Lies of Omission, Or Just Plain Lies: FOX “News” In a Nutshell

Like most of you, I was aware of a significant investment in Murdoch’s “News” Corp by a Saudi investor. I wondered what that might cause at the FOX “News” Channel, because FOX “News” has been virulently pushing the “scary brown Muslim murderer” meme for some time (and trying to tie that meme like hell to our present Preaident, who happens to be both dark skinned and the owner of a non-Christian middle name.)

As it turns out, I didn’t have to wait long. The transformation at FOX “News” began almost immediately, as you can see: all of a sudden they don’t want to push that meme they’ve been pushing all this time.

The thing is…. what this guy had to say would have been considered newsworthy almost anywhere else. Hell, what he had to say is the kind of stuff Hannity or Bill-O would have been all over.

Would have been. Now, I wonder how FOX “News” is going to avoid stories that might look unfavorable to their Saudi owner AND continue to placate their core audience of Jesusistani racists.

It ought to be interesting to see.

Last month I appeared on Fox News Network’s morning show, Fox and Friends, to talk about airline security. Normally such appearances end up as clips on the Fox News Web site. Granted, the Steve Doocy interview was hardly groundbreaking, but that is seldom a criterion for feeding the beast that is a major cable network news Web site. Curiously, I was quoted in a written piece on the site that got a fair amount of pick-up, but no video.

It was not until a few days later that I learned what may have been behind the absence of a video clip on the Web site. I had said to Doocy that Saudi Arabian money was still financing Al Qaeda. Doocy did not react to my comment. But ten days later I learned that Fox’s parent company, News Corporation, was, at the time of my interview, negotiating with a Saudi prince to vastly increase his stake in the company.

The notorious Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, nephew to the Saudi king, met with Rupert Murdoch in Hong Kong on Jan. 14. The prince issued a press release after the meeting stating that the prince’s Kingdom Holding Company had discussions that “touched upon future potential alliances with News Corp.”

By the time I appeared on Fox News, Prince Alwaleed was about to become News Corp’s fourth largest voting shareholder (behind the Murdoch family, Liberty Media, and Fidelity Management & Research Co, a mutual fund). The prince has repeatedly defended his homeland as a problem-free place. What he has failed to mention is that he has personally donated huge amounts of money to the families of Palestinian suicide bombers.

Alwaleed is the same Saudi prince who made headlines right after 9/11 when he personally went to Ground Zero and offered then-New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani a $10 million check for the relief efforts. But Alwaleed could not keep his mouth shut. He released a bizarre statement that blamed the attacks – not on the 15 airline hijackers from Saudi Arabia – but on the United States’ support of Israel. Giuliani, “America’s mayor,” saw a political opportunity and, confident that his reaction was appropriate, immediately refused the prince’s donation. He said: “There is no moral equivalent for this attack.”

Giuliani, who is a frequent guest on Fox shows, was widely praised at the time for turning back the prince’s money. Flash forward nine years. Since the prince upped his ante in his Fox/News Corp. holdings, we have not heard much from the normally vociferous Fox hosts.

Don Imus now hangs his hat at the Fox Business News channel. Each day the “I-Man” proves his loyalty to his new network overlords by making certain there are not too many “panty wearing liberals” visiting his glitzy new set. It is true that some of his liberal friends abandoned him after he made racist and sexist statements on his MSNBC show. But when the I-Man’s talented crew was in media exile, his producer, Bernard McGirk, helped pave the way for the show’s move from RFD-TV oblivion to Fox, thus proving that ratings trump behavior.

The prince becoming a player at News Corps is perfect fodder for the normally fearless I-Man. One Imus regular, an explosive ex-New York cop turned security expert and friend of the famous Bo Dietl, used to unload loud and unending tirades against the Saudis. But curiously, in recent appearances, Bo has been uncharacteristically restrained and has not said a word about the Saudis since Murdoch kissed the money frog that is the Saudi prince.

I never figured Imus was someone who would pass up a really easy and cheap joke. But that is just what he has done over the last few weeks. After the Fox Business News’s other top marquee name, Neil Cavuto, did an unbelievably fawning interview with the prince shortly after he increased his shares in News Corp, the Imus show continued the charade.

My, how things change, when a few dollars are involved. But it is no surprise, really. One of the things that the right wing doesn’t like to talk much about is how many of Murdoch’s “news” operations are money losers. Rupert has shelled out a lot to keep the right wing lunatics properly deluded, but he doesn’t have bottomless pockets, and he had to get some help from somewhere.

