# Fox News: You've earned your own Pit Thread! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 25, 2005, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166 "2005-03-25T05:57:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![DoctorJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctorj/32/2904_2.png) [@DoctorJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DoctorJ)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2005, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166/1 "2005-03-25T05:57:29Z")
Yes, I know, we’re already ass-deep in Schiavo-related pittings, and Fox News is not exactly a new target, either. Still, I felt that they had earned some vitriol that didn’t deserve to be buried in the other threads. Few news sources are totally innocent of contributing to the bullshit in recent days; for instance, I usually find the AP to be reasonably neutral, but they crossed the line, or at least leaned over it, with their headline [“Doctors Disagree on Schiavo’s Awareness”](http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=519&ncid=519&e=1&u=/ap/20050325/ap_on_re_us/brain_damaged_woman_doctors_4). This passes the all-important “technically true” test, but the reality is more like “Nutjob Toady Quacks Who Haven’t Seen the Patient Dispute Well-Supported Findings by Reputable Neurologists”. I would never expect them to display that much honesty, but the headline gives these charlatans a legitimacy they dont’ deserve. Fox, on the other hand, isn’t even concerned with being technically true. Many have heard the [tale of Dr. Hammesfahr](http://mediamatters.org/items/200503220009), but let me recap: this doctor appeared for a full hour on _Hannity & Hannity’s Bitch_ to make his case that Terri is not in a PVS and can be rehabilitated. (I will not even go into how ridiculous his assertions are. Namenda? Bitch, _please_.) Host and Colossal Twit Sean Hannity made no fewer than eight mentions of Dr. H’s big resume point–he was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Medicine! Ooh, how qualified he is! Maybe a drug with really shitty evidence to support its use in Alzheimer’s _can_ help a woman with a decimated cerebral cortex! But not so fast; it turns out that his “nomination” for the Nobel was just a letter from his member of Congress, which mistakenly nominates him for the “Nobel Peace Prize in Medicine”. (Personally, I want the Nobel Prize in Soul, Spoken Word, or Barbershop.) Not only that, but it turns out not just anybody can nominate one for a Nobel in Medicine; it must come from certain people within the field. So, in short, the assertion that he is nominated for a Nobel is false. There is no way that Fox News could not have known this, which makes this a lie. A total lie. An utter, complete lie. The sort of thing that right-wingers are still pissing and moaning over at CBS News. (Note: it’s no surprise that Hannity was such a choad in this manner, but where the hell was Colmes? Was he there? Could he have not called just a hint of bullshit?) OK, so it was just a commentary show, and maybe they didn’t really know. Today, however, after they could not have received any fewer than 10000 emails on the matter, [one of their anchors again referred to him as a “Nobel Prize-nominated neurologist”.](http://mediamatters.org/items/200503240007) I thought my rage would hold off, but then I read about tonight’s commentary from mediocre cold reader and Biggest Douche in the Universe John Edward. I can’t even respond to that. It just caps it. I didn’t think my opinion of Fox News could drop any lower, but here we are. I know that right-wingers like to watch a news channel whose biases match their own, but that is not what we’re dealing with. They’re liars, pure and simple. They do not let the facts get in the way of a good story. Anyone who condemns CBS or any other organ of the “liberal media” who does not call bullshit just as loudly on Fox can just piss right off. (Note: before anyone tells me to change the channel–I don’t even have cable, and we don’t get Fox at the hospital. This is all coming from what I’ve read about it. my outrage is at the fact that a seemingly legitimate news channel that many people take seriously can let fly with such horseshit.) ---
**Author:** ![DoctorJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctorj/32/2904_2.png) [@DoctorJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DoctorJ)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2005, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166/2 "2005-03-25T05:58:49Z")
On reflection, I believe it is not Dr. H who was supporting Namenda, but that other guy that Jebus is parading around. I don’t know what Dr. H’s plan is. I’m having trouble keeping my Florida neurologist quacks straight. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2005, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166/3 "2005-03-25T06:04:00Z")
