
09/11/2025
Can someone explain to my why CNN chose to show a muslim man praying in an article about Charlie Kirks shooting?
Charlie Kirk was shot at 1220pm MT. Dhuhr prayer is at 120pm MT. This picture is not even from the same day!
If you are Muslim you know he could not have been praying Fajr or Asr. This is islamaphobic journalism by CNN. Its disgusting.
It could falsely imply a connection between the Muslim individual (or Muslims in general) and the act of violence, even if the person pictured had nothing to do with the incident.
Viewers often make subconscious associations, so placing that image in this context risks fueling stereotypes that Muslims are linked to violence.
If the Muslim man praying has no factual connection to the shooting, then including the photo is misleading, unethical, and violates standards of accuracy and fairness.
Journalistic guidelines (like the SPJ Code of Ethics) stress that images must not mislead or distort context, because audiences trust media to show relevant, accurate representations.