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White House vs. Fox News, Part 34
October 13, 2009 8:54 AM
It turns out last month's decision by the White House to leave out Fox News Sunday when the president made the rounds of Sunday shows was part of a larger campaign launched against the cable news network.
White House communications director Anita Dunn told TIME that FNC is "opinion journalism masquerading as news," and went on CNN's "Reliable Sources" earlier this week to talk more about the White House's view of the cable news network.
"The reality of it is that FOX News often operates almost as either the research arm or the communications arm of the Republican Party," Dunn said. "And it's not ideological. Obviously, there are many commentators who have conservative, liberal, centrist, and everybody understands that. But I think what is fair to say about FOX and certainly the way we view it is that it really is more a wing of the Republican Party."
"It really is not a news network at this point," Dunn said, while taking care to note that the White House views Fox News Channel's White House correspondent Major Garrett "as a very good correspondent."
Fox News senior vice president Michael Clemente compared the channel to a newspaper with separate sections -- some commentary, some straight news -- and said the White House was unfairly and inaccurately conflating the two.
"It's astounding the White House cannot distinguish between news and opinion programming," Clemente said. "It seems self-serving on their part."
The administration has in recent months faced a barrage of criticism from Fox News personalities, such as Glenn Beck, as well as critical news stories on controversial now-former administration officials such as environmental adviser Van Jones. Some of the stories have been perfectly valid, such as questions the White House now admits it has about the community activists at ACORN, others -- the president's speech to students last month, for example -- tempests in teapots.
More than two years ago, then-Sen. Obama found himself pushing back against a false story given air time on Fox, that he was raised a Muslim and educated in a madrassa.
In June, President Obama said of Fox, "I've got one television station entirely devoted to attacking my administration… That's a pretty big megaphone. And you'd be hard-pressed, if you watched the entire day, to find a positive story about me on that front."
On CNN, Dunn recalled the Fall of 2008 -- "a time when this country was in two wars, that we had a financial collapse probably more significant than any financial collapse since the Great Depression. If you were a FOX News viewer in the fall election, what you would have seen would have been that the biggest stories and biggest threats facing America were a guy named Bill Ayers and something called ACORN."
Dunn also took issue with Fox News Channel conducting a "fact check" of assistant secretary of Veterans Affairs Tammy Duckworth a week after her appearance on the show and not exactly saturating its airwaves with news about the scandal surrounding Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev.
She also took issue with media coverage in general, saying "we learned over the summer that the mainstream media often will start covering these total inaccuracies as a controversy and that's the way it gets into the press room. That's the way it gets on the front page of 'The New York Times.' We're not going to let that happen and stand by and let people characterize the president's policies in ways that are simply not true."
-- jpt
October 13, 2009 | Permalink | Share | User Comments (337)
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Posted by: PotatoeGater22 | Oct 14, 2009 3:42:53 PM
FACT: Fox News Channel LIED. Period.
Posted by: WWW | Oct 15, 2009 10:16:18 AM
So Obama will talk to Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Taliban ... but not to Fox News. He will talk to Castro, Ahmadinejad, and Chavez ... but will not do an interview with Brit Hume? Perhaps Obama will only speak to those with whom he feels most comfortable. Hmmmm.
Posted by: joe | Oct 14, 2009 11:02:38 PM
The White House is just following the Saul Alinsky playbook. Don't worry about it Fox ... just keep reporting the facts & don't react to their sophomoric tactics. You are the top-rated cable news network for a reason good reason. Keep it fair & balanced ... you're doing a better job than your competitors.
Posted by: Paul | Oct 14, 2009 7:32:11 PM
WWW wrote: Last month, Fox News Channel ran full-page ads in three major newspapers claiming that ABC, CBS, NBC, MSNBC and CNN missed the story of the TEA party protest in Washington. That was a blatant, boldface lie.
I ask again, how do you Fox lovers excuse conduct like this?"
Because Fox news showed some morals pointing out FACTS----the other sites should be better knows as propaganda cites that have consistently ignored to flat out lie about the GROWING NUMBER oF PEOPLE FED UP WITH THE CORRUPT GOVERNMENT showing up to protest at the teaparty rallies. Fox reported and advertised the facts---they are willing to show the number of people showing up speaking out the government while the other stations tried so hard to sweep it under the carpet. Bias in media, lies in media in masse.....coming for the numberous Obama proganda cites. To bad so many don't realize only a handful of individuals own all the media sources and that the value/money for media doesn't come from adverterising persay anymore (hence the propaganda cites continued lying for Obama which is forcing viewers away) but in the MEDIA'S ABILITY to MANIPULATE THE PUBLIC INTO BELEIVING LIES THAT BOTH OBAMA AND HIS PROPAGANDA CITES PRINT/SPEAK.
Posted by: PotatoeGater22 | Oct 14, 2009 3:42:53 PM
ABC, what is wrong with you people. Fox's story of Obama's speech to kids was perfectly legite. The story was absolutey factual and indeed Obama was forced to change his teaching plan demanding kids answer what they would do to help Obama. Perhaps, if the bots and supposed journalists at ABC bothered to read a bit of history such as Hitlers targeting of youth to help him in 1933 Germany....that journalist at ABC would understand why such demands of Obama of school kids should be very troublesome and why Obama had to change his teaching plan once snagged. ANY PRESIDENT DOING TO THIS KIDS SHOULD IMMEDIATELY BE STOPPEd for not only Hitler and obama have done such things---but so other dictator thugs Chavez and Castro.
Posted by: PotatoeGater22 | Oct 14, 2009 3:33:56 PM
===Anybody ever consider that FauxNews is so darned popular because far right-wingers sit on their butts and watch more television that more educated people?===
There is something to that.
