Anti-ICE riots: ESPN star claims media has mischaracterized chaos

ESPN NFL analyst Mina Kimes criticized the media’s coverage of the anti-ICE riots that have taken place in parts of Los Angeles County over the last few days.

Stark images of burning vehicles, rioters spraying painting cars with expletives and the intense back and forth between President Donald Trump and California Gov. Gavin Newsom over how local law enforcement is handling the problems have been among the topics of conversation.

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Mina Kimes looks on during the Pro Bowl Skills Challenge at Nicholson Fieldhouse in Orlando, Florida, on Jan. 30, 2025. (Kirby Lee-Imagn Images)

“The disparity (between) what’s actually happening in Los Angeles and the way it’s being mischaracterized is one of the biggest stress tests of modern media in recent memory,” Kimes wrote on her BlueSky account. “Botted socials, AI, old clips, declining literacy—it’s like seeing a broken emergency response system hit by a storm.”

Videos and photos of looting have also taken the internet by storm and, because of it, businesses in the Los Angeles area have boarded up some of their shops in case of more chaos.

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A protester stands on a burned car holding a Mexican flag on Atlantic Ave. on June 7, 2025 in Paramount, California. (Apu Gomes/Getty Images)

A protester places debris in a fire as Border Patrol personnel in riot gear and gas masks stand guard outside an industrial park in Paramount, California, on Saturday, June 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Eric Thayer)

Smoke rises from a burning car on Atlantic Boulevard during a standoff between protesters and law enforcement, following multiple detentions by Immigration and Customs Enforcement in the Los Angeles County city of Paramount, California, on June 7, 2025. (REUTERS/Barbara Davidson)

Fox News Digital saw a T-Mobile store on the corner of 3rd Street and Broadway boarding up in case of another night of protests and rioting in the city. While a security guard protected the property, a repairer worked at the CVS store on the corner of 7th and Spring streets in downtown Los Angeles after several nights of rioting.

Attorney General Pam Bondi offered a blunt message to would-be robbers and looters in the deep-blue city on “Fox & Friends” Tuesday. 

“If you loot a business in California during this, we’re charging you with robbery under the Hobbs Act. No longer are the days of non-prosecution for looting. It’s a criminal act,” she said.

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Los Angeles law enforcement has made dozens of arrests in the wake of days of protests and riots.

Fox News’ Sarah Rumpf-Whitten and Ashley Papa contributed to this report.

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