--- title: "Abdul El-Sayed’s deleted videos resurface ahead of Michigan Senate race" publication: "MediaBias News" url: "https://mediabias.news/politics/abdul-el-sayeds-deleted-videos-resurface-ahead-of-michigan-senate-race" api: "https://mediabias.news/api/v1/stories/abdul-el-sayeds-deleted-videos-resurface-ahead-of-michigan-senate-race" markdown: "https://mediabias.news/politics/abdul-el-sayeds-deleted-videos-resurface-ahead-of-michigan-senate-race.md" audio: "https://mediabias.news/api/audio/abdul-el-sayeds-deleted-videos-resurface-ahead-of-michigan-senate-race" category: "Politics" area: "United States" published: "2026-08-11T20:46:54.282Z" source_reported: "2026-08-11T19:35:00.000Z" updated: "2026-08-11T20:46:54.282Z" trust_score: 58 critic_score: 95 hype_score: 55 assessment_type: "coverage-and-source-reporting-analysis" fact_check_status: "not-performed" coverage_measured: "2026-08-11T22:00:21.853460+00:00" --- # Abdul El-Sayed’s deleted videos resurface ahead of Michigan Senate race *Democratic nominee’s past comments on fireworks, the Second Amendment and football draw scrutiny after primary win* **Scores for the source reporting** (0-100, assessing the original journalism this article was written from, not this write-up): - Trust 58 of 100, higher is better. Trust 58: multiple independent outlets and CNN attribution corroborate the videos, but no individual source is named. - Craft 95 of 100, higher is better. Critic 95: provides context, quotes, specific details, and outlines next steps, making it a well‑crafted report. - Hype 55 of 100, lower is better. Hype 55: right‑leaning digests use sensational headlines, yet the core facts remain fairly measured. Scored by MediaBias News; method at https://mediabias.news/methodology. **The short version** - Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate in Michigan, deleted or made private more than 100 YouTube videos before launching his campaign. - CNN reported that some of the removed videos criticised Fourth of July fireworks, the Second Amendment and American football, linking the sport to slavery and toxic masculinity. - El-Sayed’s campaign said the comments were cherry-picked and did not reflect his current views, pointing to a 2025 social-media post where he expressed support for fireworks and the Second Amendment. - The resurfaced videos have become a focal point for Republican opponents and conservative outlets, while progressive Democrats have framed the controversy as part of a broader backlash against past rhetoric. Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate in Michigan, deleted or made private more than 100 YouTube videos before launching his 2026 campaign. CNN reported on 11 August 2026 that some of the removed videos included criticism of Fourth of July fireworks, the Second Amendment and American football. In one video, El-Sayed said “fireworks suck” and urged viewers to find another way to celebrate the holiday. In another, he suggested replacing the Second Amendment with a constitutional right to health care. El-Sayed’s campaign responded by accusing CNN of cherry-picking comments from old videos that no longer reflected his views. The campaign pointed to a 2025 social-media post in which El-Sayed encouraged followers to enjoy fireworks and expressed support for the Second Amendment, while also advocating for gun control. The campaign noted that El-Sayed had been the captain of his high school football team and remained a fan of Michigan football. The resurfaced videos have drawn attention from conservative outlets and Republican opponents. Multiple right-rated digests reported that El-Sayed had linked football to “toxic masculinity” and compared the sport’s ethos to narratives used to justify slavery. One right-rated digest, from *The Daily Signal*, reported that El-Sayed had participated in a 2007 walkout of a speaking event featuring former radical Islamic terrorists who had converted to Christianity. ## What the reports disagree on The outlets disagree on whether El-Sayed’s past comments reflect his current views. CNN reported that the videos were removed or made private, while El-Sayed’s campaign said the comments were cherry-picked and did not represent his beliefs today. *Forbes* reported that El-Sayed’s reversal was part of a broader trend among progressives, who have walked back past rhetoric during what some in the movement refer to as “Woke 1”. ## What the coverage left out None of the right-rated digests mentioned El-Sayed’s 