Eyes On Fox News Network

“I’m not in the business of creating some kind of controversy that’s not relevant to the general subject — one civil rights leader disparaging another over policy.” - Bill O’Reilly [emphasis added]

O’Reilly lives for controversy. O’Reilly lives to bash liberals. O’Reilly lives to draw the spotlight on himself.

So anyone familiar with Bill knows he’s lying. For those not so familiar with O’Reilly here’s the proof. While trumpeting his saintliness he let loose he had “more damaging” stuff to whet his conservative audience’s appetite.

Anyway, the word’s out now Jesse Jackson used the “n-word.” O’Reilly claims “some weasel leaked it to the Internet” but the line of bread crumbs to said “weasel” eventually cross the footprints of Fox News staff. They hold the tape.

When well-meaning folks were pressuring liberals to appear on Fox News I had my doubts. Maybe liberals will get the message now. Appear on Fox News at your own peril.

July 16th, 2008
Categories: Commentary, Fox News, The O'Reilly Factor, Fox & Friends, News . Author: sknabt . Comments: No Comments

“I’ve got two years to go on my current contract. 2008 may be my last go-round as anchor. I may stick around as a commentator if they’ll have me. I’m getting old, and it’s showing more and more.” - Brit Hume, 2006

Brit Hume, 65, looks like he’ll be moving into a part-time role at Fox News. He’ll give up his managing editor role at the Washington bureau and leave the Special Report chair. He allegedly is looking for a diminished emeritus role akin to Tom Brokaw’s at NBC where he’d work about 100 days a year. More details can be found at the Los Angeles Times.

A replacement hasn’t been named but with Rush Limbaugh signing a long-term $38,000,000 per year contract earlier in July Brit’s logical replacement is already scooped up by Clear Channel and Premiere Radio.

July 15th, 2008
Categories: Commentary, Fox News, Special Report w/Brit Hume, News . Author: sknabt . Comments: 1 Comment

I was catching up on my Tom Tomorrow political cartoons. “A Few Recent Examples of Awesomely Non-racist Political Discourse” poking fun in large part at right-wing Fox News’ toying with the issue particularly struck a cord with me.

Doonesbury tackled Fox News last week in a series where ‘ace’ reporter Rowland Hedley interviews the Shabeans, “a typical Iraqi family” who just happen to be Christians who fled the sectarian violence and are residing in Syria. Shamelessly spinning their story into a success of the US military surge while admitting “True, they live in Syria” it’s a perfect send up of Fox News’ typical pro-war propaganda.

Thursday’s installment, in my most humble opinion, summed up Fox News’ endless search for a spin-able nugget in a seemingly unpleasant (from a conservative talking point perspective) story nicely:

Fadi Shabean: “Come mister. I will introduce you to other families who’ve suffered.”
Rowland Hedley: “Thanks, Fadi, but that’s anecdotal. I want the big picture.”
Fadi Shabean: “The big picture? How big? The 600,000 Christians who have been driven out of their homes? Or the 4,000,000 overall? This is our new freedom? The freedom to flee for our lives?”
Rowland Hedley: “Which is a lot easier to do than under Saddam, right?”
Fadi Shabean: “Um.. I suppose so…”
Rowland Hedley: “Gotcha! Sorry, it’s my job.”

Fox News’ slide into becoming a mere farce has to give Ailes and company serious heartburn. They want so much for their propaganda network to be taken seriously. Unfortunately, they’re left with the hardcore credulous conservative faithful. Large in numbers but small comfort when most of the nation is laughing at you.

July 13th, 2008
Categories: Commentary, Fox News, Humor . Author: sknabt . Comments: No Comments

Is Fox News “fair and balanced?” Conservatives are convinced it is and one big selling point is Fox News presents both sides of issues in debates. Sounds like a reasonable argument.

However, having witnessed many Fox News ‘debates’ it seems, with rare exception, the conservatives always win.

Today I got face hugged by another ‘debate’ where the right slam dunks the liberals. So I took a few minutes to analyze things. The result is a nice case study in producing propaganda.

While not every debate on Fox News includes all the elements I document here most include some. Carefully selected data-minded facts or topics introduced by a conservative moderator. Loaded questions. Panels with ‘ringers.’ Panels unevenly balanced. Moderators joining in the debate or steering the discussion one way. Notice in the video clip how conservative points aren’t really questioned but liberal ones get pounced upon.

This video is a real education.

