05-21}}</ref> They requested a [[retraction]] and apology from [[Fox News]],<ref name=Cease /> and sent a [[cease and desist]] letter to the investigator Fox News used.<ref name=:3 /><ref name=politifact /><ref name="Cease" /> This investigator admitted he had no evidence, and Fox News issued a retraction.<ref name=eugenekiely /><ref name=politifact /><ref name=FoxRetraction>{{cite news |date=May 23, 2017 |url=http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2017/05/23/statement-on-coverage-seth-rich-murder-investigation.html |publisher=[[Fox News]] |title=Statement on coverage of Seth Rich murder investigation |quote=On May 16, a story was posted on the Fox News website on the investigation into the 2016 murder of DNC Staffer Seth Rich. The article was not initially subjected to the high degree of editorial scrutiny we require for all our reporting. Upon appropriate review, the article was found not to meet those standards and has since been removed. We will continue to investigate this story and will provide updates as warranted. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170523182512/http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2017/05/23/statement-on-coverage-seth-rich-murder-investigation.html|archive-date=May 23, 2017}}</ref>


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Revision as of 18:41, 25 May 2017

Murder of Seth Rich
DateJuly 10, 2016 (2016-07-10)
Time4:20 a.m. EST (approximate)
LocationBloomingdale (Washington, D.C.)
CauseShooting
DeathsSeth Rich
InquiriesMetropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia

Seth Conrad Rich (January 3, 1989 – July 10, 2016) was a 27-year-old Democratic National Committee (DNC) employee who was fatally shot in Bloomingdale, Washington, D.C.[1][2][3] The D.C. Metropolitan Police are investigating.[4]

Right-wing conspiracy theories about the crime were debunked by law enforcement,[5][6][7] and by fact-checking websites including: PolitiFact,[6] Snopes.com,[8] and FactCheck.org.[5] These conspiracy theorists falsely stated Rich leaked DNC emails in 2016.[9][10][4] U.S. intelligence concluded Russia was behind the leak as part of 2016 U.S. elections interference.[5][6][11] The fabrications were described as fake news and falsehoods, by The New York Times,[12] The Washington Post,[13] and the Los Angeles Times.[14]

Rich's parents condemned the conspiracy theorists who exploited their son's death for political gain and called them "sociopaths" and "disgusting" for continuing to post the debunked theories.[15][16][17] They requested a retraction and apology from Fox News,[18] and sent a cease and desist letter to the investigator Fox News used.[17][6][18] This investigator admitted he had no evidence, and Fox News issued a retraction.[5][6][19]

Early life and career

Rich grew up in Omaha, Nebraska, in a Jewish family.[20][21][22] At the time of his death, Rich was the Voter Expansion Data Director at the DNC, where he had been employed for two years and had worked on a computer application to help voters locate polling stations.[23][24][2] He did not own an automobile and commuted to work by walking or riding a bicycle. In his spare time, he volunteered at the Humane Society.[25]

Death and aftermath

On Sunday, July 10, 2016, Rich was shot about a block from his apartment in the Bloomingdale neighborhood of Washington, D.C.[26][27][28] He had been at Lou's City Bar, a sports pub in the Columbia Heights neighborhood about 1.8 miles from his apartment, where he was a regular customer, and had left about 1:30 or 1:45 a.m. when the bar was closing.[29][30]

Police were alerted to gunfire at 4:20 a.m. by an automated gunfire locator called ShotSpotter.[28][25] Within approximately one minute after the gun shots Rich was found by members of the police "conscious and breathing, and suffering from gunshot wounds", and later died in the hospital.[31][32][33] According to police, he died from two shots to the back.[26][27][34] Police said he may have been killed in an attempted robbery and noted the neighborhood had recently been plagued by robberies. Although Rich's watch strap was torn, nothing had apparently been taken from him.[26] Rich's girlfriend told NBC's Washington affiliate WRC-TV, "There had been a struggle. His hands were bruised, his knees are bruised, his face is bruised, and yet he had two shots to his back, and yet they never took anything... They didn't finish robbing him, they just took his life."[35] The Metropolitan Police Department (MPDC) posted its customary reward of $25,000 for information about the death.[2]

On the day after the shooting, DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz issued a statement mourning his loss and praising Rich's work to support voter rights.[25][36] Two days after the shooting, Hillary Clinton spoke of his death during a speech advocating limiting the availability of guns.[2][22]

In September, Rich's parents and girlfriend appeared on the syndicated television show Crime Watch Daily to speak about the murder case.[37][38] The police told the family they had found a surveillance videotape showing a glimpse of the legs of two people who could possibly be the killers; they have not released the tape.[29] In October 2016, a plaque and bike rack outside the DNC headquarters were dedicated to Rich's memory.[36]

In February 2017, the Beth El Synagogue in Omaha named after Rich an existing scholarship that helps Jewish children attend summer camps.[39] On March 19, 2017, Rich's brother Aaron started a GoFundMe campaign to try to raise $200,000 for private investigation, public outreach activities, and a reward fund.[40]

