#RolandMartinUnfiltered - 10.22 RMU: Trump compares impeachment to lynching; FB's fight against election misinformation

Episode Date: October 24, 2019

10.22.19 #RolandMartinUnfiltered: Trump compares impeachment to lynching; Facebook's fight against 2020 election misinformation; New York City Subway cops will not have to wear body cams; Members of far-right Proud Boys have been sentenced to prison for their part in a New York street brawl; High school coach disarms a boy with a gun and then hugs him until police arrive; Find our missing: Missing 3 year old from Alabama. - #RolandMartinUnfiltered partner: Life Luxe Jazz Life Luxe Jazz is the experience of a lifetime, delivering top-notch music in an upscale destination. The weekend-long event is held at the Omnia Dayclub Los Cabos, which is nestled on the Sea of Cortez in the celebrity playground of Los Cabos, Mexico. For more information visit the website at lifeluxejazz.com. Can't make it to Los Cabos for the Life Luxe Jazz Fest? Get your live stream pass at https://gfntv.com/ #RolandMartinUnfiltered partner: Ebony Foundation | Home by the Holiday Home by the Holiday aims to reunite Black and Latino families separated by bail, while challenging racial injustice and mass incarceration. For more info visit https://www.homebytheholiday.com/ Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an iHeart Podcast. Today's Tuesday, October 22nd, 2019. I am broadcasting live from Atlanta, site of the YouTube Black Content Creators Summit. Of course, here learning more and more about great things to bring you right here on Roller Mark Now Filtered. Speaking of that, today, Donald Trump compares his impeachment process to a lynching. Everybody goes nuts, but I'm explaining to you why it was a ruse.

Don't fall for the okey-doke. It was all about Ukraine. I'm going to explain to you why we don't fall for the banana in the tailpipe, Donald. All right, folks, but that was just, of course, trying to distract us. That was the whole point. All right, y'all. Memes and videos are set to become the dominant forms of election misinformation around

the 2020 election. What are Facebook execs doing about it? Also, New York City subway cops will not have to wear body cameras. Sounds like a recipe for disaster, don't you think? Two members of the far-right Proud Boys have been sentenced to prison

for their part in a vicious New York City street brawl. A high school coach disarms the boy with a gun and then hugs him until police arrives. Folks are lauding this former college football player, his brother, as a real-life hero. And an update on the story of a security guard who got fired for using the N-word. And the search for a missing 3-year-old from Alabama continues.

Folks, it is time to bring the funk. I'm Roland Martin. I'm filtering. Let's go. He's got it. Whatever the miss, he's on it. Whatever it is, he's got the scoop, the fact, the find. And when it breaks, he's right on time. And it's rolling. Best belief he's knowing.

Putting it down from sports to news to politics. With entertainment just for kicks. He's rolling. It's on for a roll, y'all. It's rolling Roro, y'all. It's Roland Martin, yeah. Rolling with Roland now. He's funky, he's fresh, he's real the best, you know he's Roland Martin. Now.

Martin. All right, folks, Donald Trump is always describing investigations into his actions as witch hunts and coups. But today he chose a much stronger word to describe the current impeachment inquiry he's now facing. This is what Donald Trump tweeted. So someday, if a Democrat becomes president and the Republicans win the House, even by a tiny margin, they can impeach the president without due process or fairness or any legal rights. All Republicans must remember what they are witnessing here, a lynching. But we will win. A lynching, as in what happened to black folks during the Jim Crow era. But folks, we've got to keep in mind, Donald Trump is the master of distraction.

Now, people were expressing their outrage all on social media. But here is why we're not going to fall for the okey-doke, Donald. This is the real reason why Donald Trump tweeted that. Folks, it was planned. Let me say it again. This was a plan. This was a discussion that took place in the White House to throw us off track. Why? Because today, Bill Taylor, the acting U.S. ambassador to Ukraine,

said in his House testimony, today, the groups investigating the impeachment, that everything including the release of military aid to Ukraine was tied to the Ukrainian president publicly announcing investigations into Joe Biden in the 2016 election. This is what Donald Trump was trying to distract the media from. I'm going to bring my panel, Amalek Abdul, Republican strategist, Kelly Bethea, communications strategist, Rob Richardson, host of the Disruption Now podcast. All right, folks, let's get right to it.

Rob, I'm going to start with you. I talked to sources today who confirmed that Donald Trump knew exactly what he was doing by using this language. He wanted to be able to throw this out to get the media all hot and bothered. And some folks feel for the okie doke because he wants more coverage of him using the word lynching than this Ukrainian ambassador testifying that there was indeed a quid pro quo when it came to Ukraine. That's why we're not wasting any time focusing on lynching. Rob, we're talking about Donald Trump being in big trouble when it comes to Ukraine. Yeah, when you think about it, look, look, he said he said a comment. The water's wet. Donald Trump said something that's racially offensive. He did this, as you said, to distract about what's going on.

Look, we have a we have a traitor in the White House. I think we have to say that we have somebody who was betraying the nation, betraying the laws. He thinks he's above the Constitution, that he's above the law. He's not. And so you have the current ambassador in there talking about the fact that there was a quid pro quo. And Donald Trump or the present occupant of the White House likes to say that there was no quid pro quo. Well, maybe he made his best Don Corleone. He made an offer he couldn't refuse. He said, I'll give you $400 million for aid, but only if you make these investigations. That is the textbook definition of a quid pro quo. It's illegal, and it's dangerous, the fact that our security would be at risk just so

we have a president who can use the power of his office against his opponent. I tell people this, if you don't like Donald Trump, look, I don't agree with a lot of his politics personally, but what makes me nervous is the fact that he's going to try to use the power of this office to go after people. It's Joe Biden now, but it could be you next. So if you believe in America, you believe in the constitution, you should be frightened. There's nothing conservative about this. This is very scary. He's betraying our nation and he is a traitor, period. That's why he wants to distract. Malik, this is what Donald Trump wants to do. He wanted to throw the media off of the focus of the Ukrainian ambassador, the folks to be all hot and bothered. Mainstream media

falls for the okey-doke every single time. That's why he tweeted, I was told point blank. This was a conversation that took place before that tweet went out. He knew exactly what he was trying to do. Well, I wouldn't doubt that Donald Trump knows what he's doing. That shouldn't surprise anyone. To the point about the comments, whether or not it's a distraction. Well, this is also not the first time that we've heard this before. We've heard many times that things that Donald Trump do, they're done to distract us from one thing or the other.