FoxNews has the highest percentage of heavy watchers (8 hours or more) of any of the 24/7 news networks.
Anyone watching that much right wing garbage will eventually believe it.
Posted by: Ryan C | Oct 14, 2009 12:59:24 PM
Truly, this president has been correctly labeled by The Nation as, "Whiner-In-Chief."
Posted by: SjB | Oct 14, 2009 12:04:54 PM
Is Obama just worried about answering questions from O'Reilly? I would think such a "skilled speaker" would be able to trash O'Reilly. Sooner or later Obama will have to go on Fox or he will look like a complete idiot. The most televised President won't go on one of the most popular shows. As good as Obama thinks his policies are, I would expect he could defend them against any media hack.
Posted by: lfrichar | Oct 14, 2009 11:11:46 AM
I read and listen to both sides of the political issues of today. Problem is as long as we allow corporate donations to reelection campaigns and corporate lobbyists to be the only people to be heard by our elected officials, things will always be the same. The politicians only care about saving their jobs. Neither side of the aisle is representing the people who elected them. They represent the big businesses that fill their campaign coffers. This has got to change. Whether they be democrat, republican, liberal, conservative, most are bought and paid for by corporate intrests including insurance companies, banks, drug companies, wall street, and the list goes on. Change this and the american people may finally be heard.
Posted by: Gary | Oct 14, 2009 10:55:05 AM
......did you ever think we would reach the day when folks would send in their comments about the White House damning...excluding...call it what you will, a television news network because it is "one sided"....unfair...or, hell, maybe un-American. Might I suggest that the Obama administration start doing some work...other than the simple PR of the Presidency, and WE will decide who we read and we watch, and we listen to? Stay out of OUR f r e e
domains!!!
Posted by: justj joey | Oct 14, 2009 10:52:05 AM
joe Cassidy wrote: “Is everyone in the Liberal press so blinded by their spin and attack methods that the press can't tell a complete story.”
Fox’s Bill O’Reilly recently quoted from a poll which found that more Americans trust Fox News for accurate reporting. However, O’Reilly left out the second half of the quote which said that Fox also topped the list of LEAST trusted TV news outlets - more than a quarter of Americans surveyed didn’t trust Fox.
You can’t even trust their “No Spin Zone” guru to give viewers the complete story about who’s most trusted!
Posted by: WWW | Oct 14, 2009 10:46:02 AM
===Anybody ever consider that FauxNews is so darned popular because far right-wingers sit on their butts and watch more television that more educated people?===
No.
Posted by: Axey | Oct 14, 2009 10:20:02 AM
Anybody ever consider that FauxNews is so darned popular because far right-wingers sit on their butts and watch more television that more educated people?
Bragging about the success of a conservative propaganda network is like bragging about how popular McDonald's is, saying how tasty their "food" is: it's still crap.
Eat up, people...
Posted by: Rev | Oct 14, 2009 10:18:00 AM
This whole thing snacks of Rahm Emanual and Axelrod. Is everyone in the Liberal press so blinded by their spin and attack methods that the press can't tell a complete story... What is it about Emanual that keeps the press away from the truth.. The man is a sleez and everyone can see it,, everyone except the liberal press... It is wonder that the press has such a low opinion rating..
Posted by: joe cassidy | Oct 14, 2009 10:10:20 AM
How you people can defend what is being presented as journalism by the main stream media is a mystery to me.Fox ,KEEP up the good work, because none of the other so called news programs understand the American people.
Posted by: Johnny L | Oct 14, 2009 10:02:18 AM
The more the Obama admirers put down fox the more people watch!! This has been great for Fox these past two years! I won't even listen to any other news, and Glenn Beck (in his own way) is really showing this administration what for.........Van Jones is gone isn't he?
Posted by: lyineyes1956 | Oct 14, 2009 9:51:11 AM
=== This is beyond pathetic. good night.===
Well, good morning, since I missed you last night. You should go back and look at the numbers yourself. And get back with us with the exact numbers. You'll be shocked to find out you are wrong, I know, but we'll be here to support you through it.
Posted by: Axey | Oct 14, 2009 9:48:10 AM
Poor babies in the White House, being swamped with all this "mean" press coverage. Time for the NY Times to reel off a few more miles of adoring column space.
Posted by: Leg Thrill Media | Oct 14, 2009 8:59:43 AM
Last month, Fox News Channel ran full-page ads in three major newspapers claiming that ABC, CBS, NBC, MSNBC and CNN missed the story of the TEA party protest in Washington. That was a blatant, boldface lie.
I ask again, how do you Fox lovers excuse conduct like this?
Posted by: WWW | Oct 14, 2009 8:56:26 AM
What Soros wants obama delivers: It has taken Soros much longer than he perhaps anticipated to bring down the U.S. dollar. By 2003, Soros was already predicting the downfall of the dollar. In a CNBC interview, amid a slump in the dollar's value against the euro, Soros added fuel to that fire by stating that he was already selling dollars. His statement, in turn, caused a further decline in the international worth of the dollar. Now, George Soros is nearly universally regaled as a wizard at currency speculation and hedge-fund management, skills which one of his sons has said have far more to do with a certain pain he gets in his back telling him when to buy and sell, than with any sage economic formula. But since 1992, when he earned the title of the man who broke the Bank of England by becoming a major player in the downfall of that nation's currency, Soros has been more of a prophet reaping the returns on his self-fulfilled prophecies than he has even been a speculator.
But this much is certain. Soros has long thought America far too powerful, and has seen the dollar's supremacy as every bit as dangerous to his internationalist schemes as our military strength. So far, President Barack Obama has done nothing whatsoever which would seem at odds with those scheming Soros doctrines.
Posted by: Jenny | Oct 14, 2009 8:17:59 AM
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