Fox Propagandists Arent Letting Up
This is the most obvious point: The most visible faces in Murdochs media empire, his pro-Trump propagandists, have not taken their foot off the gas. If anything, theyve chosen to floor it.
Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity, Laura Ingraham, and other Fox personalities have been parroting Trumps dishonest rhetoric undermining the integrity of the US democratic process for days now. Friday night was no different.
The rhetoric coming from Foxs biggest stars is not only irresponsible, it is dangerous. And the Murdochs and Fox executives are the ones green-lighting it, allowing it to happen on their air. If Murdoch has actually flipped on Trump, it sure isnt coming through in what is arguably the most powerful arm of his media empire
Is Donald Trump Turning On Fox News
For the first two years of his presidency, Donald Trump rarely let a chance to praise Fox News go by.
Was @foxandfriends just named the most influential show in news, he tweeted in December 2017. You deserve it – three great people! The many Fake News Hate Shows should study your formula for success!
In February 2018, he was back at it: Thank you to @foxandfriends for exposing the truth. Perhaps thats why your ratings are soooo much better than your untruthful competition!
And at a rally late last month in Michigan, Trump praised Fox for its through-the-roof ratings before running through a list of great, great friends in the media that included, among others, Fox News anchors Laura Ingraham, Steve Doocy, Ainsley Earhardt, Tucker Carlson and Jeanine Pirro.
All of which makes Trumps tweets about Fox News over the last 24 hours all the more notable.
So weird to watch Crazy Bernie on @FoxNews, Trump tweeted of the town hall featuring the Vermont senator that ran on Fox News Monday night. Not surprisingly, @BretBaier and the audience was so smiley and nice. Very strange, and now we have @donnabrazile?
There were some pro-Trump people protesting Sanders outside the town hall, but the Morning-Call also quotes a Trump supporter who attended the town hall.
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Doocy noted for one very specific VIP viewer that the show was discussing the poll because it was fascinating, prompting Kilmeade to snark about CNN being right as often as Halleys Comet comes by.
With Doocy wondering if theyd just spent the last four minutes on something thats not accurate, colleague Ainsley Earhardt reiterated that the poll was from CNN, a frequent target of Trumps and one hes currently threatening to sue.
Im just saying, Donald Trump is watchingif Donald Trump is watching, just let him know we didnt come up with that number, Kilmeade exclaimed. Thats what the poll said.
Elsewhere in the show, the curvy-couch trio gushed over the former presidents golfing prowess in a naked appeal to his enormous ego.
After reporting that Trump is playing in a pro-am tournament at this weeks Saudi-backed LIV Golf event at Trumps Bedminster resort, each host took turns heaping praise on the ex-president.
I know hes the greatest golfing president ever, Kilmeade beamed.
Athletic! Earhardt added.
Thats what Ive heard, Doocy concluded.
Pundits who don’t watch Fox News: Fox is turning on Trump!
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Lis Power
The LIV tour, meanwhile, has been beset by controversy over accusations that its just an attempt by the Saudi government to sportswash away the regimes human-rights abuses, potential state involvement in the 9/11 terror attacks, and assassination of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
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Turning On Trump Laura Ingraham Says ‘exhausted’ Americans May Be Done With Him
Fox News host Laura Ingraham, usually a staunch supporter of Donald Trump, said a conflict-weary nation might be ready to move on from the former president.
And she indicated it could be time to start looking for someone who has Trumps politics, but not the baggage, should he decide to run again in 2024.
The country, I think, is so exhausted, she told podcaster Lisa Boothe, per The Hill. Theyre exhausted by the battle, the constant battle, that they may believe that, well, maybe its time to turn the page if we can get someone who has all Trumps policies, whos not Trump.
Ingraham said Trump has been a friend for 25 years, but, you know, well see whether thats what the country wants.
Polls so far show Trump should have a clear path to the GOP nomination should he run again in 2024. However, one poll last month found that more than half of Republicans want someone else at the top of the ticket. Another poll showed that more than half of all voters dont want Trump to run again.
Ingraham is among a number of Fox News personalities who have supported Trump publicly, and were alarmed behind the scenes on Jan. 6, 2021. In a series of text messages uncovered by the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack, Ingraham urged then-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows to have Trump make a statement about the assault on the U.S. Capitol.
This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.
Report That Biden Administration Was Building Trump Wall
According to analysis by Media Matters, on May 12, 2021, Fox News reported on its website: “Biden resumes border wall construction after promising to halt it”. Correspondent Bill Melugin then appeared on Special Report with Bret Baier to report “the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is actually going to be restarting border wall construction down in the Rio Grande Valley” after “a lot of blowback and pressure from local residents and local politicians.” After the Corps of Engineers tweeted a clarification, Melugin deleted a tweet about the story and tweeted an “update” clarifying that a levee wall was being constructed to mitigate damage to flood control systems caused by uncompleted wall construction, and the website story headline was changed to “Biden administration to resume border wall levee construction as crisis worsens.” Later on Fox News Primetime, host Brian Kilmeade briefly noted the levee but commented to former Trump advisor Stephen Miller: “They’re going to restart building the wall again, Stephen.” Fox News host Sean Hannity later broadcast the original Melugin story without any mention of the levee.