Whether or not that's true or not, that's always the accusation that comes out. So I understand that you spoke with your sources and your sources say that this is something that he's doing to distract us. Well, we've heard that before. So your sources could be right. Yeah, maybe so. But the idea that- Not a question. My sources could be right. My sources, Kelly, are right. Well, I mean, of course you would say that because you would believe it. Why wouldn't you believe it? No, no, no, no, no, no. See, see, here's the difference, Mellick, between me and other folks you deal with. Not a question of I would believe- No, I'm on your show. We don't have to talk about other people.

I'm on your show. No, no, no, that's my point. No, no, it's my point. When you have trusted sources, and the reason when you have trusted sources who have been right before, and they are right again, that's what you're also basing it upon.

That's what we're dealing with here, Kelly. I couldn't agree more. The distractions are becoming, frankly, just annoying at this point. I'm not even surprised that mainstream media is latching onto this because it is a shock factor, the fact that he would say such heinous things. But again, we're dealing with a stupid man. Stupid men say stupid things. And when you take those, when you put two and two together like that, this shouldn't be a shock to anybody. This shouldn't be a surprise to anyone. And like you said, you have an ambassador

of Ukraine saying that there was a quid pro quo. That is news. Another thing that happened today, one of Trump's top donors is being charged with tax evasion and donating almost a million dollars in illegal campaign funds. That's in federal court right now. That's real news. But Donald Trump being a racist, that's old news. Donald Trump saying something stupid, that's old news. Donald Trump saying something stupid. That's old news. That shouldn't be a headline right now. We should just keep it pushing and actually get to the discussion at hand,

which is the fact that there's an impeachment inquiry out right now and he's scared. Donald Trump is scared as to what the Dems are going to find and his days are numbered and he's afraid of that. That part is news. And I think what he's And he's afraid of that. That part is news. Yeah. And I think what he's what he's very concerned about, to go to Kelly's point, he is he is concerned. He is trying to control the narrative. This is all this is. So don't listen to anything else. Donald Trump is doing what he does do best. Where I disagree a little bit is that he's not stupid on this. He's very strategic and very smart. And don't fall for it. Look, it is raining right now in D.C. Donald Trump wants to tell you that it's sunny.

Facts are real. They are not alternative facts. He's trying to make up new things. He's trying to distract you. This is a, not only is it news, the fact that we know what happened with Ukraine. It should frighten everybody. It should frighten conservatives. When they talk about a deep state, what they're talking about, they're talking about people that are Republicans that are appointed by Trump.

Obama's not in office. Hillary Clinton did not win. The people that are coming forward are people that are appointed by Donald Trump. They are Republicans. And people, no matter what conservative media is saying, what is going on right now is threatening our democracy. And this current president is a traitor to our country, and people should start saying that. That's the real news

This other stuff is not well, the problem is I'm for Malik what you have here to have this Ukrainian ambassador Go before this committee and tell them point-blank if that was a quid pro quo You have you have Mulvaney who admitted it being tried to walk it back lying You have Donald Trump who has said it, then tried to walk it back, lying. You have Donald Trump who has said there was no quid pro quo, lying. He has castigated, his whistleblower. Here is a Trump appointee,

a guy who's like, I'm not going to prison for you. What do you make of the Ukrainian ambassador who was in on this, who said that also that Rudy Giuliani was there to set up a back channel discussion with Ukrainians? This is damning information against Donald Trump, Malik. What do you think? Yes or no? much of it simply because about a month or so ago, we heard a similar conversation about Robert Mueller and him testifying and what he was supposed to let us know during the hearing. And, you know, a month or so ago, people were talking about impeaching Donald Trump over that. This is not, this isn't, this isn't Robert Mueller. Right. This is another bright and shiny object, though. No, no, no, no. No, no, no, no.

This is the Trump appointee, the actual ambassador. That doesn't mean anything, the fact that you say Trump appointee. Wait a minute. Are you telling me that the Ukraine ambassador to the U.S. who was in on the phone call is directly contradicting the chief of staff and the president of the United States, and you say it's no big deal? Well, I don't think it's not a big deal to me, because simply this is something that we've heard before.

But if it is... No, we have not! If there isn't... No, Donald Trump, Donald Trump said... We've heard before that the walls were about to come tumbling down. We've been here before. So if, as you say, your sources say, you know, this is something that Donald Trump wanted to do because Donald Trump was concerned about it. See, y'all, you're mixing stories.