I’m sure Rupert is grateful, as Osama and a lot of people just like Osama probably are. I wonder if we’ll continue to see the press get better and better for the fomenters of terrorism in the mideast?

Crossposted at Reconstitution 2.0

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Is This Any Surprise?

If there is no way to use something to attack the President, FOX “News” is most often not interested in it. They are not, and never have been, a news channel; they are the propaganda arm of the Rushpubliscum Party. They exist to either cover over the dishonesty and incompetence of Rushpubliscum politicians, or to try to make dem politicians (some of who would be every bit as corrupt, though “as incompetent” is a high bar to jump) look worse than the Rushpubliscums do.

Haiti? Why would FOX care, really? There are no points to be made against the President in covering the Haiti disaster (although the fat dope addict tried, as he always does, to turn the President’s reaction to the disaster into “proof” that the Scary Black Man only cares about other Scary Black People like himself.) There’s no reason for FOX to be interested in what is going on in Haiti, so they largely aren’t.

Besides, they’re busy trying to teach Caribou Barbie the talking points right now, and you know how hard that probably is. Who’s got time for actual news?

Anderson Cooper clambered to the top of a pile of rubble along a ruined Port-au-Prince street, joining the clutch of men digging fervently inside a dark crevasse. As his cameraman zoomed in on a pair of small, naked feet, the CNN anchor described the struggle to free 13-year-old Bea.

The images swept the cable station’s audience, in an instant, into a moment as intimate as it was epic, as unsettling as it was affirming — a microcosm of Haiti’s struggle these last three days. Could a handful of amateur rescuers, armed with a single shovel, win one skirmish against the country’s sweeping devastation?

A few moments later, the men dragged the dusty, disheveled girl — one leg probably broken — into the sunlight. Some 18 hours after a massive earthquake, Cooper and his CNN colleagues were the first Western broadcast journalists who delivered the most indelible images from the heart of the impact zone. So he had the privilege Wednesday afternoon of interviewing Bea, who told the world that, despite her cries: “I wasn’t scared. I wasn’t scared of anything.”

Haiti’s misery and suffering have been hard to watch, but they have offered confirmation of the invaluable contributions made in times of crisis by mainstream news outlets like CNN.

Some of the Earth’s neediest people have been visited by an almost unbearable, added burden. And cable television’s pioneering outlet has risen to the occasion, making sure the world sees the painful realities.

CNN’s determination to stick with the news stands in stark contrast to its competitors, particularly Fox News, that in prime time have increasingly been committed to building their brands with political commentary over straight reporting.

When critics accuse Fox of being a tool of the conservative political movement, the company’s executives counter that they deliver serious news during much of the day.

But its prime-time headliners expose the values of the entire operation, and this week they’ve given abysmally short shrift to the biggest crisis in the world.

Why dwell on one of our closest hemispheric neighbors in its hour of dire need, when — like both Sean Hannity and Glenn Beck — you can conduct prolonged, frothy promotional interviews with Fox’s newest contributor, Sarah Palin?

Why focus on all that misery, if, like Hannity on Wednesday, you can engage conservative virago Michelle Malkin in a soaring conversation about the Obama administration’s “culture of corruption.”

Bill O’Reilly played his no-Haiti card too, managing a gripping discussion Wednesday with Bo Derek about the threat to the West’s wild horses. Not to mention those whales being hunted by the Japanese in the Southern Ocean.

Cable operator MSNBC couldn’t match CNN’s boots-on-the-rubble immediacy either. NBC anchor Brian Williams, morning host Ann Curry and others were holed up at the Port-au-Prince airport Wednesday evening because of security concerns, before getting into the city Thursday to cover the story more directly.

But at least the cable affiliate did its best to tell the story from outside the epicenter. It dedicated more than two hours to the quake in its three major prime-time shows, compared with less than seven minutes presented by Fox’s biggest stars Wednesday night, according to the liberal media watchdog, Media Matters.

Randall E. King, a professor of media communications at Indiana Wesleyan University, said he was surprised and disappointed to see Fox devote so little attention to the story. King said the evening hours are crucial because they signal what a TV outlet views as the day’s most compelling topics.

“When a real crisis comes and there’s an opportunity to really serve as a leading news organization, to make a conscious decision to not cover this is an abandonment of journalistic responsibility,” said King. The one-time television reporter said the prime-time hosts, despite their opinion focus, should have paid more attention to the crisis just off our southern border.

No, Mr. King, this is no surprise at all.

It’s business as usual.

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Joe Trippi to Faux Noise?