July 12th, 2008
Categories: Commentary, Fox News, Cavuto On Business . Author: sknabt . Comments: No Comments

Conservative former Foxy turned Bush White House Press Secretary Tony Snow died of cancer Fox News announced today. While Tony’s long fight against the disease is well known, it’s still quite a shock to hear the news. He was an all too young 53.

July 12th, 2008
Categories: Commentary, Fox News, News . Author: sknabt . Comments: No Comments

Just ask Steve Doocy. Busted smearing his enemies with photoshopped pictures, he’s decided the best defense is a good offense. He’s turned altering photos into a running joke on today’s show. Of course, he’s going out of his way to yuck up in advance what the audience is about to see is wildly exaggerated. True to his promise they are.

Treating it as all a gag will be enough for the folks who watch Fox & Friends because its habitual right-wing spin keeps its content within their political comfort zone. They’ve been trained by Fox News and other right-wing spinmeisters to hate the New York Times. So smearing them is justice. Conservatives will be quick to apologize for Fox & Friends’ questionable journalism.

But enough of this. I’ve got to watch more of Fox News’ “fair and balanced” coverage of Jesse Jackson’s “cut his [Obama’s] nuts off” comment. “Fair and balanced” Steve Doocy and Geraldo are doing a teaser promising not to let him off the hook for his apology. Really? I’m shocked.

July 11th, 2008
Categories: Commentary, Fox & Friends . Author: sknabt . Comments: No Comments

Scott Nathan Green in his article “Hey, Fox News Channel! Come on, do your worst” covers the Fox & Friends’ photoshopping scandal. We’ve heard it all before except this anecdote regarding the character of Roger Ailes:

“In 2004, University of Illinois alumnus and then-President of MSNBC Rick Kaplan spoke to one of my journalism classes. He told us about his relationship with Roger Ailes, the former media consultant for Presidents Nixon, Reagan and Bush the elder, who has run Fox News since its inception. Ailes has also eaten babies for sport. No, he hasn’t. But he did win awards for journalistic integrity, including a couple of Pulitzers. No, he hasn’t.

As best as I remember, Kaplan told us Ailes would say mean things about Kaplan publicly, things that even bothered Kaplan’s mother. This wasn’t a big deal, Kaplan explained, because he and Ailes were buddies and Ailes didn’t actually mean anything by it - he was just building hype. In other words, the president and ideological center of Fox News was willing to lie and berate a friend for a little attention.

So maybe Steinberg and Reddcliff shouldn’t worry too much. Maybe Fox News is just following Ailes’s example. Maybe the network is trying to make friends.”

What a leader. What a network.

July 9th, 2008
Categories: Commentary, Fox News, Roger Ailes . Author: sknabt . Comments: No Comments

“Well, some folks at the Times are outraged, as are the far-left loons at Media Matters. Now, this is rich, because here are the caricatures The New York Times used of me when they slashed my book, Culture Warrior. Nice images, aren’t — you notice the horn in there? Isn’t that nice?” - Bill O’Reilly [emphasis added]

If you work for Roger Ailes you must sign a mutual defense pact to smear anyone who criticizes Fox News. For an enlightening look at Fox News’ nasty “opposition research” operation read David Carr’s article on the topic.

Idiot or liar Bill’s latest bawl includes the curious observation the New York Times once used an illustration of him with a “horn.” I encourage you to look at the illustration in question over at Gawker or Media Matters. You’ll quickly note there are no horns just a series of dialog bubbles.

More to the point, the New York Times illustration Bill O’Reilly has data-mined is just that. It’s clearly a drawing. The Fox & Friends images were photos. While the O’Reilly illustration appears to be a reasonably proper rendering of him one would expect less than photo realism in a drawing. The expectation of the audience looking at photos, unless clearly stated or obvious from the photo itself, is they’re looking at reality.

Conveniently lost in all of Bill’s data-mined smoke is the fact that Fox & Friends did include a photoshopped image clearly intended as satire in their attack against the New York Times. If you view the clip there’s a photo of Jacques Steinberg placed on the body of a poodle to emphasize he’s an “attack dog.” Steven Reddicliffe is photoshopped in as well holding the leash. Are the New York Times ‘hypocrites’ complaining about this photo? Nope.

