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Fox’s Storm Clouds
Media Research Center ^ | 1/10/02 | L. Brent Bozell III

Posted on 01/10/2002 8:16:03 AM PST by Jean S

Should conservatives start worrying about the Fox News Channel?

Throughout its five years on the air, the Fox News Channel has been singled out by the media elite as uniquely biased to the right. Right off the bat the network became suspect when Roger Ailes was hired to run it. He worked for Nixon and the elder George Bush, countless establishment media types huffed, conveniently overlooking that the resumes of the Kennedy and McGovern and Gene McCarthy groupies could paper entire walls at the rest of the networks.

Not much intimidates Ailes, and this didn’t either. He launched his network with a full broadside at the competition by introducing the “We Report, You Decide” and “Fair and Balanced” slogans. This merely confirmed the suspicions of the liberal media who sneered at such sophomoric nonsense. To the consciousness-raisers who cut their teeth on civil rights protests and Vietnam, these were mantras and mottos that belonged in a museum, not bouncing off a satellite dish. 

Well, they’re not laughing anymore. Fox has left MSNBC and CNBC in the dust while pulling virtually even with CNN. Fox did it with hard work, gutsy journalists, and a refreshing outlook on the world.

So why are the folks at Fox now messing with that formula? Recent hires indicate a new direction: glitzy star power over quality. Conservatives are concerned, and Fox had better be careful.

First, Fox grabbed the glamorous, and historically liberal Paula Zahn away from CBS. Those conservatives who were wary of this move (like me) were pleasantly surprised when she delivered a truly fair and balanced product; indeed, some were actually saddened (me again) when she was lured away by CNN. 

Then Fox hired Geraldo Rivera away from CNBC. Much bigger alarm bells went off this time. Geraldo?. And this time the suspicions about this “reporter” were justified. Ultra-patriotic though he was (a nice twist for the aging hippie, that), within weeks Geraldo was embarrassing his new bosses. The Baltimore Sun's David Folkenflik exposed that a Rivera report from the "hallowed ground" where U.S. soldiers fell in a friendly-fire incident was nowhere near where Geraldo was standing. “War correspondent” Geraldo was recalled from the war before Christmas. What Fox will do with him now – or he will do with Fox – is uncertain.

Now Fox has recruited CNN host Greta Van Susteren, counted by most as a counter-coup for CNN stealing Fox's Paula Zahn. Greta will fill Zahn's old hour-long slot at 10 PM. I can tell you there is most definitely displeasure in Conservativeland over this move.

Lest anyone forget, Greta was, like Geraldo, a full-time Clinton cheerleader during that crazy year of 1998. Within weeks of the Monica Lewinsky revelations, she was anchoring a two-hour special ripping into Ken Starr for his abuses of power and his suspect "religious and Republican roots." (Which was rich coming from Greta, who never wants anyone to talk about her fervent belief in Scientology.)

By May of that year, she was sitting next to Hillary Clinton at a White House state dinner. She argued that Bill Clinton should fight any attempts to make him testify and take it all the way to the Supreme Court. Her trial-lawyer husband, John Coale, represented former Kathleen Willey buddy Julie Hiatt Steele in her attempts to belittle Starr as a vicious, out-of-control prosecutor. Coale had also given thousands of dollars that year to the budding Gore campaign and the Democratic National Committee.

What's going on here? Is Ailes capitulating to the barrage of liberal accusations and trying to make his network look more like the rest of the major media? I doubt it. This man is too much the warrior to be cowed by the opposition, especially now when his gamelan is working so well.

Is he trying to tweak his competitors and drive up the ratings appeal of Fox by hiring away their big-name stars? Maybe that’s the answer, but if it is, it is worrisome.

There’s an underlying message here, one conservatives have heard before, unfortunately, and it is this: Conservatives have nowhere else to go and will just have to accept this broadening of the message. It had miserable results in GOP politics and could have similar consequences with Fox.

“Nowhere else to go” overlooks one very important player in this drama: CNN capo di capi Jamie Kellner. Call him a dyed-in-the-wool liberal Democrat all you want, but this man is first and foremost a hardnosed businessman. If he has accepted (and who cares whether he says so or not publicly) that a major reason for CNN’s ratings free-fall is the loss of its conservative viewers, he will do what it takes to regain them. In truth, there are plenty of signs at CNN that is intent on doing just that.

Fox is going to have to be careful. The biggest mistake it could make is to take its conservative audience for granted.


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1 posted on 01/10/2002 8:16:03 AM PST by Jean S
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To: JeanS
He's right. Fox lost a boatload of credibility by hiring the chief clinton pyschophant Rivera. Now another clinton apologist/propagandist from CNN? If they're not careful Fox too will be considered "mediawhores" just like CBS, NBC, ABC, CNN.
2 posted on 01/10/2002 8:19:48 AM PST by wny
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To: JeanS
Good Conservatives are in bed by 10 PM anyway. Who cares. She will be employed if people watch her. That's capitalism. If she is able to present things fairly, people will watch (Conservatives and others). If not, she will be ditched. Ailes wants ratings. If Conservatives don't watch, her ratings will fall. We have plenty of power. I don't know why this group is scared.
3 posted on 01/10/2002 8:23:37 AM PST by GraniteStateConservative
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To: wny
I quit watching after they hired Greta. Whoraldo was one thing, she was the nail in the coffin.
4 posted on 01/10/2002 8:25:04 AM PST by Bikers4Bush
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Comment #5 Removed by Moderator

To: JeanS
I think fox needs some balance. While they have not been as biased as the others, they were rapidly turning into the kneepad reporting network for the neo-cons.
6 posted on 01/10/2002 8:27:12 AM PST by steve50
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To: steve50
I'm not too disturbed by the hiring of either Rivera or van Susteren. But if I start seeing things swinging toward
the UNbalanced form of media as on the big networks, THEN I'll be worried.
7 posted on 01/10/2002 8:30:57 AM PST by EggsAckley
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To: GraniteStateConservative
Good Conservatives are in bed by 10 PM anyway. Who cares.

