Former star host of “The Today Show” Katie Couric remains under the proverbial gun for her role in deceptively editing footage used in an anti-gun documentary. A petition is circulating for Yahoo News, Couric’s current employer, to fire her for the incident.

“The problem was … it made our members look like they were idiots.”

A raw audio recording of the interview with members of the Virginia Citizens Defense League revealed the interview was intentionally distorted in the editing process of “Under the Gun,” a 1 hour and 45 minute film produced and narrated by Couric.

Once dubbed “America’s Sweetheart,” Couric took responsibility for the evasive edits shortly after the release of the uncut audio, first obtained by the gun blog Ammoland. But her attempt at an apology fell flat with the National Rifle Association, the organization leading the charge for Yahoo to fire Couric.

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“‘Under the Gun’ is just another example of anti-gun propaganda being passed around as ‘news’ by journalists who don’t believe in the Second Amendment, don’t like guns or the people who own them, and are in the pockets of politicians like ex-NYC Mayor Mike Bloomberg and Hillary Clinton,” the NRA said in a statement on the its website.

About 20 minutes into the documentary, Couric asked the Virginia Citizens Defense League members: “How do you prevent felons or terrorists from walking into, say, a licensed gun dealer, and purchasing a gun?”

In the produced version of the documentary, the activists are stupefied by Couric’s question and sit in galling silence for eight seconds before shifting to the next scene — in reality, the interviewees promptly fired back with responses.

The first member to respond to the question asserted, “If you’re not in jail, you should still have your basic rights, and you should be able to buy a gun.”

When Couric inquired about a “terrorist or a felon” potentially purchasing a gun, another member responded, “If there are no background checks for gun purchasers, how do you prevent felons or terrorists from walking into, say, a licensed gun dealer and purchasing a gun?”

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The heated exchange between Couric and League members on the issue of background checks lasted more than four minutes. Philip Van Cleave, the organization’s leader, has been speaking out about what he sees as a major injustice.

“Katie Couric asked a key question during an interview of some members of our organization,” Cleave told The Free Beacon. “She then intentionally removed their answers and spliced in nine seconds of some prior video of our members sitting quietly and not responding. Viewers are left with the misunderstanding that the members had no answer to her question.”

The film’s director tried to defend the merit of selectively editing the film, saying in a statement, “My intention was to provide a pause for the viewer to have a moment to consider this important question before presenting the facts on Americans’ opinions on background checks.”

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Cleave maintains the edits were triggered by the producers’ own biases in an attempt to undermine the members because of conservative convictions on gun rights.

“The problem was, is that it made our members look like they were idiots. Like they couldn’t answer a basic, straightforward question. Their eyes were diverted in the video, they were looking down, almost looking ashamed,” Cleave said in an interview on Fox News. “I think because of the light that it casts on our members and our organization and gun owners in general, that Katie Couric does indeed owe us an apology for what she did.”

Nora Ryan, chief of staff at the cable channel airing the documentary, told The Free Beacon in an email, “EPIX stands behind Katie Couric” and the filmmakers’ “creative and editorial judgment.”