ABC’s The View is facing backlash after a segment discussing the Karmelo Anthony case was hit with a Community Note on X, with critics accusing the show’s hosts of spreading misinformation about key facts surrounding the trial.
The controversy erupted after The View posted a clip from the program discussing Anthony’s conviction in the fatal stabbing of Austin Metcalf during a Texas high school track meet. In the segment, co-host Sunny Hostin questioned both the jury composition and aspects of the prosecution’s case, making several claims that were later challenged by viewers and ultimately flagged through X’s Community Notes system.
KARMELO ANTHONY SENTENCED TO 35 YEARS IN FATAL STABBING: ‘The View’ co-hosts react to newly released footage of the moments after high schooler Karmelo Anthony fatally stabbed Austin Metcalf at a Texas track meet in April 2025. pic.twitter.com/VlXf234FaP
— The View (@TheView) June 22, 2026
The clip quickly went viral, generating more than 1.6 million views and thousands of comments, with many users accusing the hosts of presenting inaccurate information while discussing a highly publicized criminal case.
Community Note Challenges Multiple Claims
One of the central points of contention involved Hostin’s comments about the jury.
“I don’t think he had a jury of his peers, so on appeal there is a legitimate thing,” Hostin said during the discussion.
She later added:
“You’re supposed to have a jury of your peers. You’re not just supposed to strike someone because they’re Black.”
Those claims drew immediate scrutiny online. While Hostin suggested Anthony was denied a “jury of his peers” because Black jurors were removed from the panel, reporting from jury selection paints a more complicated picture.
Yikes. The View hosts claim Karmelo Anthony was “the only black man under the tent.” This is factually incorrect. In fact, many of the young athletes who testified on the stand and witnessed the stabbing were black. At least 6 young black men. Also, one of the black jurors who… https://t.co/VT54EC2pr3
— Brooke Taylor (@Brooketaylortv) June 22, 2026
According to reports from the trial, at least one prospective juror was dismissed after stating he could not “put a brother in jail.” Prosecutors also argued that their strikes of several Black jurors were based on race-neutral factors, including their occupations as teachers. Judge John Roach ultimately accepted the prosecution’s explanation and denied the defense’s Batson challenge.
Those details were notably absent from the discussion on The View and became part of the backlash that ultimately resulted in a Community Note being attached to the viral clip.
Sunny Hostin speaking to JD Vance on The View – YouTube, The View
Hostin also argued that Anthony was at a severe physical disadvantage compared to Metcalf.
“The kid that died was 200 pounds, this kid was 130 pounds,” she said.
At another point, Hostin claimed: “He was the only Black kid under the tent.”
Karmelo was 130lbs….
He keeps getting lighter in every story. pic.twitter.com/xendVB6Byi
— TAMPON IN THE MENS ROOM (@OBEYTHELIE) June 22, 2026
Those claims drew immediate scrutiny online. The Community Note attached to the viral post disputed several of the statements, noting that a “jury of one’s peers” does not require jurors to be the same race as the defendant. The note also cited records indicating Anthony weighed approximately 162 pounds rather than 130 pounds and stated that multiple Black witnesses testified regarding events that occurred under the tent.
Because Community Notes are attached only after reaching consensus among contributors with differing viewpoints, the correction quickly became a focal point of the online debate surrounding the segment.
Sarah Fields Issues Detailed Fact Check
Among the most widely shared responses came from independent journalist Sarah Fields, who published an extensive thread directly challenging the claims made during the broadcast.
Addressing The View, Fields wrote: “You spit nothing but falsehoods and misinformation in this entire clip.”
Hey @TheView, i’m challenging you to bring me onto your show.
You spit nothing but falsehoods and misinformation in this entire clip. You might be “following this case now”. I’ve been reporting and investigating this case for over a year.
FACT CHECK: A “jury of your peers”… pic.twitter.com/4u5l9Eagsu
— Sarah Fields (@SarahisCensored) June 22, 2026
Fields specifically took issue with the discussion surrounding jury selection.
“A ‘jury of your peers’ does NOT mean the jurors have to be the same race as the defendant,” she wrote. “You confidently claimed that because there wasn’t someone the same color as the defendant on the jury, it wasn’t a jury of his peers. That is 100% false. A jury of your peers means a jury selected from the community and judged by fellow citizens. It does NOT mean every juror has to match the defendant’s race, gender, religion, age, or background. The Constitution requires that juries be selected from a fair cross-section of the community. It does NOT require that the final jury contain members of any particular race.”
Perhaps her sharpest criticism came when addressing the implication that jurors must share a defendant’s racial background to render a fair verdict.
“The idea that people can only fairly judge someone if they share the same skin color is not only legally wrong, it’s an incredibly racist way of viewing the justice system,” she said.
A Screenshot of Whoopi Goldberg Speaking on The View – YouTube, The View
Fields also challenged Hostin’s factual claims regarding Anthony’s size and the racial makeup of those present at the scene.
“Also, Karmelo was NOT 130 lbs,” she said.
And regarding the claim that Anthony was the only Black student under the tent: “And the AUDACITY to say ‘he was the only black kid under the tent’?! A large portion of the witnesses who were UNDER THE TENT who TESTIFIED AGAINST KARMELO were BLACK!”
She concluded her post by writing: “I am FLABBERGASTED by the outright lies you just spewed!”
The post has since generated hundreds of thousands of views and thousands of engagements, becoming one of the most widely circulated rebuttals to the segment.
Awkward Timing for ABC and The View
The controversy arrives at a particularly inconvenient moment for The View and its parent company Disney.
The program has long positioned itself as more than a celebrity talk show, frequently covering politics, legal issues, and major news stories. Defenders of the show have often argued that it serves an important public affairs function by bringing current events to a daytime television audience.
Critics, however, argue that the Community Note attached to the Anthony segment raises broader questions about the show’s reliability when discussing complex legal matters.
FCC Chair Brendan Carr testifies before House subcommittee – CBS News, YouTube
Whether one agrees with Fields’ conclusions or not, the larger issue for ABC is that viewers were able to quickly identify factual claims that were disputed by publicly available information. Those disputes became significant enough for Community Notes contributors to attach a correction directly to the network’s social media post.
For a program that regularly weighs in on some of the country’s most contentious political and legal debates, being publicly corrected on multiple factual claims is unlikely to help its credibility with viewers already skeptical of legacy media institutions.
And with the Community Note now permanently attached to one of the show’s most viral recent clips, the backlash surrounding The View and its handling of the Karmelo Anthony case is unlikely to disappear anytime soon.
How do you feel about the hosts of The View and their comments on the Karmelo Anthony case? Sound off and let us know!
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