# Is Fox News really all that bad? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [October 3, 2012, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625 "2012-10-03T21:14:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![yanceylebeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yanceylebeef/32/12290_2.png) [@yanceylebeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yanceylebeef)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2012, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/61 "2012-10-15T19:09:14Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > No, it isn’t. > > FOX is moderate. However, all the other media outlets are slanted so hard to the left that FOX’s being in the middle makes them look right-wing in comparison. You are ADORABLE! ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2012, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/62 "2012-10-15T19:15:05Z")
Bless his little heart. But put strings on his mittens. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2012, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/63 "2012-10-15T19:22:12Z")
> [@yanceylebeef](#): > > You are ADORABLE! > [@silenus](#): > > Bless his little heart. > But put strings on his mittens. Knock it off, both of you. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2012, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/64 "2012-10-15T19:46:58Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > Except that particular scenario never actually happened. So in a way, you’re as bad as Fox News. Actually, if we use the latest scientific research on myth-busting, I reinforced the idea that Obama clubs baby seals. This is one reason Fox News works so well - because when people hear something over and over, it sticks in their mind as true, even if it was presented in context as untrue. That means that even when Fox doesn’t blatantly lie, it’s still succeeding at manipulating people just by mentioning a ridiculous theory over and over. I have no doubt that Fox execs know exactly what they are doing. A political moderate? You are a rare breed, my friend. But I basically agree with your assessment of 24 hour news channels in general. I can’t stand to watch MSNBC even though I agree with it. I do not deny that it’s trying very hard to be the liberal Fox and really have no respect for it on that basis. Even NPR has been getting on my nerves lately, because the bias seems more pronounced… I’m hoping it gets better after election season. I don’t think it is really possible to get ‘‘objective news’’ but some organizations at least give some nuance to the story. ---
**Author:** ![A\_Dodgy\_Dude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a87d85/32.png) [@A\_Dodgy\_Dude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A_Dodgy_Dude)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2012, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/65 "2012-10-15T21:04:15Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > FOX is moderate. However, all the other media outlets are slanted so hard to the left that FOX’s being in the middle makes them look right-wing in comparison. FOX is the epitome of evil. Turn on FOX and what do you see? A liberal spokesman and a conservative spokesman discussing both sides of an issue. How spectacularly unfair, how blatantly biased is that?! Have you no eyes to see with? Have you no ears to hear with. FOX allows the conservative point of view onto the public airwaves. Clearly, FOX is being run by Satan himself. Now if you want to see real journalism, professional journalism, journalism the way it ought to be, then read the NY Times or watch NBC News where the conservative position is virtually censored so as to protect the American public from its hateful, poisonous effects. When in doubt, always remember: WAR IS PEACE FREEDOM IS SLAVERY IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH and CENSORSHIP IS JOURNALISM ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2012, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/66 "2012-10-15T21:11:40Z")
> [@A\_Dodgy\_Dude](#): > > FOX is the epitome of evil. Turn on FOX and what do you see? A liberal spokesman and a conservative spokesman discussing both sides of an issue. Exactly, only Fox News has talking heads. Wait, what? Anyway what’s actually on Fox News at the moment is [this](http://www.foxnews.com/on-air/the-five/index.html). Right now they have Laura Ingraham on and … maybe someone is disagreeing with her. That’s balance! The top five stories on the show’s website: > [@](#): > > Tea Party Drops Hardcore Ad Starring ‘Obama Phone’ Lady > > Rudy Decimates Soledad O’Brien: ‘Am I Debating Obama’s Campaign?’ > > Obama Bans Drilling in Half of Alaska’s ‘Petroleum Reserve’ > > Tim Allen’s Hilarious Show Mocks Obama > > WaPo Juices Another Poll for Another Obama Nothing ---
