1/ Last night KSTP’s Jay Kolls - of #pointergate infamy - did a story on the US Capitol invasion. Despite direct links to President Trump & white supremacists, the story named only one group: Antifa. kstp.com/news/minneapol… (Pointergate primer here: journalmpls.com/voices/2014/11…)
2/ Kolls’ source is a local “security consultant” named Michael Rozin. “Rozin said there were some rioters inside the U.S. Capitol who used symbols & had tattoos which seem to be aligned with the ANTIFA movement,” adding, “Rep. Matt Gaetz also suggested ANTIFA may be involved.” 
3/ Gaetz is an #AlwaysTrumper who often lies; his House speech has been discredited. washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/01…. But who is Rozin? Well, Kolls used him during the George Floyd protests, where Rozin hyped anarchists. Both times Rozin was the sole source. kstp.com/news/anarchist…
4/ Kolls never really tells us much about Rozin, but @theintercept’s @AlleenBrown reported in November that Rozin was tied to the notorious election-Eve recruiting effort to “protect election polls.” Mn Attorney General Keith Ellison had to sue to stop it. theintercept.com/2020/11/01/ele…
5/ The Intercept noted that Rozin is an Israeli Defense Force vet who did security for the Mall of America before going into private practice. Because Rozin lacks a Minnesota security license, they subcontract work. They denied doing poll-site work, protecting homes & businesses.
6/ I don’t know if Rozin ideologically tilts toward blaming lefties, or if that”# Kolls & KSTP’s editing. But if you have to add a disclaimer that there’s nothing “confirming involvement of any specific groups in the rioting” you shouldn’t name a group ESPECIALLY w/single source.
7/ (BTW there are TONS of photos showing the Buffalo head dude SITTING ON THE CONGRESSIONAL PODIUM had Nazi tats, and all over the Internet righties are taking credit for the break-in. The woman shot inside was full-blown MAGA. Talk about ignoring the obvious.)
8/ One reason Kolls got into such deep #pointergate shit is that he uncritically accepted a leak from a cop source who had it out for then-Mayor @BetsyHodges. courthousenews.com/pointergate-en… Everyone in TC media & policing knows Kolls is your go-to guy for this stuff.
9/ The real blame belongs to KSTP for shitty sourcing/proof standards. I know reporters got mad at a recent @webster Twitter poll about worst TV news station. I understand chafing against collective guilt, but fighting Soviet-style disinformation is a collective responsibility.
10/ Addenda: thanks to @WentRogue for spotting the Kolls story. Also, I could not find the video on KSTP’s site. If you find a link, reply here or DM and I’ll add it here. 🙏
11/ Here’s Jay Kolls asserting Antifa was responsible for the Capitol invasion - it’s way more blatant disinformation than the web story. The anchor tentatively challenges him, but he just doubles down without any proof demonstrated. Outrageous.
12/ @MinneapoliSam doing some real reporting. @Rozin_Security says they’re “working with KSTP to correct” Jay Kolls story. I might suggest they not work with Kolls again - there have to be more truthful ways to market one’s business.
13/ KSTP’s news director replied. Thoughts:
- Source speculation ≠ fact.
- Source now admits he was “not sure” Antifa involved & seeks correction. This is why you don’t lean on 2nd-hand speculation.
- Putting on a minute of bullshit (not 10 seconds) isn’t balance, it’s bullshit.
- Source speculation ≠ fact.
- Source now admits he was “not sure” Antifa involved & seeks correction. This is why you don’t lean on 2nd-hand speculation.
- Putting on a minute of bullshit (not 10 seconds) isn’t balance, it’s bullshit.
14/ KSTP news director apparently reflected a bit on his initial response. Appending this to the thread:
https://twitter.com/MinneapoliSam/status/1347368041982656518
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