I am sure they knew about it, and it is quite possible they were using it as blackmail.
Keep in mind, they believe they control perception through media. This doesn't, to them, expose their motives. All it does is require them to jump into outrage mode and condemn this person.
In their world, this does very little to damage the overall status of the party as the party of progress and racial equality.
In restaurants, the centerpiece of the table is chosen to help break the ice or to give those seated something common to discuss over.
If it is a dinner show, it is often themed around what the speaker/show/etc is about.
Future proves past. The point of it is to give us something to spin around and look at until the food arrives and/or the show points at it and makes it part of the show.
There are a lot of ways to speculate on it, and I doubt anyone but Q or a very small few know exactly what it means.
The F-15 is a McDonnell-Douglass airframe, now owned by Boeing headquartered in St. Louis, Mo. Its 'name' is "Eagle."
Is that relevant? …. Haven't figured that part out, yet.