Prior to NBC's interview with Capitol Police Lieutenant Michael Byrd, who has come forward to explain why he shot Capitol insurrectionist Ashli Babbitt as she attempted to climb through a window to get to U.S. lawmakers, the anchor of Russia's version of "60 Minutes" launched a racist attack on him.
According to Russian media expert Julia Davis at the Daily Beast, anchor Olga Skabeeva went on what Davis termed a "demented line of attack with a segment entitled 'Black Racism.'"
Davis reports that Skabeeva -- who previously went on an N-word-filled rant about Capitol police officer Harry Dunn -- once again made the story about the Capitol insurrection about race since both police officers are Black.
According to Davis, Skabeeva began, "Sensation in the case of the Capitol riot! Today, during primetime, the most liberal American television channel will air the interview with the black policeman who shot an unarmed white woman, a follower of [former U.S. President] Donald Trump, Air Force veteran Ashli Babbitt. Ashli tried to walk from one room to the next, through the door broken by somebody else, but instead was struck by the bullet."
The Russian media personality then added, "The American justice system somehow managed to clear the officer of all charges... In case you didn't know, the policeman got away with it because he is Black—and Blacks are permitted to kill white people. I will remind you that when the dark-skinned criminal George Floyd was accidentally choked during his apprehension, a white policeman was sentenced to prison for more than 22 1/2 years."
For her part, Davis explained, "Racism on Russian state television continually raises its ugly head, from the coverage of the Olympics to smearing Capitol officers who testified about the events of Jan. 6. Stoking racial divisions in the United States is one of the Kremlin's favored instruments of influence and the coverage of Ashli Babbitt's case is no exception," adding, "Vladimir Putin personally capitalized on this case by bringing up Babbitt's name and publicly questioning her death, with supportive coverage by Tucker Carlson of Fox News."
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