CNN blasted for giving a platform to white supremacist Richard Spencer to defend Trump’s racism

CNN was highly criticized on Monday for interviewing Richard Spencer, an avowed white supremacist who took part in the fatal "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.

"CNN interviewed white supremacist Richard Spencer during a Tuesday segment on President Donald Trump’s racist tweets, in another example of a news outlet inadvertently giving a large platform to white supremacists," The Daily Beastreported.

The appearance occurred the day after a federal magistrate judge ordered Andrew Anglin to pay $14 million for unleashing a "troll storm" on a small town in Montana that rejected Spencer's white nationalism.

"The segment on Jake Tapper’s The Lead covered neo-Nazis’ support for Trump’s racist attacks on four progressive congresswomen of color. The spot included an interview with Spencer who said Trump is playing a 'con game' and that his attacks were not racist enough," The Beast reported.

"Spencer is an open white nationalist who advocates for “peaceful ethnic cleansing.” Spencer was a key player and featured speaker at Unite the Right, the 2017 white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, where a neo-Nazi murdered an anti-racist protester," The Beast reminded. "He has repeatedly invoked Nazi slogans and imagery, including calling media the “lügenpresse” ("lying press") and leading a Hitler-type salute of Trump."

While Spencer is allowed on CNN, he's been banned from 26 countries in Europe.