CNN news anchor Rick Sanchez is accusing Fox News and conservative commentators of stoking unfounded fear among right-wing gun-control extremists, saying it probably contributed to a rash of recent shootings. In a recent report on CNN Newsroom, Sanchez drew a link, for example, between the "alarmist" rhetoric of conservative commentators and the April 4 killing of three Pittsburgh police officers. The suspect is 22-year-old Richard Poplawski, who believed that a growing left-wing government was conspiring to take away his rights. "That weekend tragedy involves a man who allegedly shot and killed three police officers in cold blood. Why? Because he was convinced, after no doubt watching Fox News and listening to right-wing radio, that quote, 'Our rights were being infringed upon,'" Sanchez said. Poplawski's Internet activities reveal that he was a frequent visitor of extreme-right Web sites, such as Stormfront -- a neo-Nazi site, according to Pittsburgh Post Gazette. In his report, Sanchez said much of the commentary on Fox News – such as Glenn Beck's talk of doomsday and Sean Hannity's pronouncements that President Barack Obama is a socialist -- have contributed to a recent spike in gun sales. "According to the FBI, there have been 1.2 million more requests for background checks of potential gun buyers from November to February than there in the same four months last year," he said. As for Poplawski, Sanchez said a friend of his later said that Poplawski was 'worried about the Obama gun ban that is on the way.' What ban? "Here's the real issue here," Sanchez continued. "Poplawski might not be alone in this crazy 'they're coming to get us' mindset. There is evidence of a gun-buying panic." Sanchez's report drew criticism from the conservative blog NewsBusters, which accused Sanchez of trying to undermine his competition. "One could be sure that Sanchez would be pointing his finger squarely at his competitors on the right from the first moment he mentioned the gun issue," wrote commentator Matthew Balan. But the segment was praised by the liberal blog Crooks and Liars. "Rick Sanchez used some air time today to help expose the insanely irresponsible behavior of all the members of the Limbaugh National Committee and their preachers of paranoia," wrote John Amato, the site's founder. "Sanchez played some extremely disturbing video from Youtube by the patriot militia crowd and went over the high volume of shootings that are spreading across the country."
