Liz Collin Strikes Again

Collin has a new documentary coming on Tim Walz: Minnesota Mao

Independent journalist Liz Collin has a new documentary coming out on June 4, 2026. Per the doc’s website, it is: “…a cutting look at the strange connections between Governor Tim Walz—aka ‘Minnesota Mao’—and Chairman Mao Zedong, the former dictator of the Chinese Communist Party.”

Collin was a TV journalist/anchor on WCCO in the Twin Cities for 14 years. She left WCCO because her marriage to Bob Kroll, then-president of the Minneapolis Police Officers Federation, led to intense public criticism and the perception of bias in her reporting. Following the death of George Floyd in 2020, protesters gathered outside WCCO studios and the couple's home, demanding her resignation due to perceived bias in reporting on local policing. She left WCCO and joined conservative independent media outlet Alpha News¹.

Collin went on to write a book (They're Lying) and a documentary (The Fall of Minneapolis) about the Floyd that challenge the mainstream narrative of the 2020 unrest. The book and documentary assert that Derek Chauvin was following standard police restraint techniques, that Floyd’s poor health and presence of fentanyl and methamphetamine in his system were the cause of his death (not Chauvin's restraint), that DFL politicians allowed (if not encoraged) the Minneapolis unrest for political reasons, and that Chauvin’s trial was biased due to public pressure to prosecute cops for Floyd’s death. Collin has gone on to be a darling in the right-wing media world (for example, appearing on Tucker Carlson’s podcast).

A trailer for the doc suggests that Walz is a communist, that his “politics of joy” is a strategy to undermine American history and identity, his response to COVID in Minnesota was tyrannical, reprises Collin’s view of the George Floyd case and unrest, and Walz's role in it, and Walz’s support of gender affirming healthcare is wrongheaded.

The doc’s website has some interesting caveats - sounds like they are putting up a legal shield:

• It contains commentary, opinion, and expressive content, including satire, parody, and rhetorical hyperbole, concerning matters of public concern.

• Certain depictions and scenes are dramatized or stylized for narrative purposes.

• Statements of opinion are not intended to be understood as assertions of verifiable fact.

• To the extent factual information is presented, it is based on sources the filmmakers believe to be reliable; however, viewers are encouraged to consult primary materials and additional reporting to form their own conclusions.

• The filmmakers do not intend to make, and expressly disclaim, any false statement of fact about any individual.

• All portrayals are offered as part of a broader commentary on public issues and public figures, consistent with protections under the First Amendment.

I listened to a podcast where Collin was promoting the doc and Alpha News, and she talked about a number of other topics of interest to Minnesotans:

• The widespread allegations of fraud in Minnesota involving daycares - it’s Walz and the DFL’s fault

• Senator Amy Klobuchar’s attempts to break from Walz - she knew about the frauds and never said anything about it until now

• The Minnesota Department of Human Services commissioner, Walz demoted ahead of a hearing on fraud - Walz is trying to hide something

• Demands Congresswoman Ilhan Omar turn over records connected to the Feeding Our Future child nutrition fraud scandal - suggesting she is part of the scandal

• Minnesota mainstream media (for example, the Star Tribune and local TV news) are under the influence of DFL politics - of course!

Although my politics are generally left of center, I like to keep my eye on what right-wing news and commentators are saying. I will check out Minnesota Mao when it is released and let you know what I think.

1. Alpha News is a Minnesota-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit newsroom funded by donations and grants. It has received funding from foundation grants, including the Michael J. and Karen B. Frey Foundation, the Mick and Sandy Lee Family Foundation, and the John Sluck and Anita Sluck Foundation.