WTF is up w/this news? Dean was probably the most liberal, and viable, presidential contender since Eugene McCarthy. From the SwampPolitics link:

Joe Trippi, who served as campaign manager for Howard Dean’s unique bid for the Democratic presidential nomination, has signed on for a new ride: FOX News contributor.

The Swamp has learned that the indefatigable Democrat will join the lineup of commentators on call for political analysis at the No. 1 cable news network. Trippi will help FOX ring in the new year, the Swamp hears, starting as an on-air contributor on Jan. 1.

Is the man desperate for a job or does he enjoy arguing with neocons and the rightwing nutters?

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american peace- the facade

anyone else see the writing on the wall for america? tpm has been following the ‘town hall meetings’ around the country centered on the health care issue and things are getting fairly scary out there. led by the likes of glen beck, sean hannity, lou dobbs, et al, the teabaggers/birthers/ordinary americans have been disruptive, disrespectful, and downright hostile towards the congress folks they elected– or didn’t. the problem isn’t with dissent- the problem is with dissolution.

because that’s what these folks are too stupid to realize- they are pushing for the dissolution of the united states of america. these people claim to stand up for the constitution but the only right that they seem to recognize is the one to bear arms. look, coming on top of the hording of bullets and ammo- carrying a concealed weapon holding a placard that wants to overthrow the government takes on a whole new meaning. the right wing doesn’t just think politics as usual- the rethuglican party wants to annhilate anyone left of where they think. put the pieces together and it’s downright scary.

hannity, et al, is laughing at the rest of the nation because they know what they are whipping up- using race, gender, political affiliation, sexual orientation, etc. as wedge issues- these people are the mouthpieces spreading the misinformation and lies to their minions while the rest of us bask in the glow that they aren’t running the show officially anymore. make no mistake- they are working overtime to take back the states one state at a time- from the local governments on up. and, they are looking at taking back this country by force.

taking a look at the escalation of the right wing tactics since the 2008 election, folks should be afraid. verbal escalated to mob mentality even during the campaign- whipped up by the likes of sarah palin (who is still throwing the red meat), limbaugh, and the rest. the tea bag parties and hording of bullets and ammo- the rise of the militia groups again- and now carrying weaponry to an event that the president will be attending- well, i can’t see things de-escalating.

we shouldn’t turn the other cheek- we should be aware and vigilant. because they are prepared for war- and we aren’t. in fact, they are waging it right now- and it is a another civil war.

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Look who is calling the kettle black.

Krazy Karl Rove. This jackass of mythic proportions has the audacity to state in his Wall Street Journal OpEd and on Faux Noise that Obama has…cough..ethical problems, by accusing the Obama administration of working with MoveOn and Americans United for Change on ads they created and ran.

Does this fuckwit have Alzheimer’s? He single-handidly politicized every department and office in the Bush administration for eight years. From ThinkProgress:

In a Wall Street Journal op-ed and on Fox News this morning, former Bush political adviser Karl Rove accused the Obama White House of “ethical problems” in its “hard-nosed push” to “pressure Congress to adopt the president’s budget.” “The degree of direction the White House is exerting over a lobby campaign” is “unprecedented,” claimed Rove, referring to ad campaigns by Americans United for Change and MoveOn.org.When Fox’s Bill Hemmer asked Rove how this was different from the “contact with outside groups” he had during the Bush administration, Rove replied that “it’s fine to say the White House is focused on getting our message out to these members,” but that it’s another thing to “sit down and coordinate on ad copy.” Watch it:

And here is Countdown’s piece on Rovers bullshittery:

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Hannity gets Jackass of the Year award..

From Media Matters:

Because of the unending stream of falsehoods and character attacks that fueled the “Stop Obama Express,” and the countless other distortions he promoted throughout 2008, Sean Hannity is Media Matters for America’s Misinformer of the Year.

If you have the stomach for it, check out the bs Hannity spewed forth this year. The man was working over-time I tell ya! It’s the longest list of horseshit I have ever read on one jackass talking head.

Faux Noise just hits all the marks…amazing how much sewage can come from one channel.

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Why does Obama hate Faux Noise?

He has not called upon a Fox news clown yet in any of his five pressers so far according to TV Newser:

FishbowlDC’s Patrick Gavin reveals that during the five news conferences held by Pres.-elect Obama since his election, Fox News has not been called on at any of them. See who was.

Warms the cockles of my little black heart don’t cha know? I hope it drives Rupert insane.

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HALF TRUTHS FROM FOX

On Wednesday, March 19th, FOX (Fools, Oddballs, and Xenophobes) News ran a highly deceptive story in which it claimed that life was all sunshine and pretty colors in Iraq. Part of this thankfully brief story stated that the military wasn’t broken, that it had enough manpower, and that morale in Iraq was up. Now to a certain degree the story contained some accurate information so I shall address that first.

