Retracted

AP Deletes Tweet Saying Trump Called Border-Crossers 'Animals'

AP tweeted that Trump referred to people crossing the border illegally as 'animals'; CNN and others framed the remark as aimed at immigrants generally.

First reported May 16, 2018 · Associated Press, CNN

Screenshot of the original report as published — Screenshot of the report as published: money.cnn.com (archived copy, Wayback Machine). Tap to open the source.

Who it helped: Democrats

Stripping the MS-13 context made Trump appear to dehumanize immigrants as a group.

What was reported

AP tweeted that Trump referred to people crossing the border illegally as 'animals'; CNN and others framed the remark as aimed at immigrants generally.

What actually happened

At a White House roundtable, Trump used the word right after a sheriff raised MS-13 gang members. AP deleted its tweet, saying it had not made clear he was speaking after a comment about gang members. CNN posted a clarifying tweet saying the remark responded to comments about MS-13, and its media reporter wrote that several outlets, including CNN, had taken it out of context.

The proof

AP's deletion notice and CNN's follow-up clarification, both acknowledging the remark followed a question about MS-13.

The receipt. Copy this and paste it anywhere:

AP Deletes Tweet Saying Trump Called Border-Crossers 'Animals' — Retracted. AP's deletion notice and CNN's follow-up clarification, both acknowledging the remark followed a question about MS-13. Full file: https://www.thepropagandafiles.com/case/ap-trump-animals-tweet-deleted/

Original reporting

AP's original tweet (since deleted)https://twitter.com/AP/status/997138543817449472
CNN's original tweethttps://twitter.com/CNN/status/997170505609302016

Corrections, findings & records

iMediaEthics: AP deletes tweet, CNN clarifieshttps://www.imediaethics.org/trumps-animals-comment-ap-deletes-cnn-clarifies/
CNN (Oliver Darcy): outlets took Trump's 'animals' remark out of contexthttp://money.cnn.com/2018/05/17/media/media-trump-animals-immigrants/index.html
TheWrap: CNN admits it took remark out of contexthttps://www.thewrap.com/cnn-took-trumps-animals-remark-immigrants-context-network-admits

Archived copies

Stories get edited after publication. These open the Internet Archive's earliest saved copy of each original.

Archived copy: AP's original tweet (since deleted)https://web.archive.org/web/2/https://twitter.com/AP/status/997138543817449472
Archived copy: CNN's original tweethttps://web.archive.org/web/2/https://twitter.com/CNN/status/997170505609302016