Ummmm....people on the left coast, to whom 10 PM is 7 PM?

8 posted on 01/10/2002 8:31:08 AM PST by NonZeroSum
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To: JeanS
Sometimes it is very effective to present your message through a source that is unexpected. What do you know, Geraldo turns out to be a superpatriotic American. The other hires want ratings, and they know those ratings are coming from Fox's core audience. Watch them suddenly get more sensible. What Ailes is doing, all for good business reasons, could well start a stampede away from liberal excesses in the media. CNN is already seeking conservative hires.
9 posted on 01/10/2002 8:31:22 AM PST by thucydides
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To: JeanS
They've lost me when Greta comes on. I'll be heading to MSNBC to see Alan Keyes who is going to be her competitor.
10 posted on 01/10/2002 8:31:59 AM PST by tippytoes
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To: JeanS
Amen! I will be watching Alan Keyes at MSNBC at the 10 PM slot - if I am still awake at that late (for me) hour! Now, let CNN go hire Anne Coulter for their 10 PM slot (who would not take such a job, probably - but let them try) and I would switch to CNN at that hour.

Only the lamebrained non cable CBS, NBC, ABC idiots have not wised up to the public's anti-anti-Americanism dished out by all of these media toadies -with the exception - up til now of Fox!

Guess what, media darlings, September 11th turned millions of formerly passive, somewhat unpatriotic acting Americans into rabidly pro-American, pro-military, pro-President Bush, pro-war to defend ourselves and kill the enemy Americans! WAke up! Or get left in the dust. Which is what ABCCBSNBC hopefully will have happen.

11 posted on 01/10/2002 8:34:21 AM PST by Freedom'sWorthIt
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To: Bikers4Bush
I quit watching after they hired Greta. Whoraldo was one thing, she was the nail in the coffin.

i switched on Hannity & Commie last night, first segment was Hannity kissing up to Whorealdo about his leaving for Afghanistan today, talking all sappy over the same tired old subject of Whoreraldos new found patriotism that the fox people ran into the ground before Gerry went the first time, immediately changed the channel to one of those crime shows on TLC.

12 posted on 01/10/2002 8:35:55 AM PST by putupon
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To: thucydides
"Geraldo turns out to be a superpatriotic American"

If he appears to be, it is only because he believes that will do him better that some other posture. He is a lying sc**bag without any redeeming value. He'd turn on American soldiers tomorrow if he thought he could profit from taking that position. FOX has really shot itself in the foot by hiring him, an act that I simply don't understand.

13 posted on 01/10/2002 8:36:06 AM PST by Tacis
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To: thucydides
You're right about Rivera turning super-patriotic. And perhaps others have to, as a result of 9/11. I'd be willing to bet that not all Freepers here started out as Conservatives, way back when. Why, I even dabbled in a little liberal thinking 35 years ago, albeit briefly.

This instantaneous leap towards hating a reporter just for what he/she reported in the past is silly. It's important to consider that MAYBE, just MAYBE some peoples' eyes have finally been opened. I'll give them a chance on Fox; the proof is in the pudding, as they say.

14 posted on 01/10/2002 8:38:52 AM PST by EggsAckley
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To: JeanS
Fox's news spin on ERON & their contributions to the GOP last night was virtually indistinguishable from ABC's or CNN's.

Count me as one of those who is worried.

15 posted on 01/10/2002 8:39:08 AM PST by skeeter
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To: JeanS
I'm trying to be "Fair and Balanced" now. I have found other channels after the hiring of Geraldo. There is NO WAY that I will watch Greta "Clutch Cargo" Van Nothing.
16 posted on 01/10/2002 8:40:26 AM PST by Capt_Hank
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Comment #17 Removed by Moderator

To: tippytoes
I'll be heading to MSNBC to see Alan Keyes who is going to be her competitor.

Yep me too. Didn't like Paula and was glad when she left. Hiring Jerry Rivers is disgusting. Haven't watched Greta but if she is anything like everyone here says methinks that FOX NEWS better watch out. We got DirecTv mainly for FOX now I may have to start looking around for other news outlets.

18 posted on 01/10/2002 8:47:30 AM PST by blackbart1
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To: putupon
i switched on Hannity & Commie last night, first segment was

Did you keep it on to see the homeless segment? That black advocate (forget his name) was awesome, he made more sense than the other four combined, Hannity included.

19 posted on 01/10/2002 8:52:07 AM PST by StriperSniper
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To: JeanS
Another company ruining a good thing by trying to get bigger too quick. Geraldo - what a joke! Their Orwellian 'this story no longer exists' treatment of the Brit Hume/Carl Cameron story on Israel is another sign of their capitulation.
20 posted on 01/10/2002 8:52:44 AM PST by AshleyMontagu
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