My Claim Analysis
I decided to research the claim that the January 6th Insurrection was not an insurrection, but a peaceful protest that Capitol Police were complicit in. I have heard this claim repeatedly from my brother, a bit of a right-wing conspiracy theorist. I envision sharing this information with him being my primary audience as steps he (or anyone) should also be taking to verify the information shared on the internet. This claim is worthy of research because it is difficult to determine which version is correct. I have seen the news media coverage and it influences my opinion, but I am open to researching the claims for answers. The footage shared from these outlets my brother follows does paint a completely different picture. It does plant a seed of doubt within me. It makes things difficult to decipher. The sources that he references for his information are red flags for me. The individuals reporting are controversial. I need to know the truth.
In seeking the truth about that day, I will use the SIFT method.
SIFT:
Stop
Investigate the source
Find better coverage
Trace claims, quotes, and media to the original context
Stop
I just need to erase all my perceptions and any biases that I may have about what happened. Erase the slate and start my research from this point forward using the tools I have learned.
Investigate the source
The first thing I would ask anyone making a claim is to cite the source. My brother tells me I should just look it up because I need to know what I am talking about. When I asked him to be more specific as to where he got his news about it he told me to look for the video shared by Tucker Carlson of Fox News. I found that video here. https://www.foxnews.com/video/6322049576112
Tucker claims that the narrative was controlled by the Democratic party and the media to show an incorrect story about what happened. He states that Jacob Chansley (The Quanon Shaman) was given a tour by police and in this image several police are seen near Chansley and none arrest him. In the full video you even see Chansley give a prayer and thank the police for letting them in the building.
(Source: https://www.foxnews.com/video/6322049576112)
The New York Times, on Tucker Carlson, states, “He has also drawn condemnation from the right and left for his role in fostering a revisionist account of the assault on the United States Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.” I do not feel he is a great, trustworthy source of information. This quote causes me to have my doubts about his claims. (Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/24/business/media/tucker-carlson-fox-news-dismissal.html)
My conspiracy-promoting brother also referenced a video from Alex Jones’s Infowars as proof to back his claim that it was not an insurrection, but a peaceful protest. Here it is – https://www.infowars.com/posts/watch-new-footage-absolutely-destroys-democrat-jan-6-insurrection-narrative/
Source: (- https://www.infowars.com/posts/watch-new-footage-absolutely-destroys-democrat-jan-6-insurrection-narrative/ )
Nor do I trust the information shared by Alex Jones for the same reasons Spotify cited in this Vox article, “in Spotify’s words, Infowars “expressly and principally promotes, advocates, or incites hatred or violence against a group or individual based on characteristics.” (Source: https://www.vox.com/2018/8/6/17655658/alex-jones-facebook-youtube-conspiracy-theories)
It is easy to see why these images have me shaken up with some doubts about what happened. I did in and go deeper. I went to Google.
I went to Google to do some searching. It yielded 178,000 results. Image searches revealed much that was not supportive of the claims.
Numerous articles claim that the officers let people into the building. This one is from a trusted news source, ABC News.
Among my results I also found an article from the New York Post showing an officer holding a door for protestors.
(Source: https://abcnews.go.com/US/defense-dozens-capitol-rioters-law-enforcement-us-building/story?id=75976466)
Another video I located shows what appears to be an officer waving people to the Capitol. It is hard to definitively know what is happening here, but it appears they are moving people somewhere.
Snopes debunks the claim that the officer was waving people in –
Source: https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/capitol-police-waving-video/
At this point, I am having doubts about what the heck happened. Let’s investigate further. Wikipedia is the next stop.
I have found that “Two Capitol Police officers were suspended, one for directing rioters inside the building while wearing a Make America Great Again hat, and the other for taking a selfie with rioter.[453][454] “ (Source: Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_6_United_States_Capitol_attack#Police_and_military_connections )
Find Better Coverage
There is a lot of coverage out there. Some of this shows that there were officers involved. It does not show that the Capitol Police were complicit in a peaceful protest. It shows that many of the officers did what they could to stop the protestors from breaching the Capitol.
These two articles are cited in the Wikipedia encyclopedia references.
Some police were involved in the insurrection at the Capitol and are being disciplined for their actions.
This officer was suspended for taking a selfie with protestors. It seems the truth is becoming clear that there were some bad actors in the Capitol Police. These types of images make people think that the officers were involved.
(Source: https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/11/politics/capitol-police-officers-suspended-tim-ryan/index.html) NPR reported that 6 officers were suspended and dozens more were placed under investigation. Perhaps there is some truth to the fact that there was police involvement.
(Source: https://www.npr.org/sections/insurrection-at-the-capitol/2021/02/19/969441904/capitol-police-suspends-6-officers-investigates-dozens-more-after-capitol-riots)
(Source: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/how-was-a-violent-mob-able-to-breach-the-u-s-capitol-activists-see-double-standard-in-police-response)
This image shows that there were police on the scene, doing their job and defending the Capitol against breach and rowdy protestors. What they went through was terrible. It was far from a peaceful protest.
This article from Reuters states, “During emotional testimony last week, four police officers told a House of Representatives special committee that they were beaten, threatened, taunted with racial insults, and thought they might die as they struggled to defend the Capitol against the mob.” Source: Reuters https://www.reuters.com/world/us/officer-who-responded-us-capitol-attack-is-third-die-by-suicide-2021-08-02/
This YouTube video shared by MSNBC shows another version of what happened that day. It shows the police trying to hold back the crowd. They were being overcome and needed reinforcements. This video shows reality. It also shows the proceedings inside the Capitol being stopped and people being moved to safe quarters. It shows fear. It shows the government trying to keep things on track. It shows the Capitol was breached. It shows an Insurrection did occur on January 6th at the Capitol. It was not a peaceful protest by any means. (Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrdJh8x9CEo)
Trace Claims Quotes and Media
I have referenced my source for every image, quote, and video that I have shared to show my tracing of the information.
This brings me to the conclusion, through thorough research (and I feel like I am just at the tip of an iceberg here really), that there were officers who did break the law and participate in various aspects of the activities on that day. They have been disciplined for their actions in the appropriate manner according to the law. This was not a peaceful protest. The videos that I have shared show otherwise. This was an actual insurrection. The sources cited are my proof of the facts.
I hope that when I take this undisputable proof to my brother, he will see the truth of what happened on January 6th. It is important to me that the truth be told and not slanted for a political agenda by either side. We all have a right to know the truth and we should all be looking for it using the SIFT method.
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