2025 social-media post expressing support for fireworks and the Second Amendment. The centre-rated *Forbes* report did not include El-Sayed’s comments linking football to toxic masculinity or his role in the 2007 walkout. Neither the left-rated nor the centre-rated reports mentioned the 2007 walkout reported by *The Daily Signal*. ## Who covered it Shares of the 20 covering outlets with a published leaning rating: - Left: 10% (2) - Centre: 10% (2) - Right: 80% (16) 0 of 20 covering outlets carried no usable leaning rating and were excluded from those percentages. Coverage measured 2026-08-11T22:00:21.853460+00:00. **Coverage watch:** developing. Checked 7 times; 0 checks found a material change. Most recently checked 2026-08-11T22:30:17.915Z. ## How the sides framed it ### Left - The two left-rated digests led on the resurfaced videos and El-Sayed’s response. *Mediaite* reported that the videos criticised “iconic aspects of American life” such as fireworks, the Second Amendment and football. *CNN*’s digest focused on El-Sayed’s statement that “fireworks suck” and his suggestion to replace the Second Amendment with a right to health care. Neither digest mentioned the 2007 walkout reported by *The Daily Signal*. ### Centre - The centre-rated report, from *Forbes*, led on El-Sayed’s claim that his past comments no longer reflected his views. The article quoted El-Sayed’s campaign accusing CNN of cherry-picking and pointed to his 2025 social-media post expressing support for fireworks and the Second Amendment. *Forbes* also framed the controversy as part of a broader trend among progressives, who have walked back past rhetoric during what some call “Woke 1”. The article did not mention the 2007 walkout or El-Sayed’s comments on football and toxic masculinity. ### Right - All 14 right-rated digests led on the resurfaced videos and El-Sayed’s past comments. *The Blaze* and *Twitchy* reported that El-Sayed had “purged” more than 100 videos expressing “fringe” or “anti-America” views. *The Daily Signal* and *Breitbart* focused on specific comments, including El-Sayed’s criticism of fireworks and the Second Amendment, and his comparison of football to slavery. *The Daily Caller* and *ussanews.com* reported that El-Sayed had linked football to “toxic masculinity”. *The Daily Signal* was the only right-rated outlet to report on El-Sayed’s role in the 2007 walkout. **Provisional coverage gap:** left. The watch is not closed, so this is not yet a settled blindspot finding. ## Factuality profile of the covering outlets These are published factuality ratings of the outlets, not a verdict on whether this story or its claims are true. - low: 3 - mixed: 12 - high: 5 ## Verification scope This page compares coverage and scores the source reporting. It is not a ClaimReview verdict on whether the underlying event or claim is true. ## Original reporting this was written from - [The National Pulse](https://thenationalpulse.com/2026/08/11/dem-candidate-abdul-el-sayed-deletes-podcast-where-he-called-to-scrap-july-4th-fireworks-and-the-second-amendment) — Dem Candidate Abdul El-Sayed Deletes Podcast Where He Called to Scrap July 4th Fireworks and the Second Amendment. - [WABC](https://wabcradio.com/2026/08/11/el-sayed-faces-questions-over-removed-campaign-videos) — El-Sayed Faces Questions Over Removed Campaign Videos - [The Blaze](https://theblaze.com/news/elsayed-videos-removed-fringe-cnn) — Abdul El-Sayed PURGED more than 100 YouTube videos expressing FRINGE beliefs — and they have resurfaced - [The Daily Signal](https://dailysignal.com/2026/08/11/el-sayed-role-protesting-former-jihadist-turned-christian) — El-Sayed's Role in Protest Against Christian Speakers - [The Hill](https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/6023173-el-sayed-past-comments-resurface) — El-Sayed removed controversial YouTube clips before launching his campaign - [New York Post](https://nypost.com/2026/08/11/us-news/michigan-dem-senate-candidate-abdul-el-sayed-scrubbed-past-videos-of-him-saying-fireworks-suck-opposing-2nd-amendment) — Michigan Dem Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed scrubbed past videos of him saying ‘fireworks suck,’ opposing 2nd Amendment - [The Daily Caller](https://dailycaller.com/2026/08/11/democrats-us-senate-nominee-abdul-el-sayed-toxic-masculinity-football) — Democratic US Senate Nominee Claims ‘Toxic Masculinity’ At Heart Of Football - [thejeffreylord.com](https://thejeffreylord.com/abdul-el-sayed-has-a-michigan-problem) — Abdul