This is not my sources talking about the Ukrainian ambassador. The Ukrainian ambassador to the United States told Congress today. Right. Was in a hearing today. Right. Right. But we've had people tell we've had people testify in Congress before Congress before about the Mueller investigation. And then, as I said, there were things that the walls were going to. And you were absolutely right. What the Democrats should do and what you should encourage your people, your people out there. And I say everybody out there in the cyberverse, go to your members of Congress and push them for that vote on the impeachment inquiry. Well, do that. So you can actually, that's a step that you can take. We don't have to talk about a what ifs or anything like that. Push the Democratic Party to actually

vote. First of all, we're not discussing what ifs, Kelly. What we're discussing here, not all up, what we're discussing here, Kelly, is the fact that on this day, you have the Ukrainian ambassador stating what he said took place. Now, Mulvaney admitted to the front of the press a quid pro quo. They tried to walk it back. Donald Trump, his perfect call, his perfect call. In fact, even Mitch McConnell today is acknowledging, we got a problem, Kelly. But to Malik's point, we haven't necessarily been here before specifically

because there hasn't been a prima facie case of said treason, frankly. Now we have that, you know, clear-cut, this-is-grounds-for-impeachment case. But to Malik's point, if the Democrats are not on the ball with this, it can end up like the Mueller investigation where it's just kind of brushed under the rug,

more things that Trump does, and, you know, we just have a president in here for four more years because nobody's doing anything about it. So my concern is, you know, like what Malik was saying earlier, like the Mueller report and everybody else who was doing all of these things in the administration, we have proof that Trump has been committing treason. We've had proof for at least three years now, and nothing has been happening. Yeah, and then— First of all, Rob, there's a huge difference here. Yeah.

The difference here is this here. Unlike any other thing that happened previously, none of those things precipitated or led to this impeachment inquiry. But it could have. This has gone to, first of all, what could have happened is irrelevant because it didn't. I'm speaking of the now. And what we're dealing with the now is that Trump now, him and his folks realize this is now different. This is a different situation to have the person sitting in the Oval Office telling a foreign entity, I will hold up your money unless you investigate my chief Democratic rival.

That's a change. And to have the Ukrainian ambassador to the U.S. now flat out confirm it, Rob, that has to be troubling to the White House. Yeah, I think what's different, let's separate some things out here. There is a pattern of the same thing. There's a pattern of betraying this nation. And I think the Mueller report was clear and there was enough to impeach there. But this is a much, much easier story to see. I mean, it's really, really clear cut to your point. And the president occupant of the White House is certainly more worried about it.

But look, we have to make sure that people understand what's going on, because I think the walls are close to really close to crumbling in. See, not about is one way or another. It's the walls going to crumble in on all of democracy or are they going to crumble on Trump? One or the other is going to come about. And we have to decide as Americans how that's going to go. And I think that's going to be not just on Congress. It's going to be on America. Do we want to elect a king?

Do we want to throw out the Constitution? Do we want to throw out the rule of law? That's what we're doing. If we're saying this is okay, if a president can do this, a president can do anything and there are no rules. And let's throw it out. Let's just let's just make him king and say, you know, we don't care about the Constitution anymore. So we can make we can have conservatives stop pretending that they care so much about the Constitution. When you see Trump trampling over the Constitution every single day.

Well, you don't have to actually come. You don't have to compare or say anything about how conservatives feel about the Constitution. Democrats have the House. So if you want to impeach him and as we were told there were i think 10 different instances that muller actually um identified where trump obstructed justice and now at 11 well and now we have 11 so if that if the 10 weren't as important weren't important enough or weren't a guiding force enough for the democrats to say okay OK, well, we're going to actually move forward and vote on an impeachment inquiry, then I just don't have the confidence that they'll do it now. But if they do, then more power to them. I think this is just yet something else that's going to help Trump win in 2020. But there were 10 instances, 10 instances where Democrat, where Mueller said that Trump obstructed justice justice but now we've

moved on to yet another bright and shiny object that Trump gave us now Trump did actually give us yeah he violated the law yeah I mean Trump actually did give us this you know there were things he shouldn't have the conversations um with the Ukraine minister but if the notion is is that aha this is the moment where Trump is going to be impeached okay well put your money put up or shut up that's what I said. Well, actually, I kind of agree with that. I'll just say this, but we're making the argument that because you got away with the crime before,

you should get away with the next crime? Is that the argument? Like, I think that's a bad argument. But there were 10 crimes. Trust me, trust me, this ain't R. Kelly. Bottom line here is this here. Democrats moving this direction. Donald Trump suffered a serious blow today

to have his Ukraine ambassador to the United States go before Congress and say, yes, indeed, that was a quid pro quo. Let's see how the Donald tries to wriggle out of this one. Gotta go to a break. When we come back, more of Roland Martin Unfiltered back in a moment. If you want to check out Roland Martin Unfiltered, back in a moment. Don't forget to turn on your notifications so when we go live, you'll know it. Like, share, subscribe to our YouTube channel. That's YouTube.com forward slash Roland S. Martin.

And don't forget to turn on your notifications so when we go live, you'll know it. All right, fam, it's almost that time. The holiday season, of course, is, for many of us, the favorite time of the year. Now, whether you celebrate Halloween, Thanksgiving, Ramadan, Christmas, Kwanzaa, New Year's, all of these, of course, from October to the end of the year. This is when you think about spending time with the people you love the most.

This is also the time to count your blessings and support those less fortunate and look at how you can have an impact on their lives. Well, I have the perfect opportunity for you to be a holiday hero, have a major impact on other families. Here's the deal. Right now, hundreds of thousands of Americans are sitting in jail without being convicted of a crime. Why? Because they lack the financial resources to pay their bail. Now, think about it. If you are arrested for any minor offense, you'll be taken directly to jail. If you don't have bail money, whether it's a few hundred or a few thousand dollars, you will stay there until a court date is scheduled.

Now that could be days, weeks, or even months. America's bail system is broken and has created a two-tier system of justice, one for the rich and one for the poor. Folks, freedom should be free. That's why the Ebony Foundation is partnering with the Bail Project and is sponsoring the Home by the Holiday campaign. With your help, our goal is to bail out 1,000 people by New Year's Day.

