Posted Monday, January 29, 2018 by RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com on his AJC Radio & TV Talk blog
CBS46 has fired Ben Swann, the evening anchor three days after the station discovered he had tried to revive his Reality Check news reports without their knowledge.
The station's general manager Lyle Banks released a brief press release today: "Ben Swann is no longer an employee of WGCL-TV, effective immediately. We thank Ben for his contributions and wish him well."
His Reality Check reports over the years have often veered into alt-right conspiracy theories. His last one focused on PizzaGate, which aired on CBS46 a year ago, led to his first suspension and removal of his Truth in Media website and most of his social media platforms.
Swann recently began raising funds to bring back his Reality Check stories using cyber currency Dash. He posted a video Thursday night teasing a big announcement on Tuesday, January 30. When CBS46 found out about the video Friday morning, management suspended him.
His Reality Check operation preceded his arrival at CBS46 in 2015. Echoing right-wing conspiracy sites, he has questioned everything from the origins of ISIS to the veracity of the Sandy Hook elementary school shootings to whether Russia was actually involved in the DNC email hacks.
His Truth in Media site was connected with the Republican Liberty Caucus at one point. Before joining CBS46, he worked for Russia Today, an international television network funded by the Russian government.
He appeared in 2013 on InfoWars where he talked about Democrats wanting to take your guns and how irrelevant mainstream media is.
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