At the present time we have 158,000 troops in Iraq, 11 percent of which say that morale is high. In a similar vein personal morale is up to approximately 20 percent. More over there has been a decrease in violence in Iraq, but as usual, FOX News has only told half the story. Other factors which might explain the increase in morale are “Battlemind training” which teaches soldiers, troops and families what to expect during the deployment and which trains them how to readjust when they come back home. At the sane time there has been an effort to reduce the fear and embarrassment associated with asking for help. In 2006, 34 percent said they were fearful or embarrassed to ask for help. In 2007 that figure had dropped slightly to 29 percent. Some of that might account for the increase in morale.

In a recent Army Mental Health Report compiled by Mental Health professionals, the results revealed that soldiers who had been deployed “only” once or twice had fewer mental health problems than those who had served in three or four deployments. But among the latter group it was discovered that incidents of anxiety, depression, and PTSD were about the same as they were in the previous year’s survey: 30 percent of the troops on repeated tours reported that they had a problem.

Here’s the rub. This is what FOX did NOT mention.

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calling it like i see it

i guess i have a real problem with white folks crying over the words of black folks. i mean, seriously, did you actually listen to barack obama’s speech? reverend wright’s? or did you base your opinions on the ad nauseum coverage of the largely white news pundits working for largely white corporate sponsors? spare me the indignation. let’s lay it all out here- naked and bare in the light- racism exists- whether you are black, white, yellow, brown, purple or whatever. white folks discriminate against black people; black people discriminate against asian folks; asian folks discriminate against latino folks….. and the circle of life goes on. so, before we get all holier than thou about how liberal and progressive we are- and how horrible it is for reverend wright to say ‘god damned america’- let’s get a bit of perspective.

i am a white woman. i have never knowingly in my life experienced racism, misogyny, or classism. i have never felt, in my life, less than or that i couldn’t do anything i damned well pleased. i have pretty near always had what i needed and since i became an adult- i have had what i wanted. i lock my car doors. i lock my home door and windows. if i am walking alone, i cross the street when approached– by anyone. why? because i am a woman. i worked in an inpatient psych unit and i worked in a field with kid’s who had very troubled parents. i am aware of my surroundings and i don’t really give a shit if you are black, white or purple- if there are more than 2 of you- i cross. men or women. i am lucky. how many people of color can say the same thing? how about talking to some of the native american tribes who live on reservations in this country. there are several here in new york state- these folks live in abject poverty. how about the legal americans who happen to be migrant workers or meat plant packers in this country? they don’t live in gated communities where many may work as au pairs or lawn folks. you can feel self righteous that you don’t behave that way if you want- but many in this country do.

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Why Did LIEberman Defect? Them Damn Libruls Made Him!

A Jolly Roger preface: I am not a kinder, gentler kind of guy. I pretty much call ‘em as I see ‘em, and that can be bothersome to the point of offensive. The rest of this post will be boilerplate Jolly Roger, and if you’re easily offended…. it’s time to find a “Brady Bunch” rerun to watch. If you continue to read, remember-I told you ahead of time

So says DLC scumbag Bob Beckel, who is nearly as beloved by the FOX “News” crowd as Holy Joe himself is.

I had hoped to avoid throwing my two cents in on LIEberman’s kiss-kiss with McCavein, but Beckel opening his idiotic mouth was just too much.

What qualifies Beckel to speak as an “expert” in these situations? Why, his work as Walter Mondale’s campaign manager, of course. I’m sure everyone remembers the “heckuva job” he did on that one, right? He’s the guy that advised Mondale to hide from the “liberal” label, something that Mondale had worn for his entire life with justifiable pride. Beckel conspired with the wingnuts to trash the term “liberal,” and make those who were identified with it look like weak cowards when they tried to run from it. How many people have done the Democratic Party more damage than Bob Beckel has done?

If you clicked on the link to Beckel’s bio, you know by now that he’s also described as a “born-again Christian.” And if there’s any doubt in your mind about THAT, let me put those doubts to bed for you by introducing you to what Beckel puts to bed. He’s a Jesusistani through and through.

Shitbags like Beckel have been major enablers of wingtard turncoats like LIEberman, who ceased to be anything but a corporate whore decades ago. Of course, whoring is one of those things that Beckel can totally get behind. It’s really too bad that he’s never been able to get behind the ideals that made the Democratic Party a great force in American prosperity and opportunity.

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