How's that for a holiday gift? A donation from you can change someone's life tomorrow, and here's why it is critical. People of color represent upwards of 90% of the jail population across the country. It ranges from 50% to 90% depending upon where you are. Of course, when they stayed in jail, 90% of people with misdemeanors ended up pleading guilty. However, when bail was paid, 50% of the cases were dismissed and less than 2% received a jail sentence. Sometimes justice needs just us to join the fight. Folks, you can be a holiday hero by donating $25, $50 or more

to help the Ebony Foundation bring our brothers and sisters home for the holidays. To donate, go to homebytheholiday.com. That's H-O-M-E-B-Y-T-H-E-H-O-L-I-D-A-Y.com. And, of course, the Ebony Foundation is tied to Ebony Magazine. And so we certainly appreciate the work that they're doing to assist those who are most in need. All right, folks, welcome back to Roland Martin Unfiltered, broadcasting live here from Atlanta site

where I'm attending the YouTube Black Content Creators Summit. Some great conversations have been taking place all day. Atlanta site where I'm attending the YouTube Black Content Creators Summit. Some great conversations have been taking place all day. So we certainly have been enjoying our sales. All right, folks. Facebook on Monday said it removed a network of Russian-backed accounts that posed as local newspapers weighing in on political issues in swing states. They praised Donald Trump and attacked former Vice President Joe Biden. Facebook said the network looks the same as

the Kremlin-backed group that interfered in the 2016 election by encouraging social discord, seeking to boost Trump in attacking Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. The new disinformation campaign appears to follow the same playbook. All right, Kelly, Jesus, what the hell is up with Facebook? I mean, you might want to get this right as opposed to allowing the Russians to continue to spread disinformation. Yeah, I don't really think that it's only one account

out there that is doing this kind of thing. The fact that Facebook only caught one and X amount on Instagram, that's a little disturbing. I definitely feel like there's a lot more out there. But I also feel that this is another major reason why we need to do our due diligence in actually finding our news, doing the research, actually being more aware of where we're getting our news from.

That's why shows like this are important. That's why we have credible resources out there, credible sources that we can depend on. You know, be careful about what you share. Chain mail is not your friend. You know, very simple things that you can do to make sure that disinformation does not spread and is disseminated throughout the world. It's not hard to just do your research. It's just simply if you see an article, it looks fishy. Cross-reference it with something that is known to be credible, that is known to have told the truth on multiple occasions. It's not that difficult. But regarding Facebook specifically, I don't know what they can do at this point. I feel like they're really

behind the ball on this in regards to filtering out these accounts. I feel like that should have been happening in 2015, not just 2016, because that's when we were first made aware of such accounts being in play in our electoral process. So in terms of 2020, hopefully something will happen in that. It won't be nearly as bad as 2016, but I'm not necessarily all that optimistic about it. So, Malik, what responsibility does Facebook have? I mean, geez, you would think they had enough time since the 2016 election to do much better when it comes to getting rid of these Russians who are trying to spread disinformation. I don't know.

Yeah, Facebook could do more. But the notion that there are people masquerading, whether it's Russian bots or Asian bots or what have you, the notion that there are people who are creating dummy accounts portraying themselves as Democrat or as Republican, as I'm sorry, conservatives or progressives just doesn't surprise me. Maybe there are more Russian bots that are doing this. But as someone who just, I'm on social media all day and I see the things, and these aren't Russian bots. These are real live active accounts of people who are peddling the same misinformation, disinformation, if you will. It just doesn't surprise me. But to the extent Facebook can do something to remedy that, they should. I don't know what exactly that will look like. I know they've done, Kelly was saying they're purging with YouTube. So yeah, I mean, I'm sorry, Instagram, that's something that they can do, but I don't know if it's something that really can be just totally washed away altogether. They should, but I just

don't know. And again, as someone who sees this type of misinformation going on on a daily basis from trusted sources, even politicians, if you will, this just doesn't surprise me. Rob, bottom line is here, Donald Trump, Mitch McConnell didn't do a damn thing when it

came to protecting this nation with election security. And frankly, Facebook is losing credibility every single day, the more they allow this mess to happen on their platform. Yeah, I actually completely agree with that. And I'll just tell you that we talk about this a lot on my show and the fact that we, African-Americans,

need to do more. We need to have more shows like yours. We need to have more say in the digital market, in the digital ecosystem. Look, this is what I'll say about Facebook. They should do more. They're probably not going to. Nobody's coming to save us. Superman's not coming. Iron Man's not coming. Wakanda's not coming. Nobody's coming to save us, right? We got to save ourselves. We have to be in on the process. We know that these machines are learning the same biases that humans have, because guess what?

African-Americans aren't there at the table at the level that we need to be. And we have to be. We have to demand that we're there because that's going to be a part of it. We have to be there designing these things. And then we have to be vigilant about it. Look, they're going to create this type of content that is going to move behavior. It does work whether the Russians do it. We know others are going to do it.

And we have to be there at the table, making sure that our voices out there, that we're behind actually the content media as well, that we understand the technology. We can do this. We have to do this. We have to begin to really disrupt this narrative because I fear 2020 will be worse. And then going on, this will get worse unless we are willing to be there at the table. Because, you know, I'll just give you one real, real quick example. There was a technology, a voice impersonating technology. Somebody can take my voice, see me right now, and make up complete words, and everybody will think it's me. That technology exists right now, and that can be used in campaigns. What are we doing to be ready for it? I have no idea, but I think we have to make sure we are ready because technology is moving faster than any of us can really anticipate.

And Kelly, at the end of the day, when it comes to Facebook and their responsibility, look, they are losing the public trust. That trust is eroding. They better move real fast to weed this stuff out because folks do not want to see them pretty much being silent with another attack on the American people through their platform. Exactly. But in all honesty, I don't understand personally why Facebook was necessarily a trustworthy entity altogether. This is a social media platform. It's not news. No, here's why. No, here's why, Kelly. Here's why. This is what the deal is.

Because, first of all, there are more people who are on Facebook than any other platform. And so what happens is, have you seen the hacking documentary that's on Netflix? The Great Hack. The Great Hack, yes. Great Hack. Great Hack. Okay, that's why. Because the people who these folks are targeting.

