Key Point: ABC’s World News Tonight centered its ICE report on claims that a five-year-old in Minnesota was detained and used as bait, but the broadcast did not mention that three anti‑ICE protesters were arrested after disrupting a St. Paul church service. DHS later said the child had been abandoned, not detained. Critics have questioned ABC’s editorial choice and some headlines that initially presented the detention as fact.
ABC’s 'World News Tonight' Highlights 5-Year-Old ICE Story While Omitting Arrests At St. Paul Church
Federal authorities arrested Chauntyll Allen, leader of Black Lives Matter Twin Cities, left, agitator William Kelly, center, and Nekima Levy-Armstrong, Racial Justice Network leader, right, after a mob invaded a St. Paul, Minnesota, church, Attorney General Pam Bondi announced Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026.(Fox News)
ABC’s World News Tonight devoted its main ICE segment to an allegation that a five-year-old boy in Minnesota was detained and allegedly used as “bait” to apprehend his father, focusing on public outrage over the episode. The network’s roughly two-and-a-half-minute report did not, however, mention a related development from the same week: the arrest of three anti‑ICE protesters who disrupted a church service in St. Paul.
Critics noted the omission on social media. Curtis Houck, managing editor at NewsBusters, pointed out on X that ABC’s broadcast “did not utter a single word” about the church arrests. Fox News Digital contacted ABC News for comment but had not received a response at the time of reporting.
A photo shows a young child standing beside a vehicle during an ICE operation.
What Happened In Minnesota
The segment highlighted images and statements that described a five‑year‑old as having been detained by ICE after leaving preschool. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) later disputed that characterization, saying the child was not detained by ICE but had been abandoned during an immigration enforcement operation. DHS emphasized that officers did not arrest the child.
DHS Statement: "ICE did NOT target a child. The child was ABANDONED."
Despite the DHS clarification, several public officials — including Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Rep. Ilhan Omar — shared an image of the child on social media and described the child as having been detained. The White House, through spokeswoman Abigail Jackson, criticized mainstream outlets for amplifying those accounts without first verifying the facts, saying it was "shameful" to run with a narrative the administration described as false and that ICE officers had remained with the child.
The Department of Homeland Security said a child who was reported detained by federal immigration agents in Minnesota this week was "abandoned" by his father, not targeted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Church Protest And Arrests
Other network nightly newscasts briefly covered the arrest of protesters who disrupted a St. Paul church service. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced arrests in connection with the protest and named Nekima Levy Armstrong, Chauntyll Louisa Allen and William Kelly as those taken into custody.
Observers and commentators raised questions about editorial choices after ABC’s television segment focused almost exclusively on the child‑detention claim while giving no airtime to the church arrests, even though the arrests were reported by other networks and public officials.
Media Framing And Headlines
On ABC’s website, an article ran under the headline “5‑year‑old asylum seeker detained as ICE expands enforcement in Minnesota,” a formulation that critics said presented the detention claim as fact. The piece later included DHS’s clarification that the child was abandoned, but that statement appeared below the headline. Commentators also pointed to similar headlines at other outlets, such as The Daily Beast, which initially ran a headline asserting the child was detained.
The episode has prompted a broader discussion about media verification, headline framing, and how networks choose which related developments to include in short segments.
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