MSNBC Airs Rittenhouse Prosecution Closing Arguments, but Not Defense

As the closing arguments wrapped up in the Kyle Rittenhouse self-defense trial Monday in Kenosha County, Wisconsin, media is finding bias in the coverage.

Notably, Fox News reported, MSNBC skipped the Rittenhouse's defense closing argument after airing the prosecution's. Both MSNBC and CNN aired President Joe Biden's White House ceremony for the signing of the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill.

CNN did return to the defense's closing argument, but missed the first hour of it, according to reports.

Rittenhouse's defense team is arguing the then-17-year-old is justified in his use of lethal force because he was acting in self-defense of deadly threats from the three men he shot, two of which died from gunshot wounds and the other had his biceps of his right arm holding a handgun blown off.

Closing arguments concluded and Judge Bruce Schroeder delivered the final jury instructions just before 7 p.m. ET. The jury was dismissed for the night and will reconvene for deliberations Tuesday at 10 p.m. CT.

After the Biden ceremony, MSNBC returned to its regular programming with "Deadline: White House" hosted by Nicolle Wallace, who focused on former Trump strategist Steve Bannon's surrendering to the FBI for two counts of contempt of Congress. It is the first time in history someone has been indicted on that charge amid a claim of executive privilege, Newsmax has reported.

The media has come under fire for the narratives pushed during coverage of the Rittenhouse case. Legal expert Alan Dershowitz noted on Newsmax's "Saturday Report" the media and not the teen accused of reckless homicide of two men and a third charge of attempted homicide are the ones guilty of "vigilante justice."

"Vigilante justice is what CNN is doing, not what a 17-year-old kid under pressure may have done right or wrong," Dershowitz told host Carl Higbie, noting the bias against the accused in liberal media coverage of the events and Rittenhouse's trial. "It's CNN who is involved in vigilante justice. It's The New Yorker that's guilty of vigilante justice."

• McCloskeys Arrive in Kenosha to Support Rittenhouse as Trial Nears End
• Michael Dorstewitz: Media's Slanted Snapshot Potentially Dire if Rittenhouse Acquitted