Two church shootings, a decade apart, received strikingly different treatment from America’s corporate media. The first occurred in Charleston, South Carolina, in 2015. The second took place in Minneapolis just last week.
On June 18, 2015, CBS News reported:
A white man opened fire in a historic black church, in Charleston, South Carolina, the night of June 17, 2015, killing nine people, including a pastor, during a prayer meeting. The suspect, Dylann Roof, was arrested in North Carolina and extradited to South Carolina June 18, 2015, for what authorities are calling a hate crime.
On June 28, 2025, CBS News reported:
Two young children were killed and 18 others were injured in a shooting during a Catholic Mass packed with young students in south Minneapolis Wednesday morning. The shooter is also dead.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said the shooting triggered a massive law enforcement response to Annunciation Catholic Church at West 54th Street between Harriet and Garfield avenues around 8:30 a.m. The church is connected to a school building.
The shooter approached from the outside of the building and fired a rifle through the church windows toward children and worshippers. The shooter also used a shotgun and a pistol that he had legally purchased ‘recently,’ O’Hara said.
Both reports were written one day after the massacres. Both shooters were identified by that point. Yet the second account omitted key information about the shooter.
Establishment media needs to look at the facts — and report them. While they do, they should also look in the mirror.
What a shock when Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey used a press conference on the very day of the church massacre to pivot from murdered children to a lecture on transgender rights and gun control.
“I have heard about a whole lot of hate that’s being directed at our trans community,” Frey told reporters at an afternoon briefing.
He went on:
Anybody who is using this ... as an opportunity to villainize our trans community, or any other community out there, has lost their sense of common humanity. We should not be operating out of a place of hate for anyone.
In truth, no one should be shocked by Frey’s diversion. This is the same mayor who let Minneapolis burn in 2020, which included the torching of a police station. His record of weakness is already clear.
And this year, he’s locked in a tough re-election fight against Omar Fateh, a bona fide democratic socialist. To survive, Frey is racing leftward, stooping to whatever level he thinks will protect his job.
The real revelation from his comments wasn’t his tired blame-shifting but his admission that the shooter identified as transgender — a fact establishment media has rushed to bury.
The killer, born Robert Westman, legally changed his name to Robin Westman in January 2020 at age 17. The petition states that he “identifies as a female and wants her name to reflect that identification.”
Such details were not hidden for anyone willing to look. Hours before the massacre, Westman posted videos that exposed both his planning and his hatred.
In one, he flipped through pages of a handwritten manifesto laying out why he chose Annunciation — the Catholic church and school he had graduated from in 2017:
I am feeling good about Annunciation. It seems like a good combo of easy attack form and devastating tragedy and I want to do more research. I have concerns about finding a large enough group. I want to avoid any parents, but pre and post school drop off.
In another, Westman showed off his arsenal. His gun magazines bore hand-scrawled taunts, including the chilling phrase: “Where is your God?”
Ten years ago, coverage of Charleston leaned heavily on words like “white” and “white supremacist.” Reporters stressed Dylann Roof’s race from the outset, and his racist motivations were treated as central to the story. That was fair. His ideology mattered, and his identity explained why he targeted a black church.
But why is the same standard not applied today?
RELATED: If ‘words are violence,’ why won’t the left own theirs?
Westman was transgender. Court filings documented his legal name change to “Robin” and the reasons behind it. His own videos revealed a deeply disturbed mind, with specific plans to attack Annunciation and taunts of his victims scrawled on his weapons. These are facts. They belong in basic reporting. Including them doesn’t equate “transgender” with “deranged” any more than “white” equates to “white supremacist.”
Yet the difference in coverage is glaring. In Charleston, identity was headline news. In Minneapolis, it was buried. Everyone knows why. Westman’s story doesn’t serve the establishment narrative, so the press ignored it.
Journalism once prided itself on covering the unexpected — the classic “man bites dog.” That’s over. News today is about reinforcing narratives, not reporting facts.
Americans see through it. They know why trust in media sits at historic lows. They see newspapers hemorrhaging readers, network news losing viewers, and MSNBC shrinking into a dumb rebrand. The bias is obvious, the omission blatant, and the public is done playing along.
People usually know when they’re being lied to. They also know that half-truths amount to half-lies at best. The press pushed the Russia hoax with glee. They buried Hunter Biden’s laptop. They shielded the public from Joe Biden’s obvious cognitive decline.
The left depends on this cocoon. It shelters them from the clash between their mistaken beliefs and stubborn reality. And the establishment media — blind to their own collapse in credibility — gladly supply the insulation.
