CNN is facing backlash after anchor Audie Cornish focused on the racial makeup of teenage athletes who participated in the Trump-backed Patriot Games, saying competitors highlighted by the event appeared to be “overwhelmingly White.”
Cornish made the remarks Wednesday while discussing the Freedom250-sponsored competition, which brought together teenage athletes from across the country as part of events celebrating the 250th anniversary of the United States.
“The president promised the best of the best student athletes. I‘m not sure that‘s what we got,” Cornish said during her morning program.
She then cited a CNN analysis of competitors featured on Freedom250’s Instagram account.
“A CNN analysis actually found that a specific demographic of kids got a shot to compete,” Cornish said. “Of the ones who were featured in the Freedom 250 Instagram page, many attend private Christian schools. They also appear to be overwhelmingly White, and the application for the games didn‘t specify race.”
The remarks triggered criticism from conservatives and a forceful response from the White House, which defended the competition and rejected suggestions that race played an improper role in the event.
Cornish also raised questions about how the teenage athletes were selected.
“I don‘t want to make fun of these kids. The contestants range in age from 14 to 17, but here are the things people are raising questions about,” she said.
“Not selected through any qualifying events. They recorded video essays, just sort of describing why they should be included. Some students were chosen to represent states where they don‘t even live.”
Cornish’s segment also featured social media criticism of the Patriot Games, including a post comparing the competition to the dystopian “Hunger Games” franchise.
The White House responded by defending both the athletes and the purpose of the competition.
White House spokesman Davis Ingle said President Donald Trump and Freedom250 had provided young athletes with an opportunity to showcase their abilities and compete for scholarships, per Trending Politics.
“Thanks to President Trump and the incredible efforts of the Freedom 250 organization, athletes from all across the country had the opportunity to put their talents on national display and earn life-changing scholarships that would greatly impact their futures,” Ingle said.
“The inaugural Patriot Games were a resounding success, and anyone who claims they were racist or otherwise clearly suffers from a severe and incurable disease known as Trump Derangement Syndrome that has completely rotted their peanut-sized brains,” he added.
The Patriot Games were held Aug. 9 through Aug. 11 at Spire Academy in Geneva, Ohio.
Athletes between the ages of 14 and 17 participated while representing all 50 states, US territories and tribal nations.
The competition featured sporting events and physical challenges, with a $250,000 scholarship prize pool awarded to one male and one female champion.
Trump attended the competition and joined the winners onstage during the finals.
Not everyone appearing on CNN agreed with the criticism surrounding the event.
Steamboat Institute fellow Carine Hajjar acknowledged potential problems with how the competition was organized but argued that the concept of holding a youth sporting event to celebrate the country’s 250th anniversary was reasonable.
“I don’t think that the idea of having some sort of sporting event for young American athletes is that crazy, especially around the 250th anniversary,” Hajjar said. “I actually think it’s a great idea.”
She argued that both organizational problems and excessive criticism had contributed to the controversy.
“This has become sort of a farce because of both sides,” Hajjar said. “One, it was poorly planned, but two, people were rooting for it to lose all along.”
CNN had scrutinized the Patriot Games before Cornish’s Wednesday segment.
An Aug. 9 report from the network said the competition’s premise “sounds almost fictional” and noted what it described as “inevitable comparisons to The Hunger Games.”
The report highlighted the competition’s format, Trump’s involvement and its patriotic themes.
Cornish later referred to the broader America250 celebration as occurring during a “weird year.”
The latest controversy has shifted attention from the competition itself to questions about the selection of its teenage participants and CNN’s decision to highlight their apparent racial makeup.
While Cornish stressed that she did not want to mock the young competitors, her observation that featured athletes appeared “overwhelmingly White” prompted another political fight surrounding an event intended to showcase young athletes during the country’s 250th anniversary celebrations.