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What To Watch For
Trump is privately flirting with the idea of starting his own conservative media company to rival Fox, Axios reported. Media watchers have speculated for years that Trump could parlay his political following into a post-presidency media career, but he is now reportedly telling friends a subscription-based digital outlet could launch after he leaves the White House, bolstered by some of his supporters newfound skepticism of Fox News. Fox Corporation CEO Lachlan Murdoch told investors last week he is confident that new competition from a Trump-backed network would not cause Fox News to take a major viewership hit.
Col Allan To Retire As Ny Post Shifts Trump Coverage
Count this as a point for those who believe Murdoch is divorcing himself from Trump. A top Murdoch lieutenant, Col Allan, confirmed he will retire next year from the New York Post, NYTs Katie Robertson scooped Friday.
The move comes as Robertson reported that editors at the Post have told staffers to be tougher in their coverage of Trump, with defeat looming over him.
Since returning to the Post in 2019, Allan has been a key figure inside the tabloid, shaping coverage and moving it in a pro-Trump direction. Last summer, for instance, CNN reported that Allan ordered the removal of a story on a Trump sexual assault allegation. So news of Allans departure next year is raising more than a few eyebrows.
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Brian Kilmeade Becomes Latest Fox Host To Rip Trump Over Baseless Election Claims
Fox News host Brian Kilmeade attacked Donald Trump on Sunday and said he has seen no evidence that proves the former presidents claims of election fraud.
Kilmeade joined the growing chorus of criticism from the staunchly Trump-supporting Fox News amid reports that owner Rupert Murdoch is turning his back on Trump in favor of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for a possible White House run in 2024. Neither Trump nor DeSantis have announced that theyre running.
The Fox & Friends host told Howard Kurtz on Media Buzz about his experience interviewing Trump at West Point where he watched the Army-Navy game after the 2020 election.
The president was unhinged during that period, Kilmeade recalled. …As soon as we were done, he just stormed off. And you know how long Ive known him, for 15 years or 20 years prior to him going to the White House. Ive never seen him so angry.
Hes convinced he was robbed, Kilmeade said, referring to Trumps baseless claims of voter fraud.
Ive said this before: I believe from the time when the election results came in until January 6th is the worst moment of Donald Trumps political career, said Kilmeade.
I think how you lose in life defines who you are, he added. And even if there are things that bother you, welcome to the world. A lot of times times things dont work out, and are so-called unfair. Your team couldnt prove , move on, Kilmeade added.
Your guys have been unable to prove it as of now, Kilmeade told Trump.
Coverage Of Russia Investigation
On October 30, 2017, when special counsel Robert Mueller indicted Paul Manafort and Rick Gates, and revealed George Papadopoulos had pleaded guilty , this was the focus of most media’s coverage, except Fox News’. Hosts and guests on Fox News called for Mueller to be fired. Sean Hannity and Tucker Carlson focused their shows on unsubstantiated allegations that Clinton sold uranium to Russia in exchange for donations to the Clinton Foundation and on the Clinton campaign’s role in funding the Steele dossier. Hannity asserted: “The very thing they are accusing President Trump of doing, they did it themselves.” During the segment, Hannity mistakenly referred to Clinton as President Clinton. Fox News dedicated extensive coverage to the uranium story, which Democrats said was an attempt to distract from Mueller’s intensifying investigation. CNN described the coverage as “a tour de force in deflection and dismissal”. On October 31, CNN reported Fox News employees were dissatisfied with their outlet’s coverage of the Russia investigation, with employees calling it an “embarrassment”, “laughable”, and saying it “does the viewer a huge disservice and further divides the country” and that it is “another blow to journalists at Fox who come in every day wanting to cover the news in a fair and objective way”.
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Fox News Anchors Have Been More Aggressive But
It is true that some of Foxs anchors who work for the networks so-called straight news division appeared more aggressive Friday pushing back against disinfo from Trump allies. Bret Baier, for instance, repeatedly pressed Newt Gingrich on nonsense he was peddling on Foxs air.
But it is also true that for every time a Fox anchor pressed a guest, it seemed like another one entertained or amplified bad info. For instance, while Baier pressed Gingrich, Martha MacCallum said she completely agree with questions he had about a discredited narrative regarding a vote counting center in Detroit
New Cnn Direction Post
In the ensuing days and weeks, Trump hoped to spread his message the November 2020 vote was a fraud and Democrats had stolen the election by enlisting the help of the alternative right channels all too willing to risk defamation lawsuits to help his cause.