They don't know, Jack. They say low information voters. What that means is these are people who barely have a high school diploma. And I understand that. But I mean, that's how. No. But what I'm saying is Facebook is not news. It is a vessel that can be used for the news. But, you know, whether you have a diploma or not, people have the wherewithal to understand where the news comes from. No, Kelly, they don't. Actually, they don't. I think people are emotional. When you are being... Go ahead, go ahead. When the information is being purposely manipulated and when you're being bombarded with the messaging

constantly, these people are falling for it. They are purposely lying. Don Trump was running an ad and was lying. Elizabeth Warren, hold on, Elizabeth Warren actually put up an ad that she knew was a lie just to see if Facebook would say, take down the lie. But what I'm saying is that we all fell for that. I have two degrees and I could have fallen for that. You have people who have no diploma and didn't fall for that. That has nothing to do with intelligence.

That has to do with due diligence. Well, I think you need you need to do diligence and make sure that you're getting reliable news from credible sources and Facebook can be a vessel for said news and credible sources but you can also look outside of Facebook now if you're not looking outside of Facebook for your news that's not on anybody except you but the plant Facebook is the largest disseminator of news. Well, I think the danger here, so let's back up. The danger of social media in general is not, I'm going to take a different point to say low information voters. I think all voters, whether we recognize it or not, myself included, we are emotional.

And Facebook has an algorithm. Once you hit the like button, you're only going to see that reality. So now I think it's beyond just trying to go outside of your sources. It's understanding that what Facebook and every other platform is doing is drawing you in to see just what they think you want to see.

And it could be a complete lie, and a lot of times it is, but that's by design of the algorithm. So we have to get people to understand what's going on with social media and that the algorithms are being used this way for everybody. It's not just low-information voters in terms of degree. It is high-information voters, people that believe that they were following the right information were still led astray in 2016. People that are black activists, they were following things that weren't true, too.

I mean, I just think we've got to all be careful. This is the difference. Newspapers, cable networks, broadcast networks, magazines, if you submit an ad to them that is false, that is a lie, they will not

run it. Facebook is saying this is Facebook. Hey, we don't want to decide anything, so we'll let it run. And what I'm saying is, when it comes to getting rid of these bots, getting rid of these Russians, these Russian folks, and lying ads, Facebook is going to have to take some damn guts and ownership of their platform and say, we're not going to disseminate clearly defined lie. And I think that's a good point. I think we can all agree that Facebook should do more to actually better that situation. But I think what we are saying here in D.C., we're all in agreement of the notion that this isn't something that's just, you know, affects low information voters.

There was an entire that the opening testimony of Adam Schiff was based on a made up conversation that Donald Trump had with the the president of Ukraine. You know, so there was there was an entire conversation that he had at the beginning of his opening testimony. And there were people who believed that. And, of course, Adam Schiff came out later and said, I think he may have conceded that it was something that he shouldn't have done, but the notion that Facebook is not already a vehicle for people to just push conspiracy theories, and these are not just Russian bots. These are people that we know.

And so I'm very, just me, my whole strategy is, is that I'm very deliberate about the things that I post. So if I post something, I would have actually researched that in various places, not just my favorite, you know, Fox News hosts, or not just my favorite Wall Street Journal host or something. You have to go and research this stuff for yourself because we're all susceptible to our confirmation bias. And I think that's what a lot of it that we're seeing. And as Rob said, you know, you can click a like button or something like like how I'm wondering, how is it that I was on Amazon looking for a product and then all of a sudden I get those in my time in my feed of those actual products or

similar products. So we have to be mindful of that ourselves. Bob, this year, Facebook has to do far more when it comes to their platform, when it comes to also ensuring that you don't have Russians infiltrating it and stop running ads that are full of lies. Let's go to this next story, folks, and that is all these school shootings are all too familiar. Well, earlier this year, a high school coach in Oregon was celebrated as a hero for stopping an armed student

before he could hurt anyone. Now, new surveillance footage shows the coach hugging the student after disarming him. See there, one of the other folks there grabbing the gun, pulling away. The coach is hugging him. Coach will not let go of him during this whole time. 18-year-old Angel Granados Diaz brought a gun to Park Rose High School. Before he could do anything, football and track coach Kenan Lowe stopped him.

Reports at the time said Lowe tackled the student, but as you can see in the footage, that's not exactly what happened. Lowe grabbed the gun from Bernardo Diaz and handed it to another teacher. He then pulled him in for a long hug. All students ran from the classroom and police began to arrive Lowe's state with the young man throughout the whole process. Gotta go to a break, folks, when we come back.

More on Roland Martin Unfiltered from Atlanta, back in a moment. You want to support Roland Martin Unfiltered? Be sure to join our Bring the Funk fan club. Every dollar that you give to us supports our daily digital show. There's only one daily digital show out here that keeps it black and keep it real. As Roland Martin Unfiltered support the Roland Martin Unfiltered daily digital show by going to RolandMartinUnfiltered.com. Our goal is to get 20,000 of our fans contributing 50 bucks each for the whole year.

You can make this possible. RolandMartinUnfiltered.com. All right, folks. Coming up November 7th through the 11th is the Life Luck Jazz Experience taking place in Cabo San Lucas. That's right, November 7th through the 11th. If you want to attend, of course, you can go to lifeluxjazz.com

and you can see all the great things we have planned, including appearances by folks like comedian actor Mark Curry, as well as, as you saw, saxophonist Gerald Albright, Alice Boone Young, Ronald Madon, Incognito, Pieces of a Dream, Kirk Whalum, Average White Band, Donna McClurkin, Shalaya, Roy Ayers, Tom Brown, Ronnie Laws, Ernest Quarles, and more. But if you can't make it, you can still participate by going to GFntv.com. That's gfntv.com to get your pass for the three-day live stream. $10.99 to get the live stream to watch all of these amazing concerts

live from Cabo. Folks, you don't want to miss it. gfntv.com, gfntv.com. And I'll be broadcasting Roland Martin unfiltered live from Cabo that Thursday and Friday. So looking forward to it. So GFNTV.com get the live streaming pass

LifeLuxJazz.com to get your package. Alright folks, New York City completed its rollout of body cameras on all uniform patrol officers earlier this year. But hundreds of new cops deployed by Governor Andrew Cuomo to stop fare evasion and homelessness in the city subway system will not be required to wear body cameras. This summer, after the governor

became concerned about a reported uptick in fare beating, the Metro Transportation Authority temporarily diverted more than 400 police officers from computer trains and the bridges and tunnels division into the subway. Those officers will soon be replaced by 500 new state police officers that the MTA is currently in the process of hiring at a cost of roughly 6633 million over the next decade. Now, neither of those groups are required to wear body cameras because the new cops are not part of the NYPD.

