Fox News misidentifies WV as VA in an election graphic - WTRF 7 News Sports Weather - Wheeling Steubenville

Fox News misidentifies WV as VA in an election graphic

Posted: Updated:
By Ann Ali, Senior Political Reporter - bio | email
Graphic from FoxNews Graphic from FoxNews

  • GovernmentGovernment

  • Wednesday, May 22 2013 12:59 PM EDT2013-05-22 16:59:52 GMT
    Credit: MountainStateUniversity.edu
    Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin has announced Karen Bowling of Beckley as Cabinet Secretary of The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources, starting July 1.
    Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin has announced Karen Bowling of Beckley as Cabinet Secretary of The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources, starting July 1.

  • Tuesday, May 21 2013 1:43 PM EDT2013-05-21 17:43:57 GMT
    The three locks on the upper Monongahela River will be open to recreational boaters this weekend during limited hours.
    The three locks on the upper Monongahela River will be open to recreational boaters this weekend during limited hours.

  • Monday, May 20 2013 2:50 PM EDT2013-05-20 18:50:08 GMT
    Helen Holt, now 99, was West Virginia's first female secretary of state. She received an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from WVU during Sunday's commencement.
    Helen Holt, now 99, was West Virginia's first female secretary of state. She received an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from WVU during Sunday's commencement.
    •   

West Virginians often struggle to overcome stereotypes about their state, including the one that it doesn't exist.

Add Fox News to the list of entities that need Golden Horseshoe study guides.

In a graphic used to lead into a video for the story "Breaking down the battle for swing states," the images of Iowa, Florida and West Virginia are shown in white on top of an American flag graphic.

Except the Mountain State is labeled as Virginia.

West Virginia has gone red for the past several presidential elections and has been devoid of presidential campaign visits the past two cycles, so it's not at the top of anybody's list of swing states.

The mislabeled Fox News graphic precedes a video with experts from Iowa, Florida and Virginia, described as "battleground states," to describe what they're seeing "on the ground," in those states as it relates to the presidential election.

Larry Sabato, who runs the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia, speaks on behalf of the Old Dominion. Sabato said President Barack Obama has lost a bit of the edge he had on Republican candidate Mitt Romney early in the season.

Sabato said Virginia's election would be "very close," but the overall trend shows Virginia as "a little more Republican than the national average."

Sabato spoke in West Virginia Oct. 9 and he told his audience at the University of Charleston he predicted an overwhelming majority of Mountain State voters would select Romney over Obama.