Washington
The Obama administration has taken a fair amount of grief for its campaign to marginalize Fox News, saying the cable network is “not a news organization” but rather “the communications arm of the Republican Party.”
Washington Post columnist Ruth Marcus, not a fire-breathing conservative, calls it “dumb on multiple levels” – a distraction from policy messages, a boost to Fox ratings, and, she writes, “it deprives the White House, to the extent it refuses to provide administration officials to appear on the cable network, of access to an audience that is, in fact, broader than hardcore Obama-haters.”
Stephen Hess, a Brookings Institution scholar on White House press relations going back decades, says, “It makes them in the White House look terribly political, and political means petty in our lexicon.”
The White House has also opened itself up to charges that it is creating an “enemies list,” à la President Richard Nixon – a charge made on the Senate floor Wednesday by Sen. Lamar Alexander (R) of Tennessee, the No. 3 Republican in the Senate with a reputation for collegiality. He also cited recent administration criticism of the US Chamber of Commerce, the insurance industry, and the insurance company Humana, among others.
Obama’s strategy
Still, could the administration have planted seeds that could pay dividends down the road? Perhaps, says Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania.
“If the White House could persuade moderates that any story originating with Fox is politically motivated and hence suspect, it might reduce the initial impact of Fox-generated content,” she says. “What the White House appears to be trying to do is reduce the migration of stories from Fox to other cable, broadcast, and print.”
Fox has gotten mileage recently with stories about community organizers ACORN and green jobs “czar” Van Jones, who resigned his White House post after Fox and other conservative media pushed aggressively on his past associations.
“There are two audiences here,” says liberal columnist David Sirota. “There’s the Fox audience, then there’s the rest of the news-consuming public. You’re never going to delegitimize Fox with the hardest of the hardcore base. But if you can delegitimize it in the eyes of the rest of the media, that impacts the rest of the news-consuming audience.”
“If the White House could persuade moderates that any story originating with Fox is politically motivated and hence suspect, it might reduce the initial impact of Fox-generated content,” she says. “What the White House appears to be trying to do is reduce the migration of stories from Fox to other cable, broadcast, and print.”
While I understand what the Obama administration is attempting to do - quite (not silence -there's a difference) who they see as a spin-myster, hyperbullic media outlet - nothing good can come of this.
You silence one news agency you don't like, what happens when the next one pops up?
The upside I see is individuals starting to look at FNC with a more critical eye. Becoming aware of the difference between News and Editorial.
I smile ironically when I hear "Fair and Balanced" -- it's funny, because FNC is anything but... The more people see that, the better.
It all comes around.
The liberals are calling foul on FoxNews's critcal look at Obama no different then the Conservatives were calling bias and partisanship when CNN or MSNBC did the same thing to Bush for 8 years.
If a Republican wins in 2012 FoxNews will die down again and All of sudden this "thorough" investigational style that FoxNews is portraying will become partisan because it's against a Republican and performed by a non Fox network.
The other networks are Obama's lap dogs. They'll pay a high price for that loyalty over the next three years.
That's true, to an extent, but I don't ever recall Righties doing near this much crying about CNN, MSNBC et.al.
I am really getting sick of all the conspiracy theories and the socialist, communist, and hitler statements going around. Obama is being a slimy politician, and a good one at that. Does anyone think he became president by mistake? The guy is smart. He KNOWS that Fox News will get better ratings if he attacks them. He doesn't care about that. He is not trying to silence them, he knows this can't be done.
Is he distracting from the important topics at hand? Of course, but that is not the main strategy in his politics.
Obama is picking his battles. Rather than debate with Minority Leader Boehner or Mitt Romney or Sarah Palin, he is fighting Rush Limbaugh and Fox News, neither of which can beat him in 2012. It is politics as usual and rather effective politics. Now lets drop all the conspiracy junk and bring the fight to Obama's door, rather than marginalizing ourselves.
That's true, to an extent, but I don't ever recall Righties doing near this much crying about CNN, MSNBC et.al.
Funny, another one of your red herrings exposed below. Fox News is more fair and balanced than the other major media outlets. What does that say about the others? Let's just look at one of those others shall we?The upside I see is individuals starting to look at FNC with a more critical eye. Becoming aware of the difference between News and Editorial.
I smile ironically when I hear "Fair and Balanced" -- it's funny, because FNC is anything but... The more people see that, the better.
How will they pay? I do not understand the problem with Obama speaking out towards biased news sources and in my book? This makes him even stronger because he is sending out a clear message that his white house will take no crap!
Do you even watch Fox News? All they do is cry about how they think they are better than the others:roll:
Of course you don't and in 5 years the lefties will say the same thing about their whining of Fox now. Naturally people remember opposition more then affirmation.
Oh yes, Media Matters - that bastion of truth. :roll:Has anyone seen the documentary Outfoxed? I think it paints a pretty picture of the 2004 election, and how Fox News clearly takes yet another conservative direction, while slandering Kerry every chance they got.
Fox News is clearly a conservative network. It has been this way for years, only now their boy isn't president, so now their vile behavior is at an all time high, point at Obama.
I'm not the biggest Obama fan, but I think Fox is definitely has a conservative, political agenda.
For some great short clips of what I'm talking about, visit mediamatters.org
Oh yes, Media Matters - that bastion of truth. :roll:
Has anyone seen the documentary Outfoxed? I think it paints a pretty picture of the 2004 election, and how Fox News clearly takes yet another conservative direction, while slandering Kerry every chance they got.
Fox News is clearly a conservative network. It has been this way for years, only now their boy isn't president, so now their vile behavior is at an all time high, point at Obama.
I'm not the biggest Obama fan, but I think Fox is definitely has a conservative, political agenda.
For some great short clips of what I'm talking about, visit mediamatters.org
We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
Do you accept cookies and these technologies?
We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
Do you accept cookies and these technologies?