All right, Rob, is this a bad idea? Should these cops all have body cameras? It's a horrible idea. So I've talked about this on my show. I've seen this a lot in Cincinnati. Had we not had body cams in several situations, we wouldn't have been able to hold officers accountable. There would have been a completely different story. The story that was actually on the actual report was different from what the body camera showed. So, look, I believe in accountability.

And when you're an officer, they have a very tough job, but at the end of the day they have to be accountable and they have to be transparent because they literally hold the power of people's lives in their hands. So, yes, we need more transparency. This is a horrible idea. We have so much documentation to show why every single officer should definitely have a body cam. So I don't understand this policy. I don't get it. Does it make sense, Bellet? I'm not too sure. This is I look at this a little differently than an actual beat cop, an officer on the street or something. And D.C. is a prime example where the council, the mayor, they're all trying to figure out

what we're going to do around fare evasion because it's a huge problem. Even where I live in Ward 8, at the Congress Heights metro, There's lots of fare evasion, so I know that different jurisdictions are trying to figure out how to do it, and that was one of the things here in D.C. that happened, that the mayor, they actually increased the number of officers who were there. But whether or not those officers, even looking at a place like D.C.,

whether or not those officers who are essentially, you know, in the subway systems or something like that, whether they should have cameras. I'm really not sure if they should have cameras, but the police officers who are out, you know, saving lives and all of this type of stuff, I think they should. I'm just not too sure whether someone who's actually charged with finding people who evade fares should have a body camera. But if, you know, if they do, I'm not going to be opposed to it. But I feel differently about this than I would just regular beat cops on the street.

I want to say very quickly, I've seen this logic play out before. So at the University of Cincinnati, as I told you previously, I was on the board, and we had an uptick in crime. We were told that the university officers are not the same as the regular beat officers, and that was supposed to be the truth.

However, we saw someone shot and killed who shouldn't have been shot and killed. It often happens that, look, those officers are going to respond as officers do. So I don't see the argument for not having a body camera. I think you need more transparency. I've seen it play out the opposite way. Kelly, I dare say if a cop is coming in and interacting with the public in this way, got to be wearing a body camera. You have to.

I mean, and we have so many examples of what happens when you do wear a body camera. Like Rob was saying earlier, you have instances where the story that's in the report doesn't match up with what's in the body camera. Just as recently as this last shooting with the young woman playing video games with her nephew had he not been wearing a body camera who knows what that police officer would have said to convince the public that that was a justified shooting. I understand that we're talking about the subway now but even in those situations we have instances where had there not been a body camera there or

anybody taking accountability via technology, that we wouldn't know exactly what the story is because at this juncture, cops are not necessarily all that trustworthy but for the body camera or but for third party videotaping it. So until we are in a space as a society where we can actually trust cops again, if we ever did, you need to have something on your person to actually record what you're doing

because we can't trust the words coming out of your mouth. Well, I just want to say, Roland, you know, as someone who my sole source of transportation is our city's metro, our subway system, our buses, or even when I'm walking, I've seen this happen play out for years where people have been detained for skipping fare because that's what we're talking about. We're not talking about responding to a crime or murder or shooting or anything like that. We're talking about skipping fare. And I've yet to see an instance that I would say required one of those officers who are essentially detaining

people, giving them a citation to appear of court. And I think that may have changed in the D.C. Council law. They may have changed that. But I've yet to see an instance where I've actually seen that compares to what I see on the street where people are actually detained in their lock, you know, they're handcuffed and all of that. I think this is just a subway thing is totally different, you know, and this is just based on my experience being a commuter who uses the subway system all the time. All right, folks. Also in New York, two members of the far right group, the Proud Boys, have each been sentenced to four years in prison for attacking a group of protesters outside the Metropolitan Republican Club in Manhattan. The defendants, Maxwell Hare and John Kinsman, were among several people arrested following a street brawl in October of last year between members of the Proud

Boys and demonstrators believed to be linked with the anti-fascist movement Antifa. A New York jury found Hare and Kinsman guilty of attempted gang assault, riot, and attempted assault in August. Mark Dwyer, a New York State Supreme Court justice, said the defendant's punishment was handed down as part of an effort to deter people from using political differences

as a reason for violence. Police folks have released surveillance video that shows a man approaching a missing Alabama three-year-old girl, Camille McKinney, while she played outside her family's housing complex on the night she disappeared. The Birmingham Police Department is asking

that you call 254-7777, 205-254-7777, if you have any information that might help to finding this young girl. All right, folks, the US Postal Service announced that late journalist Gwen Ifill will be memorialized with a Forever Stamp next year. The stamp will feature a 2008 photo of Ifill

with her name at the bottom and the words Black Heritage at the top. As part of the Postal Service's Black Heritage series. Ifill died of cancer in 2016 at the age of 61. For 17 years, she has served as the moderator of PBS's Washington Week, the first Black woman to host a nationally televised political talk show. In 2013, she also joined PBS NewsHour,

becoming half the first all-female anchor team to lead the network, Nightly Newscast. Ifill moderated the 2004 and 2008 vice presidential debates as well, and certainly the honor is well received. All right, folks, we talked about this story last night, an update to the story we brought you. According to a release from the Union Madison Teachers, Inc., the Madison Metropolitan School District decided Monday to rescind the termination

of Marlon Anderson, a security guard at Madison West High School. Anderson was fired by the district after a black student said the N-word during an exchange, and Anderson repeated the racial slur when he told the team not to use it. At the time, district leaders said Anderson was fired for violating its zero-tolerance policy or using the racial slur on school grounds. Welcome, congratulations to Marlon. Let me go to my panel here. Now, I discussed this yesterday. its zero tolerance policy or using the racial slur on school grounds. Local regulations tomorrow. Let me go to my panel here.

