Fox News Deserves A ‘Special Award’
By K. Daniel Glover | June 10, 2009
So said conservative Washington Post columnist Charles Krauthammer when he accepted the 2009 Eric Breindel Award for Excellence in Opinion Journalism yesterday.
Krauthammer said Fox "has done a great service to the American polity" by shattering the liberal media's dominance of the broadcast world. "The reason Fox News has thrived and grown," he said, "is because it offers a vibrant and honest alternative to those who could not abide yet another day of the news delivered to them beneath layer after layer of often undisguised liberalism."
This excerpt from Krauthammer's speech is particularly telling:
A few years ago, I was on a radio show with a well-known political reporter who lamented the loss of a pristine past in which the whole country could agree on what the facts were, even if they disagreed on how to interpret and act upon them. All that was gone now. The country had become so fractured we couldn't even agree on what reality was. What she meant was that the day in which the front page of The New York Times was given scriptural authority everywhere was gone, shattered by the rise of Fox News.
What left me slack-jawed was the fact that she, like the cohort of mainstream journalists she represented so perfectly, was so ideologically blinkered that she could not fathom the plain fact that the liberal media were presenting the news and the world through a particular lens. The idea that it was particular, and that there might be competing ones, perhaps even superior ones, was beyond her ken.
It's on par with the anecdote I recounted a few weeks ago about a former colleague who naively argued that President Obama has been subjected to far more hateful speech on conservative talk radio than any unhinged lefty attacks directed at President Bush. He recoiled when I suggested that he broaden his reading horizons to include writers like Krauthammer, who coined the phrase "Bush Derangement Syndrome."
Although that journalist works for an inside-the-Beltway publication rightfully lauded for its objective reporting, he definitely falls into the category of people who are so "ideologically blinkered" that they can't imagine journalists are capable, whether by ignorance or intent, of distorting reality because they see the world through a liberal lens.
Until he and others in the media awaken to the reality that journalists are flawed human beings susceptible to internal biases, outlets like The New York Times, CNN and CBS will continue their decline as Fox News lures readers and viewers who have become wise to the liberal media's ways.
UPDATE: Don Surber of the Charleston Daily Mail in West Virginia (where I worked as an intern in 1989) compiled a handy, albeit short, list of liberal media bias over the years that helps explain the public's shift toward Fox News. His examples of pre-Fox bias included:
- Praising Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev but trashing President Reagan;
- Driving Republican Sen. Bob Packwood from office for sexual harassment while excusing President Clinton's recurring instances of the same transgression;
- And blowing the 1991 economic downturn out of proportion;
Go to Surber's blog for the rest of the list -- and bookmark his site while you're there. He's one of my must-reads and should be for you, too.
K. Daniel Glover is a project manager for Accuracy In Media. He has worked as an editor, writer and new media specialist in the Washington area since 1991, spending most of that time at National Journal and Congressional Quarterly.
14 Comments | Post a Comment
FOX NEWS IS THE ONLY NEWS TO WATCH IF YOU WANT ACCURATE AND FAIR COVERAGE.
I ONLY WATCH THE OTHER CHANNELS OCCASIONALLY TO SEE HOW FAR LEFT THEY ARE. OUR COUNTRY IS BEING CHANGED. OBAMA IS TAKING US DOWN THE ROAD TO SOCIALISM AT A BREAKNECK SPEED.
Ted’s influence is being felt with the people that work at both News Corp and at Time Warner. These people include Bernard Goldberg, Larry McReynolds, Chip Caray, Kyle Petty, Ralph Sheheen, Bill Webber, Matt Yocum, Frank Caliendo, Nina Easton, Adam Lashinsky, Pam Oliver, and Dick Stockton.
They must be viewed with suspicion, especially if Dr. Gupta gets order from Mr. Bewkes to pump these people up full of truth serum to sell their FOX friends up the river.
What Mr. Krauthammer said may apply to Fox nationally, but it sure doen’s apply to Fox2 Detroit whose news reporting is as badly left wing in its bias, protecting leftists from President Obama, Governor Granholm, and former Congressman David Bonior from any meaningful media scruitany, as badly as any of the other Detroit media.
Forgetting “liberal” and “conservative”, Republican or Democrat - - Fox News has some of the most unappealing on-air/on-camera personalities of any network on TV.
Time Warner Cable broadcast the very first day Fox News was on the air. They have the most popular, attractive, intelligent people in any news organization.
The fact is, Fox is the ONLY news organization, including liberal news papers, and all MSM faux news programs on other stations.
How much coverage in time did the MSM give to the murder of Dr. Tiller up to this point? Answer: over 30 hours.
How much MSM coverage in time was given to the murder of of the 19 year old Military Recruiter and the wounding of another by a Black Domestic Muslim Terrorist up to this point? Answer: 17 Seconds on ABC ONLY.
Fox news gave time to both, slightly more on Tiller.
Same with the Von Braun’s killing of a guard to the Holocaust Museum
How much time was given to the Conviction of Norman Hsu (is serving 20 years for campaign fraud), most went to Hillary. Answer: No coverage at all in the Main Stream Media.
Fox News reported the Hsu conviction 3 to 5 minutes on average per every two hours.
Fox also has more Liberal contributors than Republicans; they are given their views without putting them down, and treat them with respect.