Keith Olbermann nearly nightly shows a clearly photoshopped picture of O’Reilly with a fat head to emphasize his massive ego. It’s obvious to all it’s wildly exaggerated and it makes a point. The photos of Reddicliffe and Steinberg in question don’t meet this standard. It’s not obvious they are photoshopped until you see side-by-side comparisons with the originals. More to the point, there’s no satirical point being made in yellowing teeth or pulling out ears. It’s meant only to smear, belittle, and insult.

Professional journalists would offer a clarification or apology. Not Fox News. Unprofessional to the core, it goes back on the attack insulting their critics with name-calling and smears.

July 9th, 2008
Categories: Commentary, The O'Reilly Factor, Roger Ailes . Author: sknabt . Comments: No Comments

David Carr in “When Fox News Is The Story” documents how nasty Fox News’ snarl is when it comes to defending its turf. A nice summation:

“Fox News found a huge runway and enormous success by setting aside the conventions of bloodless objectivity, but along the way, it altered the rules of engagement between reporters and the media organizations they cover. Under its chief executive, Roger Ailes, Fox News and its public relations apparatus have waged a permanent campaign on behalf of the channel that borrows its methodology from his days as a senior political adviser to Richard M. Nixon, Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush.”

Carr’s article is a must read.

July 8th, 2008
Categories: Fox News . Author: sknabt . Comments: No Comments

S.J. Reidhead over at RightPundits.com realizes Fox News’ reporting and analysis stinks but in a strange twist of logic asks the question When Did Fox News Turn Liberal?

We both watch Laura Ingraham’s Just In trumpeting conservatism yet he sees liberal bias:

“FOX does ‘Fair and Balanced’ – allegedly. The problem with the FOX version of ‘Fair and Balanced” is they are now tossing a fairly reasonable moderate liberal against hard-line extreme conservatives. Does anyone actually think Bay Buchanan is fair, balanced, and reasonable? She is as hard-line far right as is her goose-stepping, wallowing with Nazis brother. I have noticed that FOX may have dropped him.

Laura Ingraham’s new show is – well, it’s just plain vile… I pity anyone interviewed by her. She never shuts up and treats her increasingly far right line-up like they were gods, serving up soft ball questions, while treating anyone she disagrees with like dirt. There is nothing fair nor balanced in a show that consists of Laura Ingraham and Ann Coulter critiquing John McCain.” [emphasis added]

He thinks Fox News’ latest obsession with gas prices is a sign of their liberalism:

“They throw Sean Hannity and Laura Ingraham out at their fawning fans to claim they are ‘Fair and Balanced’ and that’s about it – then go back to the high price of gas.

Yes, gas is expensive. They highlight the liberal prayers at the pump. Don’t ever think this is a conservative gig.”

Next he makes a curious discovery. Fox News is pro-Obama:

“Once again, listening via XM while having CNN on mute, I discovered that FOX doesn’t seem to be covering the McCain campaign as much as they do Obama. When FOX covers McCain their coverage is far more negative than their coverage of Obama. Why?”

I assume he doesn’t watch Fox & Friends or their endless line-up of pundit shows where it’s open season on Obama. Or maybe, for example, it’s the ’subtlety’ of Bill O’Reilly depending on surrogate guests to pound the stuffing out of Obama while O’Reilly enjoys the spectacle with a wide grin that has him confused.

Finally, he notices that Fox News’ staff of bimbos are on camera to display their long legs not their brains or journalistic credentials, unlike CNN:

“There’s one other thing I’ve noticed with CNN and FOX. All the on camera women are cute, thin, usually blond, and have killer make-up. They’ve even made Laura Ingraham look glamorous, and that’s a monumental task. Over on CNN they seem to employ actual female journalists. They aren’t cute. They aren’t thin. They aren’t all blond. They aren’t glamorous. But – they do appear to be real journalists with real brains. I’m not talking the on-air parrots who continually read the usual news feed-back loops, but the ‘experts’ CNN brings in during the evening.”

I’ll give Mr. Reidhead a lot of credit. He’s the rare dyed-in-the-wool conservative Fox News fan able to see through the network’s pretense of being a professional news organization. However, he’s coming to the wrong conclusion in believing Fox News still isn’t conservatively biased. It’s just their brand of conservatism doesn’t quite match his own.

That about sums the typical Fox News fan up. A news source is only ‘fair and balanced’ if its politics matches their own.

July 6th, 2008
Categories: Commentary, Hannity and Colmes, The O'Reilly Factor, Just In with Laura Ingraham . Author: sknabt . Comments: No Comments