NPR Adds Editor’s Note Acknowledging Report ‘Mischaracterized’ Don Jr. Answer to Senate Investigators

NPR has acknowledged in an editor’s note that a major report today on Donald Trump Jr. “mischaracterized” an answer he gave to Senate investigators.

The initial report had said that the testimony from the president’s son on negotiations over a proposed Trump Tower in Moscow was in conflict with what Michael Cohen said yesterday.

But as reporters earlier today pointed out, the deal Don Jr. was talking about that ended in 2014 was a different deal from the Trump Tower Moscow one:

This NPR story appears to be wrong. It notes that Trump Jr. told a Senate committee that a deal in Moscow died of “deal fatigue” by 2014.

But that was a deal with the Agalarovs. He was also asked if a deal was in the works in 2015/2016 and said yes.https://t.co/B8SuolTfyK pic.twitter.com/w34SamzXJF

— Philip Bump (@pbump) November 30, 2018

The NPR piece is incorrect. Don Jr’s comments about the deal ending in 2014 were about the *Agalarovs,* not Cohen/Sater. In fact the question specifically separated out Cohen/Sater. https://t.co/ut3yy1NHO8 pic.twitter.com/3NMkxdCQ5u

— Andrew Prokop (@awprokop) November 30, 2018

That NPR story about Don Jr. is still being shared.

And it’s still not accurate.

— Aaron Blake (@AaronBlake) November 30, 2018

Sites like National Review and The Daily Caller also called out NPR for the misleading framing.

The report has now been updated with an editor’s note:

An earlier version of this report mischaracterized an answer Donald Trump Jr. gave to Senate investigators in 2017 about the prospective projects his family was negotiating with people in Moscow.

The story reported that Trump Jr.’s response — that negotiations on one project concluded by the end of 2014 — contrasted with the version of events as laid out in the guilty plea by Michael Cohen on Thursday. In fact, Trump Jr. and investigators were alluding to a different set of negotiations — not to a deal that Cohen was reportedly pursuing. Trump Jr. did acknowledge in his testimony that Cohen and another man were exploring a possible deal in Moscow in 2015 or 2016.

Trump Jr. did not address what Cohen has now admitted — that talks about such a deal continued at least into June 2016, longer than previously known and well into the presidential campaign.

Trump Jr. responded on Twitter saying, “Pro tip: don’t just rush to publish anything thinking that it’s the got ya you so desperately want it to be.”

I guess this is as close as I’ll get to an apology where yet another “bombshell” bites the dust.

Pro tip: don’t just rush to publish anything thinking that it’s the got ya you so desperately want it to be. CNN has the market cornered on that… let them own it https://t.co/mtmXp6O8GW

— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) November 30, 2018

[image via screengrab]

from Mediaite https://ift.tt/2DUuXkH