Think that’s bad? I hear they’ve got John Edward talking for Terri Schiavo. That’s right, John “I talk to dead people” Edward. Un-fucking-believable! ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2005, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166/4 "2005-03-25T06:16:32Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Think that’s bad? I hear they’ve got John Edward talking for Terri Schiavo. That’s right, John “I talk to dead people” Edward. > > Un-fucking-believable! I saw that on _Daily Show_ tonight and was just wowed. Next up: O’Reilly gets to the bottom of the “Was Princess Diana Murdered?” question with a forensics panel and a Ouija board. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2005, 6:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166/5 "2005-03-25T06:25:43Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Think that’s bad? I hear they’ve got John Edward talking for Terri Schiavo. That’s right, John “I talk to dead people” Edward. > > Un-fucking-believable! Wait…if Edwards is talking to her, doesn’t that mean she’s _dead?_ Wouldn’t it be better for Fox’s position if Edwards said he _couldn’t_ contact her? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2005, 6:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166/6 "2005-03-25T06:31:26Z")
I wish the Nobel Comittee itself would ask Fox to quit reporting that this guy is a Nobel nominee (for a prize that doesn’t even exist). But **Dr. J** is dead on. I’ve greatly reduced my consumption of Fox News in recent months so as to lower my blood pressure and refraining from screaming things like “You lying cumrag!” at the television within earshot of my daughter, but I made the mistake of tuning in the last couple of days to see what they were saying about the Schiavo case and I think the election must have emboldened them to go beyond ordinary bias and heavy-handed spin and are now engaging in flat-out lying and over the top propagandizing. They are no longer distingushible from hate radio. They are no longer a news channel with a political slant, they are a nakedly partisan outlet for the advocacy of the religious right and for their idiot president. You can almost guess what’s on their daily talking points memo simply by the mindless repetition of certain key words and phrases and the endless regurgitation of the same false assertions… There is nothing to compare with this on the left. CNN doesn’t do it. CBS doesn’t do it. This is a new phenomenon. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2005, 6:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166/7 "2005-03-25T06:33:32Z")
So is Diogenette learning a new vocabulary then? 😉 Gah, you really can’t take them seriously now that they’ve got a fucking “psychic” on. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2005, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166/8 "2005-03-25T06:41:31Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > So is Diogenette learning a new vocabulary then? Unfortunately, yes amd Mrs. Dio is none too happy about it. My daughter thinks it’s funny when daddy starts swearing at the TV. She knows daddy curses at Bill O’Reilly and she says, “Daddy, quit saying bad words and just turn that jerk off.” Good advice which I’ve been heeding of late. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2005, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166/9 "2005-03-25T06:44:56Z")
“Daddy, **Diogenette’s Dad** says Bill O’Reilly is a cumrag”." “Not quite, dear. _Sean Hannity_ is a cumrag, Bill O’Reilly is a douchebag.” ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2005, 7:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166/10 "2005-03-25T07:10:44Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > “Not quite, dear. _Sean Hannity_ is a cumrag, Bill O’Reilly is a douchebag.” No, _Jon Edward_ is a douche. Bill O’Reilly is an asswipe. I saw the clip of John Edward’s FoxNews appearance on _The Daily Show_. He said that he can communicate with souls, and although Terri can’t talk _physically_, her _soul_ is very communicative. _FoxNews: Because we know you’re that stupid._ ---
**Author:** ![LouisB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dfb087/32.png) [@LouisB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LouisB)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2005, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166/11 "2005-03-25T11:24:40Z")
> [@](#): > > He said that he can communicate with souls, and although Terri can’t talk physically, her soul is very communicative. Communicating with souls is nothing; our fearless leader can see into them. ---
**Author:** ![Harborwolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Harborwolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harborwolf)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2005, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166/12 "2005-03-25T11:47:36Z")
Fox News, nominated for the Nobel Prize of journalism. Featuring Sean Hannity, nominated for the Nobel Prize in punditry, and Bill O’Reilly, nominated for the Nobel Prize of Telephonery. ---
**Author:** ![Acaciacath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c68b51/32.png) [@Acaciacath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acaciacath)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2005, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166/13 "2005-03-25T12:31:58Z")
I was looking for more info on John Edward talking about Terri Schiavo and instead found this [Terri Schiavo Status Firefox plugin](http://nik-martin.com/terristatus/). Some may find it amusing, some may find it offensive, I’m just just pointing it out. Does anyone have a link to a site so I can see what John Edwards had to say? ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2005, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166/14 "2005-03-25T12:48:46Z")
