As attention intensified on the harrowing story of a pregnant 10-year-old Ohio rape victim forced to flee to Indiana for an abortion in the wake of the overturn of Roe v. Wade, the right seized on a counter-narrative like clockwork.
All seeming to read from the same hymnal, right-wingers began to claim the story was a "false flag" or a "hoax." Perhaps no right-wing media figure did more to promulgate this narrative than Fox News' Jesse Watters.
So when the 10-year-old's rapist was apprehended yesterday, Watters issued a retraction and apology, right?
Of course not.
Instead he did the opposite, taking credit for bringing the rapist to justice.
\u201cAlways remember, if you get caught fucking up on Fox, just spin it as a victory\u201d— Acyn (@Acyn) 1657756938
During a segment last night on his show Jesse Watters Primetime, Watters credited the attention his show placed on the story for helping apprehend the rapist.
He told his viewers:
"Primetime covered this story heavily on Monday. Put on the pressure and now we're glad that justice is being served."
That is a diametrically opposite characterization of the coverage Watters gave the story on his show in several segments and interviews.
He deliberately sowed doubt about the story, underlining its multiple unverifiable elements—which were unverifiable by Watters mostly because of privacy laws regarding crimes against a minor.
\u201cVery problematic\u2026 and this was just the opening monologue. He continued to push this narrative with his interviews\u201d— Acyn (@Acyn) 1657730391
Watters criticized Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris and Democratic President Joe Biden as having been duped and promulgating the story without any verification of the facts.
He also announced he and his staff had launched their own investigation into the rape case, then said the state of Ohio declined to investigate the crime.
“You would think the story of a sexual abuser roaming free assaulting 10-year-olds would raise quite a few concerns in small-town Ohio, but no one seems to be doing anything about it."
He then pointed out the story rested entirely on quotes from the doctor who claimed to have performed the 10-year-old's abortion, suggesting the story was a Democrat-created hoax the doctor was in on.
Watters said:
"[I]f this horrific story isn’t accurate and the abortion doctor and the Indianapolis Star are misleading us?"
"And the mainstream media and president of the United States seizing on another hoax?"
"Then this is absolutely shameful."
"And fits a pretty dangerous pattern of politically timed disinformation.”
Watters' was just one of a large group of right wing commentators who claimed the story was a hoak, including his Fox News colleague Tucker Carlson who went even further, accusing the Biden Administration of openly "lying" about the story.
\u201cDid not age well\u201d— Acyn (@Acyn) 1657747236
Less than 24 hours after Watters' report, however, Ohio newspaper The Columbus Dispatch released a story confirming the rapist had been arrested and charged after confessing to raping the child on at least two occasions.
The Dispatch reported law enforcement was tipped off by local child protection agencies who reported the rape—precisely the supposedly missing details upon which Watters and other right-wingers had based their hoax claims.
Funny what happens when you give law enforcement and legitimate media the time required to do their jobs within the confines of ethics and the law, isn't it?
In reporting on his supposedly valiant efforts at bringing the rapist to justice, Watters and his guests quickly pivoted to attacking the doctor who performed the child's abortion, calling for her to be arrested and prosecuted.
On Twitter, Watters' temerity left people disgusted.
\u201cSo Jesse Watters' strategy tonight was as follows:\n\n- do not apologize\n- take credit for the rapist's arrest\n- demonize immigrants\n- call for the abortion doctor's arrest\n- repeatedly air the doctor's photo while villainizing her to his millions of viewers\u201d— Justin Baragona (@Justin Baragona) 1657760916
\u201c@Acyn Do their viewers ever, just once, think \u201cthese guys have completely changed their story from yesterday. What\u2019s up with that?\u201d\u201d— Acyn (@Acyn) 1657756938
\u201c@Acyn lol \n\nevery @foxnews in-house carnie @BillHemmer @DanaPerino @EmilyCompagno @JesseBWatters \ntold its viewers it was a hoax \n\nhow was that putting pressure on getting justice for this 10 year-old\u201d— Acyn (@Acyn) 1657756938
\u201c@Acyn Not \u201cput on the pressure\u201d when they literally said the story isn\u2019t true \ud83d\ude2d\u201d— Acyn (@Acyn) 1657756938
\u201cOn Monday, Jesse Watters began his show by questioning the "alleged child rape" of a 10 yo in Ohio. He then hosted a conservative blogger and OH's attorney general to cast doubt on the case. An arrest was made this afternoon.\n\nThis is how Watters began his show today.\u201d— aliciasadowski (@aliciasadowski) 1657753793
\u201c@justinbaragona The last point was rather striking. Surprised they didn't overlay the pic with gunsights.\u201d— Justin Baragona (@Justin Baragona) 1657760916
\u201c@haleybemiller I\u2019m sure you\u2019ll be issuing an apology and a correction for your misinformation segment? @JesseBWatters\u201d— Haley BeMiller (@Haley BeMiller) 1657729533
\u201cI'd ask @JesseBWatters how he sleeps at night, but when you have no soul it has to make it easier.\u201d— Matt Johnson (@Matt Johnson) 1657789760
\u201cWhen you're in a hole...stop digging!\n\nFox News host Jesse Watters, who called story about 10-year-old Ohio girl rape and abortion a "hoax" during interview with AG Dave Yost, now is taking credit for the arrest of the suspected rapist https://t.co/bvJqyLaylp\u201d— Darrel Rowland (@Darrel Rowland) 1657806827
As disgusting at Watters' comments have been, they pale in comparison to Republican Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita.
Appearing on Watters' show yesterday, Rokita insisted the real story was the "illegal immigration" of the rapist, pledged to prosecute the doctor who performed the child's abortion, and said the 10-year-old's situation has been "politicized for the gain of killing more babies."
