The 'Dark Knight Rises' actor criticizes the way media outlets are covering the controversial story of current unrest in Baltimore.
- May 2, 2015
AceShowbiz - Morgan Freeman has broken his silence on current unrest in Baltimore. In an interview with The Daily Beast, the 77-year-old actor discusses police brutality and the way media outlets are covering the controversial story of current Baltimore riots.
"F**k the media," Morgan tells the site, "Isn't that always happening? Look at MSNBC, Fox News, and CNN. Go between those three. There's a take, there's a take, and there's a take. It's just commentary. CNN wants to be pure news, but the others are just commentary. They're just commenting on things."
He explains, "Cameras actually distort the story. The story already happened. The story began with policy and apexed with Freddie Gray's death. The story is simple. Gray died in state custody. Unlikely anyone will be punished. (Which explains the riots.) That's pretty much it. The cameras aren't actually adding to the 'story.' They can't really clarify the narrative."
But Morgan says Baltimore coverage has been better than the very one-sided Ferguson coverage. "Now, they're getting more of the whole picture. Ferguson? No. Baltimore seems to be coming up with a different scenario in the background," the "Evan Almighty" star shares, "People are saying, 'You were not all there when we were just talking and trying to make a point, but if we set something on fire, all of a sudden you're all here. Why is that? What's the difference?' And some young reporters are listening. That sort of observation is very useful."
He adds, "The other thing is that technology lets us see behind the scenes a little bit better. Police have a standard reaction to shooting somebody. I fear for my life and I fear for my safety. Now, at least you can see, 'Hey, his hands were up in the air! What part of your safety were you afraid of? The guy was running away, what part of your safety was in danger?' There was one situation I saw where a cop told a guy to get out of the car, said, 'Show me your driver's license,' and the guy reached back into the car and the cop shot him!"
"Anyway, off the media," the "Lucy" star says while waving his hands in the air and chuckling, "F**k the media."
