real journalism

Fox Hunting in America

Imagine if you will.

The Democratic Party creates a successful media outlet that promotes only Democratic Party views using highly-biased news reporting and a lineup of non-news programs that supplement its self-titled "fair and balanced" news.

I can't believe for one second that representatives of the Republican Party would legitimize this network by appearing on this outlet's one-sided programs or by being interviewed by their less-than-objective reporters and anchors.

Yet for nine years I've watched Democrats, progressives, liberals and others continuously legitimize Fox News by appearing on that channel while Brit Hume, Bill O'Reilly, Sean Hannity, Carl Cameron and an array of other ethically-challenged journalists continue to promote the political views of founder, Republican strategist Roger Ailes, and funder, conservative media mogul Rupert Murdoch.

I don't believe that we can ever insist on higher journalistic standards in the mainstream media without starting to campaign against Fox News, the American version of Pravda; the old USSR's state-controlled media.

I don't know what motivates Democratic politicians to appear on Fox, but their appearances are a bizarre and rather sad form of masochism. Perhaps it's just the overwhelming need for politicians to talk to the media...any media, but these acts of self-flagellation must stop!

Now, we hear that Fox News is about to begin producing the news for a number of Fox's local stations. This will mean a sea change in television news. Rather than being limited to the one smaller cable channel, Fox wingnut values and opinions will soon be broadcast to much larger broadcast stations in the nation's biggest media markets.

It's time for all who value true, objective public discourse to start fighting against Fox's well-established political and cultural biases. I've written to Democratic Party Chairman Howard Dean about this issue, but it's up to all of us to let our Senators and Representatives know that their appearances on Fox News programs does nothing but undermine and debase not only the Democratic Party, but democracy itself.

posted by mauiloa @ 9:58 PM