Despite a brief brushfire of interest in the immediate aftermath, the two competitors have not been able to make meaningful inroads into Fox News viewership. Part of the problem is their inability to reach viewers, as cable operators have dropped them from their bundles. OAN for example, lost its distribution deal first with DirecTV earlier this year and now more recently with Verizon.
With neither Newsmax nor OAN now realistically capable of threatening Foxs dominance among conservative voters, Trump may be resorting to the use of promoting CNN in order to gain leverage against the Murdoch outlet.
During the Trump presidency, CNN lost many conservative viewers angered by its perceived liberal bias and constant criticism of Trump by top news hosts like Jim Acosta.
This has prompted new CNN president Chris Licht, installed after Discovery agreed to acquire CNN parent Warner Media, to institute a more politically neutral slant, angering many of its long-term viewers of late.
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Fox News Isnt Ready To Dump Trump Even If The Murdochs Are
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In recent weeks, elements within the Murdoch media empire have leveled relatively harsh criticisms against Donald Trump and flirted with the idea of Florida governor Ron DeSantis running in 2024. In June, Fox & Friends cohost Brian Kilmeadesaid the former president was unhinged in the weeks between the 2020 election and January 6a period he described as the worst moment of Donald Trumps political career. The New York Posts editorial board later reacted to the January 6 committees findings by declaring Trump unworthy of reelection, while TheWall Street Journals editorial board wrote that he utterly failed the country that day.
That sentiment is reportedly shared at the very top of the networks food chain: Fox News chief executive Lachlan Murdoch has privately lambasted some of Trumps behavior, arguing that another Trump bid in 2024 would be bad for the country, according to CNNs Oliver Darcy. Additionally, The New York Times and The Washington Post published reports in July suggesting that the Murdochs are attempting to quietly wean Fox News off its Trump-centric coverage, with The Postnoting that Trump may have outlived his usefulness in the eyes of Rupert Murdoch.
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United Kingdom And Ireland
FNC was carried in the United Kingdom by Sky, which was 40-percent owned by 21st Century Fox at the time, and operates its own domestic news channel Sky News. On August 29, 2017, Sky dropped Fox News the broadcaster said its carriage was not “commercially viable” due to average viewership of fewer than 2,000 viewers per day. The company said the decision was unrelated to 21st Century Fox’s proposed acquisition of the remainder of Sky plc .
The potential co-ownership had prompted concerns from critics of the deal, who felt Sky News could similarly undergo a shift to an opinionated format with a right-wing viewpoint. However, such a move would violate Ofcom broadcast codes, which requires all news programming to show due impartiality. The channel’s broadcasts in the country have violated this rule on several occasions, while the channel also violated election silence rules by broadcasting analysis of the 2016 Brexit referendum while polls were still open .
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Murder Of Seth Rich Conspiracy
On May 16, 2017, a day when other news organizations were extensively covering Donald Trump’s revelation of classified information to Russia, Fox News ran a lead story about a private investigator’s uncorroborated claims about the murder of Seth Rich, a DNC staffer. The private investigator said he had uncovered evidence that Rich was in contact with Wikileaks and law enforcement were covering it up. The killing of Rich has given rise to conspiracy theories in rightwing circles that Hillary Clinton and the Democratic Party had Seth Rich killed allegedly because he was the source of the DNC leaks. U.S. intelligence agencies determined Russia was the source of the leaks. In reporting the investigator’s claims, the Fox News report reignited right-wing conspiracy theories about the killing.
Rich’s parents, Joel and Mary Rich, sued Fox News for the emotional distress it had caused them by its false reporting. In 2020, Fox News settled with Rich family, making a payment that was not officially disclosed but which was reported to be in the seven figures. Although the settlement had been agreed to earlier in the year, Fox News arranged to delay the public announcement until after the 2020 presidential election.
Fox News Flips On Donald Trump During Jan 6 Hearings
Brian Kilmeade, Martha MacCallum, Bret Baier and Sandra Smith Photo illustration by Salon/Getty Images
After spending more than a year promoting Donald Trump’s baseless claims of election fraud, Fox News appears to be changing its tune as the January 6 committee presents increasingly damning evidence of the former president’s complicity in the Capitol riot.
As the committee probe has gone public, at least four Fox News hosts and one analyst have cast doubt over Trump’s grandiose claims of fraud, for which there continues to be no evidence to speak of. Some have also questioned the former president’s mental fitness, suggesting that Trump cannot be trusted to steer the country in 2024 after spreading such spurious conspiracy theories about 2020.
One such instance played out just last month, when Fox News guest host Sandra Smith, an apparent skeptic of Trump’s claims from the start, engaged in a fiery exchange with Rep. Mo Brooks, R-Ala., over the former president’s legal failure to prove that he won in any states he lost.
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“The courts are not the final arbiter of who wins federal election contests,” Brooks told Smith, citing the film “2000 Mules,” which bandies unsubstantiated claims that unnamed Democratic-aligned nonprofits engaged in a coordinated attempt to subvert the election.
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