If you watch all the news shows, it is undeniable.
i think fix news is a joke. ive never undertood how smart people can watch their shows. every day it seems there is a big story about obama that goes uncovered by fix news. there stories are irrelevant. example, obama fired the inspector general for political reasons and because hes a tyrant. when bush fired us attorneys far less important than the inspector general it was huge news. not a peep out of fox news about this huge story. they have way to many marxists on there shows that go unchallenged. just think about it. the real important stories arent covered by vannity or oreilly its all fixed. im mostly dissapointed in people who think its a great station.,
Post 7:
Fox News is Marxist, not even close. If you want Marxism in the News tune into MSNBC, CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC…
They have been pulling the wool over our eyes for at least the past 25-30 years. They fail to report the truth about Obama or any other Marxist Politician.
Fox News deserves a ‘special award’ for presenting an alternate view of reality. While other news networks (though it’s not really fair to consider Fox News an actual ‘news’ network) have won awards for journalistic excellence, I’ve yet to see Fox win a Peabody Award. Have you? It “thrives” the same way the Jerry Springer Show thrived: by appealing to people’s most base instincts. All the networks have their fair share of loudmouth blowhards, but none to the degree of Fox. Listening to and watching the Fox commentators is like watching two old, fat white guys, drunkenly arguing at the local bar, each raising his voice to be heard over the other guy, with neither of them making any sense. But then, what can you expect from a network that gives its viewers Geraldo Rivera? LOL. Now when it comes to tabloid-style news, Fox definitely should win an award.
Re: Post 9;
I kinda’ like your “Fox News/Jerry Springer” simile!
And, there’s no doubt that, for the most part, the cable “newstalk”, “infotainment” and “bizbuzz” channels are ALL “tabloid” in nature.
They’ve each selected a certain niche market and they all peddle what their marketing research consultants tell them their niche market wants to see or hear (“controversial” and “outrageous” are the basic staples)! The only “real news” on any of them comes via the silent “crawl” at the bottom of each’s screen!
ive been critical of fox news. but compared to the other media fox news is way better. sure its not perfect but they do deserve an award. unfortunatly they won’t get one because there fair and balanced. i guess you have to be like all the rest who are state run then you get an award. i was talking to a democrat the other day and she compared our media to chinas media and said what the hell happened. lots of democrats watch fox news.
Re: Post 11;
Fox News is just as biased as is MSNBC! The ONLY difference is that Fox News represents the right; and MSNBC represents the left. One is Democratic; the other is Republican. One is liberal; the other is conservative.
Each is as biased as is the other - just in opposite directions - and in direct opposition to each other.
Of all News shows combined, Fox is the only one not in the tank for obama and the media love affair with him, they are at his beck and call. With every broadcast they omit what obama is doing to our country. The MSM is not biased, they are the equivalent of being part of the president’s team.
I do not see Fox as biased, when they expose what is happening, they bring in democrats from both Houses and give them a fair chance for explanations as to what they have to say for the Left, which is rarely ever true.
MSNBC first began to be a model of Fox, but NBC did not like that format, and went to the radical far let. Chris Matthews was a speech writer for Jimmy Carter, and we all know how bad carter was (and still is), have obama making carter look like a Republican.
Such as during the Republican / Democrat / Independents all attending the first round of TEA Parties (Taxed - Enough - Already), MSNBC characterized them as “Teabaggers”, for those of you who may not know what teabagging means. I had never hear the term before, (call me naive on this subject) had to investigate what teabagging was. Once I found out, I was outraged they would say something like this (teabagging is a homosexual term for two males dangling their scrotum’s over another males mouth, that is as far as I will say about this description). But, what made it even worse is, the news director from MSNBC and parent NBC allowed it to be continued for quite a while.
Fox is what the MSM was back in the pre-1970’s. If all you see of Fox are the two prime time programs, that is two shows (Hannity and O’Reilley, some do not like Beck, if that is the case, make it three shows) out of 14 hours of programming.
I dare any of you to sign up for a free MRC.com newsletter, and just for the weekly Cyberalert, it takes direct stories and quotes from the MSM (MRC is stands for Media Research Center) who knows, you just may learn something new.
Now comes the Washington Post setting up “Salons” (dinner parties and get together) which will be initially paid for by White House lobbyists at the papers publisher’s home. For $2,500.00 to $25,000 you, and media members will have the chance to meet with lobbyists and White House Staff members, and policy makers) 10 of these were planed. Once this was leaked, the paper cancelled these salons due to Ethics Violations.
And FYI, Murdoch (Owner of FOX news actually voted for obama). IMHO President obama’s picture should be shown in the dictionary beside the words, unethical, liar, and socialism/Marxism.
He openly lied to the American public about his policies. He lied again when he claimed Americans would still have access to the choice of Health Care, what he didn’t mention is that each time you visit a private Heath Care Provider, you will be fined $1,000.00 until you are forced to joining Universal Health Care. Has anyone heard this on MSNBC?
Explanation here:
http://www.consumerwatchdog.org/patients/articles/?storyId=27290
The Europeans and Canadian people are outraged, as they depended on the United States to go for immediate care. As it is now in Canada, there is a six month wait for Chemo or Radiation treatment for all forms of Cancer.
Here in South Africa we don’t get Fox news but we are always hearing good stuff about them and the work that they do, I have been reading here for a while and it seems that Fox is much better than CNN not many people seem to like this News station.
June 10 at 1:10 pm | #1 | Link
When Fox first started up they was often excluded from many of the cable companys’ lineup of channels. Ted Turner exerted his considerable influence to keep Fox News off cable. Thanks to satellite TV Fox News was able to do an end-around that Ted could not stop.