Now, I discussed this yesterday. And it was interesting to me the feedback that we got from people who, Kelly, it's still just nuts to me the folks who make up all of these excuses, why they should be able to use the N-word. I-I just don't understand the psychology and the psychosis of black people to want to use

a word that the oppressors use to denigrate and degrade us. I don't have an answer for you. I believe I was on one of your episodes and we talked about this subject. I do my best not to use the word at all because the history of said word is too insidious to repurpose it

for something positive, I think. The fact that this officer was actually, my understanding is that the officer was trying to, you know, have a teaching moment with the young man when he said the word. So I understand and I understand how and why he got his job back, because it wasn't necessarily a zero tolerance policy esque infraction. But as a rule, I don't understand why we need to use the word. There are plenty of other words that can define, you know, the negative noun that we're trying to describe there. I just don't understand. I don't get it. We are better than this as a society, as a whole. We don't need the word.

I don't understand why it is such a crutch in our lexicon. I think we need to let it go. Malik? Hey, I would be lying if I say I don't know people who use the N-word and use the N-word regularly. In the case with the teacher, I believe that's probably a consequence of our PC culture, which is sometimes warranted, but the zero tolerance policy likely came out of that. So the notion that a teacher or anyone, an administrator, and anyone at any place is using the N-word, that's where the zero tolerance policy comes from. But the, I mean, we have had funerals for the N-word. I think

Jesse Jackson was involved in that and some other people in Michigan, maybe it was, but they had a funeral for the N-word. But this is not something that even the hip hop generation popularized. We have to go back to Redd Foxx, Eddie Murphy, Paul Mooney, a lot of the comedians who popularized the N-word. And so we have a whole generations of people who grew up listening to the comedy, but also listening to the word in that community. But you made a point about using words that, or maybe Kelly made the point about using words that are, or phrases that were used historically to attack us, you know, just from a racial point of view. But I look at the N-word the same way that I look at Uncle Tom. That's also a word that has been repurposed to mean something totally different than what

Harriet Beecher Stowe meant in her book. And that's a word that white people started using to attack black people. And so this is another example of that. I try my best not to use the word at all. But yeah, I wish that we would stop. But I doubt that that's going to happen anytime soon. All of you and Kelly both said, I try my best not to use it. Yes, I try my best not to use it. I try my best not to use it. No, I was asking. Do I? Have I? Sure.

But when you know better, you do better. No, no, no, no. Not have I. Just past tense. Do I? Yes. Do you still use it now? Yes.

Not really, no. Yes. That wasn't a confident answer. Kelly, Kelly, Kelly. Not really is not no, and not really is not yes. Not really is. That's a yes. I do.

I personally can't tell you the last time I used the word. You know, I don't, I'm not in conversation where I have to. I did on Sunday. So let me just say. Rob, your thoughts. Just on this point very quickly. Zero tolerance policies are usually really stupid across the board.

They're usually applied to our kids and they're usually kicked out of school. It was actually applied to me when I was in ninth grade. Somebody came up and hit me. I pushed him off and I got ten days suspended and so did he because it was a zero tolerance policy. These things are usually stupid, just like minimum mandatory, stupid laws. Don't have them.

They don't make sense. Actually apply the laws equitably in each situation. So that's this case just on this particular case. Now, in terms of the N word, funny, literally just talked about this on my show too. This is kind of ironic here. So we look, I think black folks just talking about us, our use of the N-word right now is an attempt at a power play. It's we use it in saying, like, this is a word we're taking back for our own power. I don't agree with that because then at the same time, they'll get mad when a white person uses the N-word in a song.

So it's not a power play. Either we want to stop using the word or we can't do anything about it. I'm trying to figure out how it's even power. I'm agreeing with you. So we should throw it at it and stop using it. But we can't say it's a power play if we agreeing with you. So we should throw it and stop using it. But we can't say it's a power play if we get offended when a white person or an Asian says

the N-word in a song to it. So what I'm saying is we've got to make up our mind. And I think we haven't collectively. I don't think we should use it. But right now, it's globalized at this point. It's a word that's used so much. I said black people start trends. And right now, it's globalized at this point, right? It's a word that's used so much. Like, I said, black people start trends. And right now, we started a trend that everybody can use the N-word.

And we need to stop and start another trend because that's not a good one. And I'll just say very quickly, Roland, you know, this is something that most of us know people who use the word. You know, whether or not they use it regularly or something, most of us know people who use it. But I try, I don't use the, well, we're just trying to take the power back out of the word or anything like that. I honestly think that's a BS excuse. And just like Rob said, those same people who use that excuse that we're trying to take some power back from it, those are the ones who will be raking any non-black person over the cold for using that same word. I remember Eminem. There was a big thing back when Eminem first came out and he was using the word. J-Lo. Yeah, J-Lo. So many different

people who use it. I personally respond to it differently. So that's my thing. I respond to people who use it differently than I do maybe, you know, non-black people than I do, you know, black people. Because most of the people that I do, you know, black people. Because most of the people that I know who use it are black people. So let me actually give a really quick example. So, like, would you be okay if there was a white person using the word but trying to do it in an endearing way, but then Clarence Thomas uses it to talk about you in a vitriol way? I would still be mad if Clarence Thomas used the word.