In Minneapolis, the slaughter of Catholic schoolchildren should have shattered the narrative. Instead, the media treated it like an inconvenience. They will glance at it briefly before memory-holing what doesn’t fit.
If they have any integrity left, they’ll face the facts — and face themselves. Because the real scandal isn’t just what they cover. It’s what they refuse to see.
While Christians on the right may be viewed as “radical” in the eyes of the left, they’re not even as close to how radical the left has become.
And BlazeTV host Steve Deace believes that needs to change if Americans want their children marked safe from the kind of evil that the left’s most radical are capable of unleashing — like the recent shooting of school children at church in Minneapolis.
“Even as radicalized as we’ve all become in the last few years, we are still not to the level of radicalization that we are up against. Now, I would not be a supporter of equaling their radicalization because I think that would call us to do things that God’s word says that we cannot,” Deace says.
“That being said, I think being more aware of their radicalization will make us more prone to do the preparation that God’s word says we must. And we haven’t,” he continues.
And that radicalization of the other side was on full display in Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey’s comments regarding the horrific shooting on CNN.
“Obviously, I’ve heard about the rhetoric and the narrative that is being pushed out. But here’s the thing. Anybody that is going to use this as an opportunity to villainize our trans community or any community has lost touch with a common humanity,” Frey told reporter Erin Burnett.
“We’ve got to be operating not out of hate for any group, but out of a love for our children,” he added.
“Straight up demonic levels of gaslighting,” Deace says.
“How can the mayor of Minneapolis say that level of gas lighting with conviction? There was real conviction there. That’s not BS at all. That’s not virtue signaling. That’s real, because this is his religion, and he’s committed to it, and he’s more committed to it than most of you are,” Deace continues.
“That level of conviction there is biblical, man,” he adds.
And while many liberals have been touting the line that “prayer is not enough,” Deace is actually in agreement.
“Words are not enough, and we need some commonsense gun control. Anybody who has ever sought any level of counseling, I don’t care if they’re 8 or 108, any level of counseling on quote, ‘gender affirming care,’ can never own a weapon,” Deace says.
“What needs to happen is tranny madness needs to be completely eradicated from every social institution and polite conversation in the United States of America and not just for children. Any age regardless. It cannot happen,” he continues.
“The sheer lunacy of this, no human civilization can be civilized and sustain it,” he adds.
To enjoy more of Steve's take on national politics, Christian worldview, and principled conservatism with a snarky twist, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.
On Wednesday, August 27, Robin (formerly Robert) Westman, a 23-year-old transgender-identifying person, opened fire through the windows of Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis during a school Mass, killing two children and injuring 17 others. Westman, a former student, who died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, left behind writings and videos expressing hate toward multiple groups and an obsession with mass shooters.
“Minneapolis didn't just let a massacre happen. It helped make it happen,” says Jill Savage, BlazeTV host of “Blaze News: The Mandate.”
And two people stand under a harsh glare of blame: Minnesota Governor Tim Walz (D) and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey (D).
Minneapolis’ reputation was already waning thanks to the George Floyd riots and its defund-the-police crusade when Tim Walz made the state a transgender sanctuary in 2023.
But even though this move has proved disastrous, Mayor Frey has doubled down in his support for Minneapolis’ transgender community. “Anybody who is using this as an opportunity to villainize our trans community or any other community out there has lost their sense of common humanity,” he said at a press conference on August 27. The next day, he reiterated the sentiment in an interview with CNN’s Erin Burnett.
“Should we be talking about the trans community and making sure that they feel our love and support, or should we actually be looking at the Catholics right now — the ones that were actually killed yesterday in that church?” says Jill.
“This is the 42nd or maybe 43rd attack on an American Catholic church this year alone in the United States. It is over 520 attacks on Catholic churches here since 2020,” says Blaze Media senior politics editor Christopher Bedford.
“They’ve been satanic; they’ve been anti-Catholic; they’ve been pro-abortion; they’ve been pro-trans.”
But they haven’t been that surprising.
“Minneapolis and Minnesota have had an extreme tolerance for evil and promoting evil,” says Bedford, condemning the state's “permissive abortion laws” and policies allowing the state to take children away from parents who oppose "gender-affirming care."
Bedford stresses the need to investigate how things like cross-sex hormone therapy, puberty blockers, and mutilating surgeries impact a transgender-identifying individual’s behavior. Perhaps Westman was just a case of mental illness; perhaps there were drugs related to his gender transition that influenced his deadly actions. “I think that's something that's absolutely worth investigating,” he says.
