He is blaming Fox News:
“I think Fox is part of ….the (news) tradition that has a very clear, undeniable point of view. It’s a point of view that I disagree with. It’s a point of view that I think is ultimately destructive for the long-term growth of a country that has a vibrant middle class and is competitive in the world.
But as an economic enterprise, it’s been wildly successful. And I suspect that if you ask Mr. Murdoch what his No. 1 concern is, it’s that Fox is very successful.”
Leaving aside the obvious facts that every news network has a “point of view” and is run “as an economic enterprise”, how can anyone seriously claim that, in a nation that has free speech, a news network’s point of view is what is destroying US growth? Does it make policy, bail out banks, create trillions of dollars of debt?
No, it reports – as objectively as any other news outlet – news and peddles ideas; just like CNN and MSNBC. I think ideas are what ultimately change things for better or worse and if ideas from the right are starting to resonate, perhaps it is because when Obama chanted “change you can believe in” he didn’t have any of his own that actually work.
David, do you really believe that Fox news is objective? It is about as classic example of yellow journalism as you can get on the airwaves (at least it was, when we had the “free preview” month around the time of Hurricane Katrina. I can’t imagine that it has changed much since then.)
Fox is more objective than the CBC. But that is not hard to do.
I don’t think you’re being objective.
Kate,
I think the news reporting is no less objective than any other news network’s reporting.
The opinion programs are generally on the right, but I don’t think that would come as a shock to anyone. Also, the commentary often includes the opinion of someone on the left – at least as much as the left leaning news networks including an opinion from the right.
Granted, I haven’t watched it lately, but I found the coverage of Katrina to be histrionic and over the top.
Fox News went to court and argued that broadcasters have the right to lie . They won.
Would they sue for this right if they didn’t use it or plan to?
One of the more common or garden variety Internet hoaxes that are a staple for tin foil hat enthusiasts.
Some digging (which I admit I didn’t do the first time) gives the case ID “2D01-529” and a little more gets the actual judgement.
http://www.2dca.org/opinions/Opinion_Pages/Opinion_Page_2003/February/February%2014,%202003/2D01-529.pdf
It is indeed true that the court ruled that the whistleblower law doesn’t apply since the FCC policy on distorting news doesn’t qualify as the right kind of regulation.
I’m not sure that the term “hoax” really applies here. “Distortion” certainly, but there was a suit.
Warren, try Anne Coulter for an endless stream of such stuff. Any time I ever did the digging, the event didn’t happen the way she said it did.
Henry, I don’t doubt what you say, but I waste far too much time on the Internet already to chase after Coulter’s stuff. I recently started a course on Ecclesiastes at a local Bible Institute and that is where I should be focusing my reading. I think Ecclesiastes has much food for thought in terms of setting priorities; no matter where you are on the political spectrum.
Henry, I think David “gotcha” and one should be very skeptical of most of the purported facts that float around the Internet, but my completely unscientific (and unverifiable) observation is that more of these hoaxes eminated from the right than from the left. I had to gently scold an aunt just three days ago for this one:
http://www.hoax-slayer.com/houston-mall-sign.shtml
I probably would have ignored it if she had just forwarded the e-mail, but she had to add her own little diatribe about how angry she is and fearful for the well being of America. She’s a wonderful person, but is far too uncritical of what she sees and hears – the ideal Fox demographic.
Gee Warren, you’re not generalizing your anti-Fox bias are you? At least try to be “Fair and Balanced”.
The last time you commented on Fox you confused Glenn Beck’s show with their news wing and displayed a rare ignorance on your topic.
If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em.