Uploaded October 2008 | Updated September 2026, 7 hours ago
A McCain campaign volunteer fabricated a racially charged attack by a black man, but a day after the alleged incident was prominently featured by The Drudge Report with a large headline, the victim admitted the incident was a total hoax.
A photo of the college students injuries showed a backwards B cut into her face during the Pittsburgh area incident. Heavy racial connotations were implied because the fictitious perpetrator was a tall black man and an Obama supporter motivated to punish her for being a McCain supporter. The prominence of AP, Drudge and FOX reports, ill-advised calls by both McCain and Palin to the non-victim, and comments by the McCain and Obama campaigns risked igniting the incident further because of racial and class tensions. The hoax now appears to be an insidious case of race baiting.
Opinion/report based on several news sources including The Drudge Report, CNN, MSNBC, and the Washington Post.
A McCain campaign volunteer fabricated a racially charged attack by a black man, but a day after the alleged incident was prominently featured by The Drudge Report with a large headline, the victim admitted the incident was a total hoax.
A photo of the college students injuries showed a backwards B cut into her face during the Pittsburgh area incident. Heavy racial connotations were implied because the fictitious perpetrator was a tall black man and an Obama supporter motivated to punish her for being a McCain supporter. The prominence of AP, Drudge and FOX reports, ill-advised calls by both McCain and Palin to the non-victim, and comments by the McCain and Obama campaigns risked igniting the incident further because of racial and class tensions. The hoax now appears to be an insidious case of race baiting.
Opinion/report based on several news sources including The Drudge Report, CNN, MSNBC, and the Washington Post.