As for Walz, Bedford says he “deserves condemnation for his anti-Catholic sentiments.” The woke governor denied Catholic schools' requests for security funding in 2022 and 2023, despite an $18 billion state surplus, leaving nonpublic schools without access to safety grants provided to public schools. He also allegedly denied Catholic school students access to Minnesota’s Postsecondary Enrollment Options program, preventing them from earning tuition-free college credits, despite their academic eligibility.
“These are the sorts of things that are going on in the United States and are being allowed by our politicians. … It's soft on evil, and it allows it to fester,” he says.
To hear more, watch the episode above.
To enjoy more provocative opinions, expert analysis, and breaking stories you won’t see anywhere else, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.
In the aftermath of the atrocious mass shooting at a Minnesota Catholic church, several Democrats jumped at the opportunity to denounce prayer.
A masked man horrifically shot and killed two children, ages 8 and 10, while they were praying in the pews of Annunciation Catholic Church in Minneapolis on Wednesday morning. The assailant also left 17 others injured, including two in critical condition.
The shooter, who was later identified as Robin Westman, took aim at the innocent children and other Mass attendees through the stained-glass windows before taking his own life in the parking lot.
'Stop praying for a f**king minute and demand action.'
In response to the senseless tragedy, leaders from President Donald Trump to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) conveyed their deepest sympathies and offered prayers to the families of the victims.
Although the response was largely bipartisan and unifying, some Democrats took it upon themselves to lash out.
RELATED: Gov. Walz's condemnation of Trump's efforts to make Democrat-run cities safe aged really poorly
Jen Psaki, former press secretary for the Biden administration, managed to twist the atrocity into a political critique of the Trump administration while simultaneously dismissing prayers offered by Americans across the country.
"Prayer is not freaking enough," Psaki wrote in a post on X. "Prayer does not end school shootings. Prayers do not make parents feel safe sending their kids to school. Prayer does not bring these kids back. Enough with the thoughts and prayers."
"When kids are getting shot in their pews at a catholic school mass and your crime plan is to have national guard put mulch down around DC maybe rethink your strategy," Psaki said in another post.
RELATED: Gunman opens fire at Catholic church; police say there are about 20 victims
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey (D) echoed Psaki, saying that prayers were an insufficient response to the atrocity that took place at the Catholic church.
"Don't just say that this is about thoughts and prayers right now," Frey said in a press conference following the shooting. "These kids were literally praying. It was the first week of school. They were in a church."
Brian Krassenstein, a left-wing political commentator, made similar remarks on his X account Wednesday, insisting that people "stop praying for a f**king minute and demand action by people and not just God."
"Praying is the problem here, not the solution," Krassenstein said. "People use prayer instead of action. If prayer worked a house of prayer wouldn’t have just experienced this tragedy."
"Prayer becomes a problem when it takes the place of real action that could save children’s lives," Krassenstein said in another post. "If that offends you, good, it should."
Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!
Minneapolis police confirmed there are approximately 20 victims after a shooter opened fire at a church Wednesday morning, KARE-TV reported.
Police and paramedics arrived at Annunciation Church around 8:30 a.m., where police reported a man dressed in black and armed with a rifle was spotted on the scene, KARE said.
'Please join me in praying for everyone involved!'
Annunciation Church and Catholic School began the new school semester Monday, the station reported, adding that it serves students in kindergarten through eighth grade.
The city said that there is no longer a threat to the community.
The shooting reportedly occurred while students were attending Mass at 8:15 a.m. Law enforcement officials confirmed that the suspect was dead at 9:31 a.m.
"I'm monitoring reports of horrific violence in South Minneapolis. I'm in touch with Chief O'Hara and our emergency response team has been activated. We will share more information as soon as we can. Please give our officers the space they need to respond to the situation," Mayor Jacob Frey stated.
The Minneapolis Police Department, the FBI, and the ATF responded to the scene.
President Donald Trump stated that he has been "fully briefed on the tragic shooting."
"The FBI quickly responded and they are on the scene. The White House will continue to monitor this terrible situation. Please join me in praying for everyone involved!" Trump wrote in a post on social media.
This is a developing, breaking news story that will be updated.
Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!
The voting process at the Minneapolis Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party convention in July was such a mess that state DFL leadership investigated and nullified the local party’s endorsements. Now the Minneapolis DFL wants the state DFL to restore the results it nullified and give the endorsement back to DFL candidate Omar Fateh, a member of the […]
Anyone mocking God or prayer after a tragedy is working for the devil.
Those scoffing at Christians' prayer after Wednesday's tragedy repeat the folly of the crowds who dared the crucified Christ to save Himself.
The mayoral race was undercounted by 176 votes. One candidate was improperly dropped from the ballot on the second round of voting,
www.theblaze.com