Fox News host Shannon Bream offered an on-air apology on Tuesday night following a Monday segment where she suggested that Philadelphia Eagles players who were kneeling in prayer had actually been protesting the national anthem.
“Last night during our report about President Trump canceling the Philadelphia Eagles trip to the White House to celebrate their Super Bowl win, we showed unrelated footage of players kneeling in prayer,” said Bream on her program “Fox News @ Night”
“To clarify, no members of the team knelt in protest during the national anthem throughout regular or post-season last year. We sincerely apologize for the error.”
Fox News apologizes for Philadelphia Eagles footage error. pic.twitter.com/GOkGoVBg6J
— Fox News (@FoxNews) June 6, 2018
Bream’s remarks were the second time the network apologized on Tuesday over the affair. Earlier in the day, the show’s executive producer Christopher Wallace also issued a statement offering his regret for the error.
“During our report about President Trump canceling the Philadelphia Eagles trip to the White House to celebrate their Super Bowl win, we showed unrelated footage of players kneeling in prayer,” said Wallace. “To clarify, no members of the team knelt in protest during the national anthem throughout regular or post-season last year. We apologize for the error.”
The issue emerged during a news brief in which Bream explained President Trump’s decision to rescind a White House invitation to the Super Bowl champions. Though no members of the team ever took a knee for the anthem during the 2017 season, the show ran footage of Eagles players kneeling in prayer during the segment without context.
The moment earned a broad rebuke online, even from the right-leaning Media Research Center whose managing editor, Brittany Hughes, called the photo “deceptive.”
This is a deceptive photo montage showing Eagles players praying before games, not kneeling for the anthem. Truth matters. https://t.co/xD043H4XGg
— Brittany Hughes (@RealBrittHughes) June 5, 2018