They sit side by side on a plush couch, looking at one another fondly, and sometimes sadly, as they speak, often finishing one another's sentences.Īfter Seth's death, figures friendly to former President Donald Trump portrayed him as a disgruntled Bernie Sanders supporter.
They are sincere, unpolished, warm, giving me a hug as we meet in person for the first time. Our interview took place at a house rented through Airbnb - their choice to guard their family's privacy - in a city where they've bought a second home. Police say they believe Seth Rich's killing was the result of a botched robbery at gunpoint. And I think every day: Who's going to bug us? What's coming at us? I will always think that." "You're going, 'Oh my God, it can't be'," Mary Rich says. That revelation was, Joel and Mary Rich say, a fresh nightmare.
A man with ties to Fox News who promised to help the Riches solve their son's murder, for example, later plotted to tap their phones and hack their computers to find "the truth" about Seth, according to a sworn deposition. After Seth's death, Mary Rich says the family became "a pawn in the game"Īfter Seth's death, many people offered to aid the Riches. Fox additionally would not address detailed questions - sent via email at Fox's request - days ahead of the story's publication. "So far, there's been nothing to follow."įox News and its president, Jay Wallace, who oversees the network's journalism, declined requests for interviews for this story. "We have said from Day 1, we will follow the truth and whoever provides the truth, we will follow that path," Mary Rich says. Some of its most popular stars openly promote false claims that have already been discredited. Under the ultimate leadership of Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch, who control its parent company, Fox News continues to invite guests on its programs who embrace conspiracy theories. Yet Fox shows little sign of being chastened more broadly. The network has pulled back from talking about Seth Rich. Years later, the Riches' devastation endures, in part because of the pain inflicted by Fox. Media Fox News Settles With Seth Rich's Parents For False Story Claiming Clinton LeaksĪs the Riches' experience shows, conspiracy theories can be brought to heel, but not without, in this case, a grievous emotional toll. Under the terms of that deal, they cannot directly speak about Fox or its stars.
Our interview represents the first public remarks the Riches have made since they reached a confidential settlement in fall 2020 with the Fox News Channel and its parent company, Fox Corp., over its role in peddling those false claims. "With all the international stories and all the national media, how do you live with that, when you know it's all false about your son and his legacy?" "We're just beside ourselves," Joel Rich says. Hot takes, destructive speculation and false claims about Seth rocketed around the internet and found a warm embrace on many Fox News shows. Police in Washington, D.C., never identified his killer, and there was a vacuum of reliable information. Within days, Joel and Mary Rich then had to endure an unimaginable, additional blow: the eruption of a cottage industry of conspiracy theories and outright lies around their son's life and death. The fatal shooting of a young Democratic Party aide named Seth Rich early in the morning of July 10, 2016, brought incalculable loss to his parents. "I think every day: Who's going to bug us? What's coming at us? I will always think that." Mary Rich, shown with her husband, Joel, at their home in Omaha, Neb., says self-promoters they trusted to help solve the killing of their son took advantage of them.
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