Dallas new station apologizes after reporter’s ‘big gorilla’ comment during Karmelo Anthony trial sparks backlash
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WFAA called the remark “inappropriate” after viewers questioned the phrase used while discussing racial tensions surrounding the high-profile Texas case.
Dallas news station WFAA has issued an apology after veteran reporter Rebecca Lopez described the racial tension surrounding the Karmelo Anthony trial as “the big gorilla” during a live broadcast, according to the Atlanta Black Star. Lopez apologized followed swift backlash online, with viewers questioning why she substituted “gorilla” for the common phrase “elephant in the room” while covering the trial of a Black defendant.
As theGrio reported, Anthony was convicted of murder and sentenced to 35 years in prison this week for the fatal stabbing of Austin Metcalf at a Frisco, Texas track meet in April 2025. TheGrio also covered the scrutiny over the jury, which included no Black jurors despite Black residents making up over 12% of Collin County’s population. Lopez made the comment Tuesday while describing the scene outside the courthouse.
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“Let’s talk a little bit about the big, uh, gorilla so to speak,” Lopez said on air. “There were people out here on both sides shouting racial slurs at one another. But it was very clear that the defense and prosecution did not want this to be about race. They said this was not about race.”
The clip spread quickly after Threads user @sheajordansmith reposted it. “When the case involves a Black defendant and the substituted term happens to be ‘gorilla,’ it raises legitimate questions about judgment, professionalism, and awareness,” he wrote. Other commenters pointed to Lopez’s experience — she has been WFAA’s senior crime and justice reporter since 1998. “She is a seasoned reporter. She should know better,” one wrote.
The apology came in a statement to Atlanta Black Star. “Yesterday while reporting on the track meet stabbing trial, our reporter used an idiom to describe dynamics in the courtroom that was inappropriate,” the station said. “We apologize for that error and are committed to ensuring this doesn’t happen in the future. This mistake in no way reflects the culture of our newsroom or tenure of our coverage.”
The incident adds to the racial tensions that have surrounded the case from the start, including courtroom removals over racial slurs and national debate over the jury’s makeup.