Family's reaction

The family of Seth Rich issued a statement saying "We simply want to find his killers and grieve. Instead, we are stuck having to constantly fight against non-facts, baseless allegations, and general stupidity to defend my brother's name and legacy."[4]

The family spokesperson said "At this point, only people with transparent political agendas or sociopaths are still perpetuating Seth Rich conspiracies."[41]

The parents of Seth Rich authored a piece in The Washington Post on May 23, 2017 titled: "We're Seth Rich's parents. Stop politicizing our son's murder," in which they wrote:

We are asking you to please consider our feelings and words. There are people who are using our beloved Seth's memory and legacy for their own political goals, and they are using your outrage to perpetuate our nightmare. We ask those purveying falsehoods to give us peace, and to give law enforcement the time and space to do the investigation they need to solve our son's murder.[15]

Conspiracy theories

WikiLeaks statements and rewards

The murder stoked right-wing "Clinton conspiracy theories" and defamatory narratives against the victim.[4][7]

On August 9, 2016, a WikiLeaks account on Twitter said WikiLeaks was offering a $20,000 reward for information leading to a conviction,[42][2][9] although Rich's family said they were unable to verify this reward offer.[43] When making the offer for the reward, WikiLeaks said their offer should not be taken as implying Rich had been involved in leaking information to them.[2] Assistant Police Chief Peter Newsham said the police had no information suggesting a connection between Rich's death and data obtained by WikLeaks.[2] Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, seemed to imply a connection when, unbidden, he talked about the case on a Dutch news program.[29] People who worked with Rich said he was not an expert computer hacker helping to leak information to foreigners. Andrew Therriault, a data scientist who had mentored Rich, said although he had recently been working as a programmer, this "wasn't his background", and another co-worker said Rich was very upset when he heard hackers associated with Russian intelligence services had broken into the DNC computers and could be interfering with the election.[29]

In November, Republican lobbyist Jack Burkman stated he was personally offering a $100,000 reward in addition to those announced by the police department and WikiLeaks, and he added another $5,000 to his offer in December and another $25,000 in January.[43][44][29] Burkman's offers raised the total offered reward to $175,000 (if the WikiLeaks offer is included), which is the highest amount ever offered for solving a murder in Washington, D.C.[44][29]

Rich's parents repeatedly stated their distress at the politicization of his murder and the conspiracy theories promoted in right-wing circles.[26][45]

Fox News retracted reporting

Uncorroborated story

Members of the alt-right and certain commentators on Fox News, featured coverage of the conspiracy theories instead of reporting on new negative revelations about the Trump administration which other media outlets covered at the same time period.[46][47][48]

On May 15, 2017, Fox 5 DC (WTTG) reported the uncorroborated and later largely retracted[49] claims by Rod Wheeler, a Fox News contributor and former homicide detective, that there was evidence Seth Rich had contacted WikiLeaks and that law enforcement were covering this up;[50][49] claims that were never independently verified by Fox.[51] The next day, Fox News published a lead story on its website and provided extensive coverage on its cable news channel about what it said were Wheeler's uncorroborated claims about the murder of Seth Rich.[52][48][53] In reporting these claims, the Fox News report re-ignited conspiracy theories about the killing.[45][54][55] According to NPR, within a day of the original Fox report, "Google searches for Rich had overtaken searches for James Comey, even amid continuous news about the former FBI director's conversations with Trump."[56] The Washington Post noted Fox News chose to lead with this story at a time when most other media outlets were covering allegations president Trump leaked intelligence to Russian officials.[57]

Other news organizations revealed Wheeler was a Donald Trump supporter, a paid Fox News contributor, and according to NBC News had "developed a reputation for making outlandish claims, such as one appearance on Fox News in 2007 in which he warned that underground networks of pink pistol-toting lesbian gangs were raping young women".[45][58][4] The Washington Post noted it is "rare for a news organization to have such a close relationship with the people it is covering", as Wheeler was "playing three roles at once: as a Fox source, as a paid contributor to the network and as a supposedly independent investigator of the murder".[54] When Wheeler appeared on Sean Hannity's Fox News shows, these multiple roles were not disclosed to viewers.[54] On May 17, 2017, The New York Times reported Seth Rich's family had hired Wheeler to investigate Rich's death; after Wheeler's Fox News interview on May 15, 2017, Brad Bauman, a communications professional and pro bono spokesman for the Rich family, said the family was asking Fox News and the Fox affiliate retract their reports and apologize for damaging their son's legacy, and that they regretted working with Wheeler. Bauman said that the family had engaged the services of Wheeler on the recommendation of Ed Butowsky, a Texas businessman and conservative commentator who paid for Wheeler's services.[4]

The family spokesperson, the Washington, D.C., police department, the Washington, D.C., mayor's office, the FBI, and law enforcement sources familiar with the case all disputed Wheeler's claims.[45][59] The family said, "We are a family who is committed to facts, not fake evidence that surfaces every few months to fill the void and distract law enforcement and the general public from finding Seth's murderers."[45] Bauman criticized Fox News for its reporting, alleging that the outlet was motivated by a desire to deflect attention from the Trump-Russia story: "I think there's a very special place in hell for people that would use the memory of a murder victim in order to pursue a political agenda."[8] The family has called for retractions and apologies from Fox News for the inaccurate reporting.[4][60]

