NRA Exec: Media Cooked Up Trayvon Controversy

NRA members always 'stand their ground,' declares Wayne LaPierre
By Mary Papenfuss,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 16, 2012 12:56 AM CDT
Updated Apr 16, 2012 1:39 AM CDT
NRA Exec: Media Cooked Up Trayvon Controversy
Wayne LaPierre, executive VP of the National Rifle Association, rails against the press at the NRA's annual meeting in St Louis.   (AP Photo/St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Christian Gooden)

A National Rifle Association honcho has accused the media of manufacturing controversy over the Trayvon Martin case. "By the time I finish this speech, two Americans will be slain, six women will be raped, 27 of us will be robbed, and 50 more will be beaten. That's the harsh reality we face, all of us, every single day," NRA executive vice president Wayne LaPierre declared at the organization's annual meeting in St. Louis. "But the media, they don't care. Everyday victims aren't celebrities. They don't draw ratings, don't draw sponsors."

Addressing reporters on the scene, he added: "You manufacture controversy for ratings. You don't care about the truth. The truth is is the national news media in this country is a national disgrace, and you all know it." The NRA is a major proponent of "Stand Your Ground" laws which help protect armed citizens who kill another—like George Zimmerman in the Trayvon Martin case—from criminal charges if they feel their life is threatened. At the meeting, the NRA celebrated its role in pushing to pass the law in some 30 states, notes the Guardian. "We always, as member of the NRA, stand our ground," LaPierre boasted. (More George Zimmerman stories.)

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