Pearl Jam [ tickets ] issued a statement on Friday (4/4) in which the group claims that a report on a fan-walkout that occurred at Tuesday (4/1) night's show in Denver exaggerated the magnitude of the incident.

In an article published in Tuesday's edition of the Rocky Mountain News, reporter Mark Brown reported that "dozens of angry fans" left the Pepsi Center during the band's encore after Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder "impaled a mask of President Bush on a microphone stand, then slammed it to the stage."

The singer reportedly did this as the band began performing "Bushleaguer," an anti-Bush song found on the group's latest album, last year's "Riot Act." Lines from the song include "He's not a leader, he's a Texas leaguer," and "He was born on third [base] and thinks he hit a triple."

"There were close to 12,000 people at the April 1 Denver show," the group said in Friday's statement. "It's possible two dozen left during the encore, but it was not noticeable amongst the 11,976 who were loudly applauding and enjoying the evening's music. It just made better headlines to report otherwise.

"Dissension is nothing we shy away from," the statement continued, "it should just be reported about more accurately. Ed's talk from the stage centered on the importance of freedom of speech and the importance of supporting our soldiers as well as an expression of sadness over the public being made to feel as though the two sentiments can't occur simultaneously."

The group went on to say that Brown's article--which is titled "Concert-goers head to exits after anti-Bush display," but which the band's statement refers to as "Concert-goers jam exits after anti-Bush display"--mistakenly led readers to believe that a "mass exodus" took place.

Brown told liveDaily on Friday that he doesn't know what led the group to that conclusion.

"They certainly didn't get it from my writing," he said. He went on to say that other news outlets such as MTV and the Associated Press "have run their own versions with the facts slightly distorted."

Disputes about how the incident was reported upon notwithstanding, Vedder's actions seem to have one-upped the Dixie Chicks. Last month, the Chicks found themselves targeted by angry fans and radio stations who boycotted their music after singer Natalie Maines told a London audience that the trio was embarrassed that Bush is from their home state of Texas.

The Denver show was the first stop on Pearl Jam [ tickets ]'s North American tour.