Well, it’s no Abe Vigoda’s Status plugin. ---
**Author:** ![eleanorigby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@eleanorigby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eleanorigby)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2005, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166/15 "2005-03-25T12:52:29Z")
> [@Acaciacath](#): > > . > > Does anyone have a link to a site so I can see what John Edwards had to say? Ummmm…wait, wait–I’m getting something! yes, I believe-yes, that JE was on Fox and said things like-oh, wait, it’s fading. Oh no-I’m losing him. But someone else is shouting! Is there a girl-a girl with something wrong with her? Like she can’t speak or move–something like that? Yes, there is? Yes-there _is_ because she is coming thru loud and clear. What is she saying? Just a mo–oh, she is saying, “listen to Michael you morons!” That is all. ---
**Author:** ![margin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/65b543/32.png) [@margin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/margin)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2005, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166/16 "2005-03-25T13:06:52Z")
I can’t believe people even entertain the notion the Faux News might occasionally burp out a teensy bit of the truth. Come on. Back in April, I was in a 22-hour firefight. The Ukrainians had to fall back to our position, and they had several wounded, and at least one KIA. We cam periolously close to running out of ammo, and only the air cover kept the insurgents off us. Oh, yeah—there were about a thousand of them, and 34 of us, plus 40 civilians. Faux News’ summing up of the situation: “Ukrainians abandon the city without firing a shot.” OH, YEAH, DICKWAD? Where’d these dead Ukrainians come from, fuckstick?!" Sorry, but that still pisses me off. /rant ---
**Author:** ![Scott\_Plaid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Scott\_Plaid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scott_Plaid)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2005, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166/17 "2005-03-25T13:15:05Z")
Mixed metaph-- I mean, quote coming up. > [@someone from cable news. They all sound alike to me.](#): > > We are being discussed on **the** (pronounced thee) top message board > > Ok, **a** top message board > > Ok, so a few people are discussing why they hate us. > > Well, no, I wasn’t _technically_ on staff at the time. > > Would you believe a --(mike is cut off at this point) ---
**Author:** ![Sample\_the\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8797f3/32.png) [@Sample\_the\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sample_the_Dog)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2005, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166/18 "2005-03-25T14:05:05Z")
Spinsanity is now closed, but they’ve kept their [archives](http://www.spinsanity.org) online. Try doing a site search for “Fox News”, and you’ll have all the bash fodder you can shake a stick at. Of course, the trouble is, when they’re not outright lying, they’re spinning, so even [articles that appear “balanced”](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=5971852&postcount=16) are incredibly biased. Even worse, they’re not the only ones up to it, and worse yet, news sources that aren’t mere administration shills are doing practically nothing to counter this movement. Somehow, it got to be accepted that reporting is not an independent investigation of the facts, but rather sitting back and allowing “both sides” :rolleyes: to say whatever the f\*\*k they please, true or no. ---
**Author:** ![Sample\_the\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8797f3/32.png) [@Sample\_the\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sample_the_Dog)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2005, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166/19 "2005-03-25T14:07:22Z")
Oh, and **margin** , Fox News should be prosecuted for that. They won’t be, though. ---
**Author:** ![Acaciacath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c68b51/32.png) [@Acaciacath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acaciacath)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2005, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166/20 "2005-03-25T14:17:06Z")
Ok, I realise that this was probably not the best place to ask for that info but it was the first place I had seen it mentioned and thought well, maybe it won’t be so bad. I live in rural Australia, I have no cable, no satellite. I only have dial up access to the net and at my current 19.2Kbs, (which is surprisingly good usually it’s closer to 14.2Kbs), it can take a while to search when you’re not really sure exactly what you’re looking for. I am interested in this case and have been from the start consequently I am interested in what a TV medium could possibly add. 😕 Thanks **eleanorigby** , for the laugh. 🙂 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-youve-earned-your-own-pit-thread/296166.md?page=2)