Supporters of Covington Catholic High School — the Covington, Kentucky, institution at the center of a fake news story falsely suggesting that students from the school had harassed a Native American at the March for Life in Washington, DC, last Friday — are pushing back against a claim that students from the school have worn blackface in the past.

VIDEO: Covington Catholic High students in blackface at past basketball game https://t.co/8wnZIAaH2n pic.twitter.com/BrzKsHLpaC — New York Daily News (@NYDailyNews) January 21, 2019

Two sources at Covington told Breitbart News that the students were not wearing “blackface” but had been participating in “blackout” sporting events several years ago, like other color-themed events for school spirit that had nothing to do with race.

The UK Daily Mail reported Monday evening that the school has been “called out for allowing other youngsters to wear “blackface” at pep rallies in the last 10 years.” It reprinted screenshots of YouTube videos — since deleted — in which students from Covington Catholic students painted their faces and bodies in black at a basketball game.

The Daily Mail claimed that in one photograph, ostensibly from 2015, “students wore blackface and jeered as an African American player from the school’s opponent stood in front of them.” At no point in the story did the Daily Mail consider the question of whether the paint actually referred to race, or was a demonstration of school spirit.

The Daily Mail acknowledged that the school held an event called “blackout,” but claimed that at a similar “blueout” event, “there were no photographs of anyone with their bodies painted blue at the ‘blue out’ event.”

Similarly, the left-leaning New York Daily News published an article Monday about the “blackface” claim. The article began, however, not by reporting the “news” about the “blackface” claim, but by taunting Covington Catholic High School junior Nick Sandmann, who had issued a statement Sunday defending the students’ actions and denying that they had said or done anything racist.

The Daily News article began as follows:

This won’t help Kentucky student Nick Sandmann’s case.