Should the Democrats embrace Fox News?

The Associated Press

His bark is worse than his bite.

Featured Topic | Posted 1 week 6 days ago

Should the Democrats embrace Fox News?

Just a year ago, Fox News Channel was considered a pariah in many Democratic circles. But it appears that the cable news network is no longer on the outs.

Consider this week: On Sunday, Barack Obama made a long-awaited appearance on "Fox News Sunday," a booking that host Chris Wallace had been seeking for more than two years. On Wednesday, Hillary Clinton granted her first interview to Bill O'Reilly, a commentator viewed with antipathy by much of the left, in no small part because of his denunciations of the Clintons in the 1990s. And this coming Sunday, Democratic Party Chairman Howard Dean plans to sit down with Wallace for the first time since November 2006.

Liberal activists have urged Democrats to stay away from Fox, which they termed a "Republican mouthpiece," and helped successfully scuttle plans for two Fox-hosted debates. Obama and Clinton, wary of offending the party's base, largely steered clear of Fox News interviews.

Should Democratic candidates avoid Fox News on principle? Or is this a case of going where the viewers -- and voters -- are?

Ben likes: The zealots are upset

Allen Bevere/RedBlueChristian.com

Fox may indeed be more unfair to Democrats than Republicans (and I believe this to be the case), but some would say that this simply makes up for the unfairness that Republicans have had to endure from CNN and MSNBC. It is unfortunate that those doing the squawking on this, do not oppose bias per se, but only bias against their views and their candidates.

At what point are we going to get past this myth that news reporting should be unbiased? At what point are we going to realize, in postmodern fashion, that neutrality is impossible? At what point are we going to insist that all news should be reported, not in an unbiased way, but in a fair way? It is indeed possible to be biased and fair at the same time.

I try hard to be “fair and balanced” when I look at these kinds of things, but I have to confess that, in this long election season, my patience is running out with the left-wing and right-wing political extremists, who in their self-righteousness, believe that their views should be taken more seriously than the views of everyone else.

Joel likes: The real 'fake news'

Eric Alterman/The Nation

Fox, like the American Enterprise Institute, the Heritage Foundation and the Washington Times, is a conservative counterestablishment institution designed to ape the functions of the real thing, doing double duty by firing up the troops with custom-crafted ideological spin, "analysis" and phony scholarship while confusing the rest of the world with nonsense disguised as news.

The question of Fox's malevolence is settled. What remains is a disagreement among liberals over an appropriate response. Some argue that liberals ought to refuse to participate at all because it is impossible to do so without playing by Fox's fixed rules. But by sitting it out, the counterargument goes, they are shutting themselves off from cable's largest audience, and inviting the accusation of fear and wimpiness.

As John Edwards explained when announcing his withdrawal from a Fox debate, "There's just no reason for Democrats to give Fox a platform to advance the right-wing agenda while pretending to be objective." He also noted that he had appeared on the network more than 30 times. Edwards is right. The proper response to a Fox attack disguised as a question is, "Well, Brit, I appeared on this biased show of yours to set your viewers straight about the BS you and your fellow right-wingers have been handing them. Now here's the truth..."

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FOX knows which side of the bread is buttered

Submitted on May 5th, 2008 by Bull Moose

FOX caters to the right wing to make a profit. The religious right worships the Almighty dollar and Fox is just selling a product.

Don't begrudge a group of fascist, warmongering, money worshipping hypocrites. Just don't watch if you can not handle their sickness.

Spiritual Leaders and their flocks

Submitted on May 5th, 2008 by Anonymous

I am just curious why your station has been great at bringing out Rev Wright to the public eye to try and hurt Mr. Obama, which I don't believe it will because one man is not responsible for the other, but Mrs Clinton's Pastor or whatever was a child molester and I have not heard that on your station.

Yo, latest anonymous -

Submitted on May 4th, 2008 by John 2000

your anonymosity is showing. They have these great new 'Grow-up' pills you might try.

Fair and balanced?

Submitted on May 4th, 2008 by Anonymous

FOX is NOT news it is major RIGHT propaganda and war mongering, and that Hannity thing is a hater and is way more divisive than Rev. Wright. He is racist and just garbage and he reminds me of Bush..when he "thinks" he says something cool or cute, he gets that childish little smirk on his ugly mug that absolutely turns my stomach. Bill o is alittle better....atleast I can stomach him, but come on....FAIR AND BALANCED...how can you claim to be fair and balanced when they are very blatantly right wing bigots and every time poor OLD McCain gets reported on for something stupid he does or says it is "Oh poor, poor McSame" why is every body picking on him...when he was a POW!!!WAH WAH WAH

foxnews not perfect

Submitted on May 3rd, 2008 by John 2000

but it knocks the socks off the other choices usually

Fox News

Submitted on May 3rd, 2008 by brain62

Shepard Smith would be their anchor for nightly news comparable to Katie Couric, Brian Williams or Charles Gibson, I don't watch any of these nightly but have watched many times and from my prespective Shepard is the hardest to pin-down on where he sits. Bill O reilly is opinion/commentary program and certainly leans right but is still fair by always bringing guests on that may disagree. Fox news is different than the network news and other cable news, whether they are bias towards Rep/Dem I think depends on where you sit in the political spectrum; I think they are less bias than others.

fox news

Submitted on May 3rd, 2008 by Anonymous

I very seldom watch anything but fox news.They always are more informed on what is happening in the fast paced world events and I appreciate all the updates that they give for someone like me whom really has very little education fox keeps the news at a level I can understand.Unless someone like fox news is on I would not know as much as I do today as for me and I am getting old if you guys at fox were'nt there then all I would really have for news would be the neigbor's saying I guess you heard who is running for President.As long as I have the freedom to watch you guy's I will do so.

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