El-Sayed Has a Michigan Problem – Jeffrey Lord - [Breitbart](https://breitbart.com/politics/2026/08/11/report-michigans-leftist-u-s-senate-nominee-abdul-el-sayed-attacked-fourth-july-fireworks-second-amendment-deleted-videos) — Report: El-Sayed Attacked July 4 Fireworks, 2nd Amendment in Deleted Clips - [Hot Air](https://hotair.com/ed-morrissey/2026/08/11/el-sayed-let-me-tell-you-why-july-4-fireworks-sk-n3817875) — El-Sayed: Let Me Tell You Why July 4 Fireworks 'S**k' - [Washington Times](https://washingtontimes.com/news/2026/aug/11/abdul-el-sayed-history-criticizing-fireworks-football-right-bear-arms) — El-Sayed has history of criticizing fireworks, football, right to bear arms - [TrendingPolitics](https://trendingpoliticsnews.com/just-in-cnn-busts-abdul-el-sayed-exposes-radical-now-deleted-youtube-videos-jrupp) — JUST IN: CNN Busts Abdul El-Sayed, Exposes Radical Now-Deleted YouTube Videos - [Mediaite](https://mediaite.com/media/news/el-sayed-blasts-fireworks-football-and-the-second-amendment-in-old-youtube-videos-report) — El-Sayed Blasts Fireworks, Football and the Second Amendment in Old YouTube Videos: Report - [Bearing Arms](https://bearingarms.com/camedwards/2026/08/11/second-amendment-stance-el-sayed-doesnt-want-voters-hear-n1233477) — The Second Amendment Stance El-Sayed Doesn't Want Voters to Hear - [ussanews.com](https://ussanews.com/2026/08/11/abdul-el-sayed-argued-toxic-masculinity-governs-american-football) — Abdul El-Sayed Argued ‘Toxic Masculinity’ Governs American Football - [Forbes](https://forbes.com/sites/saradorn/2026/08/11/woke-1-abdul-el-sayed-says-posts-criticizing-july-4th-and-the-2nd-amendment-are-old) — Woke 1? Abdul El-Sayed Says Posts Criticizing July 4th And The 2nd Amendment Are Old - [RedState](https://redstate.com/wardclark/2026/08/11/the-internet-never-forgets-el-sayeds-revolting-fireworks-and-2a-takes-n2205466) — The Internet Never Forgets: El-Sayed’s Revolting Fireworks and 2A Takes - [Twitchy](https://twitchy.com/samj/2026/08/11/whoa-abdul-el-sayed-busted-deleted-100-plus-videos-from-youtube-before-campaign-launch-n2431163) — Bro, WTAF?! Abdul El-Sayed Scrubbed 100+ Anti-America YouTubes Before Launching Senate Bid (Thread) - [CNN](https://cnn.com/2026/08/11/politics/el-sayed-youtube-videos-fireworks-2nd-amendment) — ‘Fireworks suck’: Removed El-Sayed videos urged getting rid of the 4th of July tradition, raised replacing 2nd Amendment - [News Addicts](https://newsaddicts.com/abdul-el-sayeds-campaign-stumbles-over-controversial-past-comments) — Abdul El-Sayed's Campaign Stumbles Over Controversial Past Comments ## Questions **What did Abdul El-Sayed say about fireworks in his deleted videos?** CNN reported that El-Sayed said “fireworks suck” in a 2024 YouTube video and urged viewers to find another way to celebrate the Fourth of July. He argued that fireworks hurt air quality, could trigger PTSD in veterans, and scared children and pets. His campaign later said the comments did not reflect his current views. **How many of Abdul El-Sayed’s YouTube videos were removed or made private?** Multiple outlet digests reported that more than 100 of El-Sayed’s YouTube videos were removed or made private before his 2026 Senate campaign. CNN’s investigation found that some of the deleted videos included criticism of fireworks, the Second Amendment and American football. **What did Abdul El-Sayed say about the Second Amendment?** CNN reported that El-Sayed suggested replacing the Second Amendment with a constitutional right to health care in a 2023 YouTube video. His campaign later said the comment did not reflect his current views and pointed to a 2025 social-media post where he expressed support for the Second Amendment while advocating for gun control. **Which outlets reported on Abdul El-Sayed’s past comments about football?** Right-rated digests from *The Daily Caller*, *ussanews.com*, *Breitbart* and *The Washington Times* reported that El-Sayed had linked football to “toxic masculinity” and compared the sport’s ethos to narratives used to justify slavery. The centre-rated *Forbes* report did not mention these comments. --- MediaBias News — https://mediabias.news. Reproduced from https://mediabias.news/politics/abdul-el-sayeds-deleted-videos-resurface-ahead-of-michigan-senate-race. Please cite as: MediaBias News, "Abdul El-Sayed’s deleted videos resurface ahead of Michigan Senate race", https://mediabias.news/politics/abdul-el-sayeds-deleted-videos-resurface-ahead-of-michigan-senate-race