ABC News suspends reporter who trashed network’s coverage
ABC News said Wednesday it suspended a correspondent who was caught on a video declaring himself a socialist and criticizing the network’s political coverage, including that of President Trump.
Veteran reporter David Wright was covering the New Hampshire primary for “Nightline” earlier this month when he made the comments to a member of Project Veritas, a conservative website.
In a conversation that appeared to have been surreptitiously recorded on video, Wright vented his frustration with how the network covers the news.
“I feel terrible about it. I feel that the truth suffers, the voters are poorly informed, and people also have the opportunity to tune into whatever they want to hear,” Wright said in the video, which is shot from about waist level.
“And so, it’s like there’s no upside, or our bosses don’t see an upside in doing the job we’re supposed to do, which is to speak truth to power and hold people accountable.”
He was also asked if he considers himself a “Democratic socialist.”
“Oh yeah. More than that I would consider myself a socialist; like I think there should be national health insurance. I’m totally fine with reining in corporations, I think there are too many billionaires, and I think there’s a wealth gap — that’s a problem,” Wright said on the video.
He also criticized the way the network covers Trump.
“We don’t hold him to account. We also don’t give him credit for what things he does do,” Wright said. “We’re interested in three things: the outrage of the day, the investigation, and the palace intrigue of who’s backstabbing whom. Beyond that, we don’t really cover the guy.”
ABC News issued a statement to Project Veritas about Wright.
“Any action that damages our reputation for fairness and impartiality or gives the appearance of compromising it harms ABC News and the individuals involved,” the network said. “David Wright has been suspended, and to avoid any possible appearance of bias, he will be reassigned away from political coverage when he returns.”
Project Veritas founder James O’Keefe objected to ABC News’ action against Wright because of his “honesty.”
“We commend David Wright for his honesty,” he said. “No one should be suspended from their job for truth-telling.”
Last November, the site released ABC News anchor Amy Robach’s comments caught on a hot mic that the network had spiked her story about how Jeffrey Epstein was having sex with underage girls years before the scandal broke.