I'd be mad either way. So, like, that's my point. But a lot of usaris Thomas used the word. I'd be mad either way. So like, yeah, that's my point. But like, but a lot of us try to separate the argument. If a black person says it, they can use it in any context. If a white person says it, so we gotta make up our mind. I'm not saying they have a right to use it, because I don't think they do. I'm saying we gotta

make up our mind about what's acceptable or not. We can't just say the word is okay to use and then be mad when somebody else says it. Like, gotta stop using it. My mind is made up. Hell no. I don't need to hear it. I, got to stop using it. My mind is made up. Hell no. I don't need to hear it. I don't want to hear it. Don't say it around me.

Don't tweet it. Don't post it. I don't care. Tonight, game one of the World Series. Mahish and Astros versus the Washington Nationals. Let's go down the line. Rob, who do you have, Nationals or Astros? Oh, man.

I'm going to go with Nationals because I'm here. Sorry. That's a dumbass reason. You're here. Hey, I'm not much of a baseball fan, so I just had to choose it here. And the Reds aren't there.

I'm from Cincinnati, so the Reds aren't there. So I'm like, eh. I'm sorry. Dude, y'all ain't sniffed the playoffs in decades. I'm going with the Nationals. I'll just say that.

I'm going with the home team. We're on a roll now. We have the Stanley Cup. We have the Washington Mystics win their championship. Reds, well, Redskins are the Redskins, so we don't have to worry about them. Do you even own any Nationals gear? Yeah. I wear

just like the dashiki. I wear my Nationals gear. The hat that I flip to the side a little bit when I'm on the south side? Absolutely. I have plenty of that. But I wear it on the show. Your ass lying. You said the same thing

about the dashiki. Everybody tends to think your ass lines. You said the same thing about the dashiki. Everybody tends to think your ass lines. Kelly, what you got? Watch me wear it. And in fact, I'm going to do a whole sport. I'm going to wear my Cowboys jerseys. I'm going to wear all of that on the show. That's what I'm going to do. Next week, because the Cowboys were going to the Super Bowl, so I'm going to

wear a Washington. Y'all going to the damn Super Bowl? The only way y'all going to the Super Bowl is you buy a ticket. Wait, who's going to the Super Bowl? What team? Dallas. No, they're not.

Kelly, anyway, you got Nationals, Astros. Okay. I don't... I'm not a fan of either team. You got to go with the home team, though.

I asked you who you're a fan of. Pick. Forget rolling. Just say Nationals. Just say Nationals. Well, I don't want to say Nationals because I feel like the only reason they got to the World Series is because the Just say Nationals. Well, I don't want to say Nationals

because I feel like the only reason they got to the World Series is because the Dodgers screwed up. So, like, based off that... But we're here. We're here. We're here now. That's what...

I don't know. Progressives do this a lot. You can't take a side. I don't know. I'm Switzerland. Oh, Lord. Oh, no, not Switzerland. Kelly is too damn teen.

Pick one of them. Just pick the opposite of pick nationals no I mean I just want to see I feel like it's going to be Houston it ain't going to end in a tie Kelly I can't pick I can't do it

I'll say it for her nationals I don't know how indec'll say it for her. Nationals. I'm not going for the Nationals. I don't know. How indecisive can you be? Only with this. Only with this. But if it's not the Nationals, then it has to be the Astros. Okay, then I can say that, but I'm not so sure it's going to be the Astros either.

I have to see how it plays out. Who do you want to win? I don't care. I'm a Nose fan. Here's the most illogical thing. It's not going to be the Astros. It is going to be the Nationals. And if it's not going to be the Nationals, it's going to be the Astros.

What the hell? I understand. I just can't pick one. Because you're asking me to predict who's going to win. And I just don't know. Who do you want to support? Who are you going for? I don't care.

Here's the other thing. She opens up by saying, I don't really follow it. I don't care. She opens up by saying I don't really follow it on care. So why in the hell you really want to be I mean is it by wrong. I just don't like to be wrong on principle that's just me so really. I am pretty sure the time you know what he's wrong, you know what I would really I would really hate

I don't know why the national's aware. I would say this in a conversation. When you're trying to go on a date, where do you want to eat? I don't know. I always know that. I don't know. I want to go over here. I don't know. How about over here? You probably be sitting there for

three hours trying to make a decision on where in the hell. Kelly, can you even pick between Uber and Lyft? Absolutely. Yeah, okay, whatever. She didn't say it. Anyway, y'all, Astros are going to win the World Series for the second time in three years. Oh, did you want me to say Uber or Lyft? Let me explain. Kelly,

Kelly, I'm done with you. I'm done with you. You're too damn indecisive. You can't make a decision. I can too. Fine, the Astros. Are you happy? The Astros. I'm happy? The Astros. I'm telling you right now, Kelly, stop talking. Hugging low down, Chris Paul, I'm telling y'all right now,

y'all about to get a business from the hashtag team. Whip that ass. Just letting you know. Don't become crying to me when he smacked a little Nash's around. Okay? I got to go. Y'all support Roland Martin and the Filter by going to RolandMart a little Nash's around. Okay. I got to go. Y'all support Roland Martin and the Filter by going to RolandMartinAndTheFilter.com.

Don't forget to bring the Funk Fan Club. You can pay me a cash. You have Square or PayPal. PayPal, every dollar you give goes to support this show and what we do. We want you to please support what we do because, again, this is all about the power of the issue that you care about. That's why we do that. Folks, we're having a fantastic time here in Atlanta at the

YouTube Black Content Creators Summit, learning lots of great information, great stuff. Improve our YouTube channel. Please subscribe to it as well. All right, y'all. I got to go because we got a roller skating party at a private location. So I got to go.

I got things to do. All right. I'm going to watch the World Series. Okay. Holla! Holla! This is an iHeart Podcast.