**Author:** ![Jas09](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@Jas09](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jas09)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2012, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/67 "2012-10-15T22:04:33Z")
To be fair, **Marley** , that’s Fox Nation’s top stories not Fox News. Fox News has this: > [@](#): > > Catholic Bishops Slam Biden’s Remarks > > White House Eyeing Strike Over Deadly Libya Attack? > > Plan To Use Race In Rating Students Raises Alarm > > BIAS ALERT: ABC Censors Obama “Communist” Joke Gotta love how they manage to fit the War On Christians, race-baiting, the “Libya Scandal”, and communism in just 4 headlines. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2012, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/68 "2012-10-15T22:13:16Z")
Compared to the Drudge Report or World Net Daily, Fox News actually is quite moderate. But compared to actually moderate media (IE, all of the rest except for MSNBC), they are laughably right-wing and serve to echo the republican party agenda. Like I said earlier in the thread, they are a huge reason that “The Tea Party” even exists as a quasi-thing. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2012, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/69 "2012-10-15T22:36:16Z")
> [@A\_Dodgy\_Dude](#): > > When in doubt, always remember: > WAR IS PEACE > FREEDOM IS SLAVERY > IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH > and > CENSORSHIP IS JOURNALISM Oh, Jesus Christ. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 7:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/70 "2012-10-16T07:57:20Z")
> [@olivesmarch4th](#): > > oh, jesus christ. …is a founding father. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 8:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/71 "2012-10-16T08:08:02Z")
It’s just that I can’t stand that shit. You know, **Dodgy** , there are actually people in the world who live in actual dictatorships. Who see their families killed and tortured for dissenting political opinions. Your statement is a fucking insult to anyone who has ever actually lived through fascism. If you lived in a fascist state you wouldn’t be posting that stupid shit on this message board - you’d be dead. It pissed me off when liberals did it to GW Bush and it pisses me off now. Shame on you. ---
**Author:** ![monavis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e0b2c6/32.png) [@monavis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monavis)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/72 "2012-10-16T12:43:34Z")
> [@Aeschines](#): > > First off, I’m very liberal. > > Second off, I watch almost zero TV news. I catch it at my parents (not necessarily Fox), doctors’ offices, and times like that. I do see a bunch of clips all the time of Fox News programs such as those featuring Hannity and O’Reilly. And sometimes it’s a clip of an ordinary Fox News story, not necessarily anything political. That doesn’t mean, however, that I haven’t watched large chunks of Fox News over the past few years. I interpret at doctors’ offices and often am waiting for patients. For some reason, Fox News is a popular choice to have on. > > I think Hannity and O’Reilly are buffoons, but their programs are obviously and explicitly Conservative in message. One may blame the Fox Network for carrying such crap, but I don’t, really. There’s no hidden agenda, and those shows are fulfilling a demand for that message. In any case, I don’t think those shows taint Fox News itself. > > So, what about Fox News? It’s slogan is, “Fair and Balanced.” People, especially liberals, accuse it of being blatantly pro-Conservative. The thing is, when I’ve watched it, it’s seemed like your typical stupid network news without a whole of lot bias either way. Plus, they have some hot blondes on there, which is nice. > > I find network news to be boring and Conservative as a default setting. No matter what, it seems to reinforce the status quo. Keep calm and carry on, as the Brits used to say. No huge need for change, although there are problems problems problems, and isn’t that interesting? Yesssss, watch. Watch more. Consume more. And… be happy (THX-1138). > > Fox News seems well-produced with competent newscasters (some of whom are hot blondes). It does seem to tell the basic news without too much of a slant; which is to say, it’s slanted toward the status quo–just like all news shows. There is nothing truly excellent about it, yet there doesn’t seem to be anything _exceptionally_ execrable about it either. > > TL;DR: Fox News is Conservative, but all network news shows ares fundamentally Conservative, inasmuch as they subtly and unsubtly validate the status quo. > > What do you think? Actually. Fox has little news, it is mostly critisim of everything, or anyone they don’t like. They run the news on the bottom of the screen, then cut it off for commercials! If Romny should win the election, they won’t have anything to talk about!They are like the Pharisees who just look for the speck in some ones eye, and miss the plank in their own. I notice they don’t let a person who they disagree with get a word in edge-wise. They talk over the person who differs with their ideas of what they think should be. I wonder why, if the know it all’s with all the answers, aren’t running for office themselves. And in 2014 when Romney hasn’t worked his miracle(should he win) and have all the American’s working, if he will admit then he was wrong? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/73 "2012-10-16T13:28:43Z")