Over the course of the day, Fox News altered the contents of the story and the headline — Fox did not issue corrections.[51][4][61] When CNN contacted Wheeler later that day, he said that he had no evidence that Rich had contacted Wikileaks.[49] Wheeler claimed that Fox had presented his quotes misleadingly and that he only learned about the possible existence of the evidence from a Fox News reporter.[49][56] Despite the investigator's retraction and no evidence in favor of the theory, Sean Hannity's show and Fox & Friends continued to promote the conspiracy theory for the remainder of the week.[62][63] Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Geraldo Rivera took part in spreading the conspiracy.[63][64][65] Sean Hannity furthermore promoted the uncorroborated claims of Kim Dotcom, a New Zealand resident sought by the United States on fraud charges who claimed after the Fox News report that Rich had been in contact with him before his death.[66] Dotcom provided no evidence for his claims and has in the past "made similarly grandiose claims" and "been found to have fabricated evidence".[66]

Cease and desist letter and retraction

On May 19, 2017, an attorney for the Rich family sent a cease and desist letter to Wheeler.[18]

Fox News issued a retraction of the story on May 23, 2017 and removed the original article, and did not apologize or specify what went wrong or how it did so.[67][68][69] After this, Sean Hannity, one of Fox News's biggest stars, who pushed the theory, remained unapologetic, saying "I retracted nothing" and "I am not going to stop trying to find the truth."[70][66][69] In their May 23 statement, Fox News said,

The article was not initially subjected to the high degree of editorial scrutiny we require for all our reporting. Upon appropriate review, the article was found not to meet those standards and has since been removed.[70]

The Poynter Institute said that the retraction was "woefully inadequate", noting that,

The two-paragraph statement, published under the "politics" category on the network's website, doesn't say what about Fox News' reporting was inaccurate (that its original source backed away from his claim that he had information showing Rich was in touch with Wikileaks). It doesn't replace the bad information with accurate information (that police believe Rich was murdered during a robbery). It doesn't specify who in the organization is being held accountable. And the correction doesn't appear on the original story to explain why it was removed, nor has it been shared in the on-air forums where the inaccurate story was promoted. As of this writing, the original URL displays a 404 error. Fox News isn't even acknowledging to people who click the link to the original story that it's been retracted.[71]

On May 23, 2017, Sean Hannity stated on his television program that he would cease discussing the issue.[72] Hannity said his decision to cease commenting on the matter was related to the family of the murder victim: "Out of respect for the family's wishes, for now, I am not discussing the matter at this time."[72] In the same statement wherein he promised to cease discussion of the topic, he vowed to pursue facts in the future: "I promise you I am not going to stop trying to find the truth."[72]

See also

2

References

  1. ^ Morton, Joseph. "D.C. police, family of slain DNC staffer Seth Rich urge anyone with information about murder to come forward", Omaha World-Herald (August 4, 2016; Updated August 10, 2016).
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Morton, Joseph. "WikiLeaks offers $20,000 reward for help finding Omaha native Seth Rich's killer", Omaha World-Herald (August 10, 2016; Updated August 11, 2016): "Rich had worked for the DNC for two years and helped develop a computer program to make it easier for people to find polling places on Election Day."
  3. ^ Kamp-Wright, Annette van de (July 20, 2016). "Seth Conrad Rich". The Jewish Press. Omaha. Retrieved January 7, 2017.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Bromwich, Jonah Engel (May 17, 2017). "How the Murder of a D.N.C. Staffer Fueled Conspiracy Theories". The New York Times. Retrieved May 17, 2017.
  5. ^ a b c d Kiely, Eugene (May 22, 2017). "Gingrich Spreads Conspiracy Theory". FactCheck.org. Annenberg Public Policy Center. Retrieved May 23, 2017.
  6. ^ a b c d e Carroll, Lauren (May 23, 2017). Sanders, Katie (ed.). "The baseless claim that slain DNC staffer Seth Rich gave emails to WikiLeaks". PolitiFact. Tampa Bay Times.
  7. ^ a b Adams, Becket. "One last time: That Seth Rich story is garbage". The Washington Examiner. Retrieved May 17, 2017.
  8. ^ a b "FACT CHECK: Did DNC Staffer Seth Rich Send 'Thousands of E-Mails' to WikiLeaks Before He Was Murdered?". Snopes.com. May 16, 2017. Retrieved May 16, 2017.
  9. ^ a b Hermann, Peter; Williams, Clarence (August 9, 2016). "WikiLeaks offers reward for help finding DNC staffer's killer". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
  10. ^ Fox News. "Assange implies murdered DNC staffer was WikiLeaks' source". Retrieved May 21, 2017.
  11. ^ "Cyber-spying: Bear on bear". The Economist. September 22, 2016. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
  12. ^ Rutenberg, Jim (May 24, 2017). "Sean Hannity, a Murder and Why Fake News Endures". The New York Times.
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Further reading

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