On Monday night, only the CBS Evening News covered what anchor Scott Pelley described as an "emerging genocide" in Iraq. In a 48-second news brief, Pelley reported: "The Islamic army known as ISIS has seized vast territory in Syria and Iraq....Now, have a look at what they're doing to the minority Shiite Muslims....In this video, Shiite men are herded together and executed in mass graves. Here, Shiite men are shot in the head one by one and dumped into a river." [Listen to the audio or watch the video after the jump]
Edited footage of men being executed ran on screen, in addition to clips of ISIS blowing up Shiite mosques. Pelley wrapped up the brief segment by noting: "The slaughter is spreading. The Iraqi government is battling ISIS with limited success." No mention was made of the Obama administration's handling of the growing crisis.
NBC Nightly News and ABC World News skipped the story Monday night. None of the network morning shows covered it on Tuesday.
Despite having an exclusive interview with Obama National Security Advisor Susan Rice on Tuesday's Today, co-host Savannah Guthrie ignored the topic.
Here is a full transcript of the August 4 news brief from Pelley:
6:42 PM ET
SCOTT PELLEY: We want to flag for you tonight what may be an emerging genocide. The Islamic army known as ISIS has seized vast territory in Syria and Iraq and over the weekend ISIS stormed more towns in northern Iraq.
Now, have a look at what they're doing to the minority Shiite Muslims. These are Shiite mosques and shrines.
[FOOTAGE OF SHIITE MOSQUES AND SHRINES BEING BLOWN UP]
In this video, Shiite men are herded together and executed in mass graves. Here, Shiite men are shot in the head one by one and dumped into a river. The slaughter is spreading. The Iraqi government is battling ISIS with limited success.
