--- title: "Democrats use Epstein victim's family in ad against Rep. Jeff Crank" publication: "MediaBias News" url: "https://mediabias.news/politics/democrats-use-epstein-victims-family-in-ad-against-rep-jeff-crank" api: "https://mediabias.news/api/v1/stories/democrats-use-epstein-victims-family-in-ad-against-rep-jeff-crank" markdown: "https://mediabias.news/politics/democrats-use-epstein-victims-family-in-ad-against-rep-jeff-crank.md" audio: "https://mediabias.news/api/audio/democrats-use-epstein-victims-family-in-ad-against-rep-jeff-crank" category: "Politics" area: "United States" published: "2026-10-05T13:05:13.869Z" source_reported: "2026-10-05T12:24:01.000Z" updated: "2026-10-05T13:05:13.869Z" trust_score: 60 critic_score: 65 hype_score: 45 assessment_type: "coverage-and-source-reporting-analysis" fact_check_status: "not-performed" coverage_measured: "2026-10-05T13:00:30.275612+00:00" --- # Democrats use Epstein victim's family in ad against Rep. Jeff Crank *The ad criticises the Republican for his votes on releasing Jeffrey Epstein's files and for not meeting with the family.* **Scores for the source reporting** (0-100, assessing the original journalism this article was written from, not this write-up): - Trust 60 of 100, higher is better. Central claims attributed to named individuals and supported by quotes from a full report. - Craft 65 of 100, higher is better. Reports include quotes from affected parties and explain the political context of the ad. - Hype 45 of 100, lower is better. Headline promises more than the body delivers by focusing on the ad's impact. Scored by MediaBias News; method at https://mediabias.news/methodology. **The short version** - The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) released a political advertisement featuring the family of Jeffrey Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre. - The ad supports Democratic candidate Jessica Killin, who is running against Republican Rep. Jeff Crank in Colorado's 5th Congressional District. - Giuffre's brother and sister-in-law appear in the ad criticising Crank for not meeting with them and for his votes on releasing Epstein-related files. - Crank's campaign stated he has consistently supported transparency and accountability regarding Jeffrey Epstein. The campaign arm working to elect House Democrats released a political advertisement featuring the family of Virginia Giuffre, an Epstein victim. The ad supports Democratic candidate Jessica Killin, who is running against Republican Rep. Jeff Crank in Colorado’s 5th Congressional District. The advertisement is a six-figure buy airing in the El Paso media market. In the advertisement, Giuffre's brother, Sky Roberts, and sister-in-law, Amanda Roberts, speak directly to the camera. They criticise Crank for not meeting with them while lawmakers considered votes to release files related to Epstein. Amanda Roberts stated that Crank "repeatedly voted to cover them up" and refused to sign onto a bipartisan discharge petition that forced a vote on the Epstein files. Sky Roberts said, "After she died, we promised to carry on her fight." ## Disagreement on Crank's votes The DCCC and the ad state that Jeff Crank "repeatedly voted to cover them up" and "covered up Epstein’s crimes to protect Donald Trump." KRDO reported that Crank "last year had declined to sign a bipartisan discharge petition, which would have forced a vote to release thousands of files related to Epstein on the House floor." It also noted that Crank "later, joining nearly every other member of Congress, voted to pass the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which compelled the government to release extensive files pertaining to its investigations into Epstein." ## What the coverage left out None of the left or centre-rated reports printed below mention the six-figure cost of the advertisement or the specific media market in which it is airing. ## Who covered it Shares of the 7 covering outlets with a published leaning rating: - Left: 43% (3) - Centre: 57% (4) - Right: 0% (0) 0 of 7 covering outlets carried no usable leaning rating and were excluded from those percentages. Coverage measured 2026-10-05T13:00:30.275612+00:00. **Coverage watch:** developing. Checked 3 times; 0 checks found a material change. Most recently checked 2026-10-05T13:45:18.992Z. ## How the sides framed it ### Left - Reports from the left-rated outlets focused on the attack ad's content and its implications for Rep. Jeff Crank's re-election campaign. The DCCC's own report stated that Crank "covered up Epstein’s crimes to protect Donald Trump" and "has no business being in Congress." Raw Story highlighted that Crank's "Epstein vote comes back to haunt him." NBC News reported that family members "appear in a campaign attack ad targeting GOP Rep." ### Centre - Centre-rated reports led with the release of the advertisement by the campaign arm working to elect House Democrats. KRDO noted that the ad featured the family of Virginia Giuffre, who was the first victim of Jeffrey Epstein to go public with allegations of abuse. These reports included Crank's statement that he "consistently supported transparency and accountability regarding the business dealings, investigation, and prosecution of Jeffrey Epstein." They also mentioned that Crank voted to pass the Epstein Files Transparency Act. ### Right No separate framing summary. **Provisional coverage gap:** right. 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. - mixed: 1 - high: 5 - veryHigh: 1 ## 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 - [Raw Story](https://rawstory.com/jeffrey-epstein-2678002591) — Republican's Epstein vote comes back to haunt him: 'He has no business being in Congress' - [KRDO](https://krdo.com/news/2026/10/05/democrats-release-midterms-ad-featuring-family-of-epstein-victim-virginia-giuffre) — Democrats release midterms ad featuring family of Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre - [KEYT](https://keyt.com/politics/cnn-us-politics/2026/10/05/democrats-release-midterms-ad-featuring-family-of-epstein-victim-virginia-giuffre) — Democrats release midterms ad featuring family of Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre - [KESQ](https://kesq.com/news/national-politics/cnn-us-politics/2026/10/05/democrats-release-midterms-ad-featuring-family-of-epstein-victim-virginia-giuffre) — Democrats release midterms ad featuring family of Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre - [kioncentralcoast.com](https://kioncentralcoast.com/politics/cnn-us-politics/2026/10/05/democrats-release-midterms-ad-featuring-family-of-epstein-victim-virginia-giuffre) — Democrats release midterms ad featuring family of Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre - [NBC News](https://nbcnews.com/politics/2026-election/family-epstein-victim-appears-campaign-attack-ad-colorado-rcna601415) — Family of Epstein victim appears in campaign attack ad in Colorado - [DCCC](https://dccc.org/dccc-releases-new-tv-ad-in-co-05-featuring-family-of-jeffrey-epstein-victim-virginia) — DCCC Releases New TV Ad in CO-05 Featuring Family of Jeffrey Epstein Victim: “Virginia” ## Questions **What is the political advertisement about?** The advertisement was released by the campaign arm for House Democrats to support Jessica Killin, the Democratic candidate challenging Republican Rep. Jeff Crank. It features the family of Virginia Giuffre, an Epstein victim, criticising Crank's votes on releasing Epstein files and his refusal to meet with them. **What does the ad say about Jeff Crank's votes on Epstein files?** The ad claims Jeff Crank repeatedly voted to cover up Epstein's crimes and voted against releasing the files. Crank's campaign stated he has consistently supported transparency and accountability regarding Epstein's business dealings and prosecution. **Who are Virginia Giuffre's family members featured in the ad?** Virginia Giuffre's brother, Sky Roberts, and her sister-in-law, Amanda Roberts, appear in the advertisement. They state they are carrying on Giuffre's fight to expose the truth after her death. --- MediaBias News — https://mediabias.news. Reproduced from https://mediabias.news/politics/democrats-use-epstein-victims-family-in-ad-against-rep-jeff-crank. Please cite as: MediaBias News, "Democrats use Epstein victim's family in ad against Rep. Jeff Crank", https://mediabias.news/politics/democrats-use-epstein-victims-family-in-ad-against-rep-jeff-crank