Shirley Sherrod sued Andrew Breitbart, Larry O’Connor and others over a video of Sherrod giving a speech before an NAACP group, in which she recounted how in the distant past when she worked for a state agency, she had discriminated against a white farmer. Breitbart’s widow was substituted as a defendant after his death.
Sherrod was fired by the US Dept. of Agriculture as a result of their (over)reaction, and despite her clarifications and denials, indicating she had given some help to the farmer, and had learned from the experience to treat people fairly.
We have analyzed that original tape, frame by frame, and the tape was not deceptive. See these posts:
Nonetheless, the myth lives on, and is perpetuated by Bloomberg news in a lengthy article about the Chairman of the Breitbart news organization, Steve Bannon (emphasis added):
In 2010, Breitbart News hit a wall. The site published video, furnished by a conservative activist, of a speech to the NAACP by a Department of Agriculture official named Shirley Sherrod, in which she appeared to advocate anti-white racism. Within hours, she was fired, as the story blanketed cable news. It soon became clear that the Breitbart News video was misleadingly edited—that Sherrod’s point was the opposite of what was portrayed ….“
That is completely false, and needs to be corrected by Bloomberg. Every single item which allegedly was left out of the original (not “edited”) short clip was actually in the clip, including Sherrod’s statement that she learned from the experience:
(additional screenshots added)
[The Bloomberg article also appears to wrongly blame James O’Keefe for the editing, but he indicated he has demanded a retraction.]
After several years, and a lengthy docket, the Sherrod case has settled. A Stipulation of Dismissal and Order of Dismissal were filed in the case a few days ago. (Copies at bottom of post).
The terms were not disclosed, and inquiries to attorneys on both sides have not been returned. (added) A joint statement was released last month, acknowledging that the blog post accompanying the video mistakenly originally indicated Sherrod was at USDA at the time. That error, having nothing to do with substance, was corrected immediately.
So the Sherrod saga is over — but the record needs to be clear, Andrew Breitbart and Larry O’Connor did nothing wrong. The short video was not misleading. If anyone screwed up, it was the Department of Agriculture.
The case is put to bed. Put the anti-Andrew Breitbart myth to bed as well.
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