> [@monavis](#): > > If Romny should win the election, they won’t have anything to talk about! Because Democrats will cease to exist at all levels of government? (As a side issue I don’t think News Corp. brass like Romney very much in the first place.) ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/74 "2012-10-16T14:36:08Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > No, it isn’t. > > FOX is moderate. However, all the other media outlets are slanted so hard to the left that FOX’s being in the middle makes them look right-wing in comparison. It is quite amusing to see someone who is convinced that they are at the center, and the proof of this is all those folks who are to the left of them! Do you have any concept of what the term “moderate” even means? Seriously, if you line up the numbers 1 through 9, do you suppose that the number 9 is “moderate”, located in the middle, and that the proof of that is all the numbers to the left of it? ---
**Author:** ![Kenm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bc79bd/32.png) [@Kenm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kenm)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/75 "2012-10-16T14:52:53Z")
This is all mildly amusing. It’s like a discussion on the merits of [**hell and Satan**](https://www.google.co.uk/search?as_q=&as_epq=rupert+murdoch&as_oq=&as_eq=&as_nlo=&as_nhi=&lr=&cr=&as_qdr=all&as_sitesearch=&as_occt=any&safe=images&tbs=&as_filetype=&as_rights=). ---
**Author:** ![Jas09](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@Jas09](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jas09)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/76 "2012-10-16T14:55:00Z")
Today’s current top Fox News online headlines: > [@](#): > > Clinton: I Take Responsibility, but… > > Senator Details $19B In Wasteful Gov’t Spending > > Debate Night Pressure on Obama as Romney Surges > > BIAS ALERT: CNN Host Goes To Battle For Obama ---
**Author:** ![CJJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecc23a/32.png) [@CJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CJJ)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/77 "2012-10-16T15:06:32Z")
> [@madmonk28](#): > > Well, if you consider that Fox News viewers rank as the least informed news consumers in the nation, I think you can say it is pretty bad [Study Finds Fox News Viewers Least Informed Of All Viewers | HuffPost Latest News](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/23/fox-news-less-informed-new-study_n_1538914.html). But it is important to remember that Fox is, in a very real sense, the propaganda arm of the GOP. It is not interested in educating its viewers. Actually, it would be more accurate to say [the GOP is the legislative arm of Fox News](http://online.wsj.com/article/SB20001424052748703824304575435922310302654.html), Mr. Ailes in particular. ---
**Author:** ![Buck\_Godot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/buck_godot/32/6573_2.png) [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/78 "2012-10-16T16:20:58Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > They have been doing this for years, I lost track of how many times. They do it when someone is indicted, convicted, or even just loses an election. > > Once is a mistake, twice might be if the bias doesn’t show. But AFAIK they’ve never mistakenly ID’d a Democrat in a favorable light, or a Republican in an unfavorable light. I actually have a theory that it is a actually a semi-honest mistake, but still an indication of bias. Basically it goes like this. The person who puts up the headlines doesn’t know what party the person being indicted belongs to, but is under a lot of time pressure and doesn’t have time to look it up. The one piece of information they have is they know he is being portrayed in a negative light in a story presented on Fox. So the reach the reasonable conclusion that they likely to be a Democrat, since only once in a blue moon will Fox put a Republican in a poor light. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/79 "2012-10-16T16:34:48Z")
> [@Clothahump](#): > > No, it isn’t. > > FOX is moderate. However, all the other media outlets are slanted so hard to the left that FOX’s being in the middle makes them look right-wing in comparison. It is all relative to your own personal views. I find all of American news to be hideously right wing, but that’s because I am a typical Swedish-living left winger. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2012, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/80 "2012-10-16T19:23:22Z")
> [@Jas09](#): > > Today’s current top Fox News online headlines: “BIAS ALERT”? That is pretty darn transparent. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625.md?page=5)