# 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:** 69
**Author:** ![SmartAlecCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/67e7ee/32.png) [@SmartAlecCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmartAlecCat)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2017, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/1361 "2017-03-21T14:15:45Z")
[Daniel Bentley on Twitter: “Fox News font sizes”](https://twitter.com/DJBentley/status/843859063708565504/photo/1) LIVE BLOG: GOP Pounds Comey, Rogers on classified intel leaks Comey confirms FBI probing Russia-Trump links, disputes wiretap claim. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/1362 "2017-03-26T19:52:04Z")
Sean Hannity: “You think I’m bad for America?” Ted Koppel: [“Yeah.”](https://twitter.com/justin_kanew/status/846021071358902273?s=09) ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/1363 "2017-03-26T20:32:26Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Sean Hannity: “You think I’m bad for America?” > > Ted Koppel: [“Yeah.”](https://twitter.com/justin_kanew/status/846021071358902273?s=09) Oh, my. That was sweet, sweet, sweet!! Proud of Ted Koppel today. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/1364 "2017-03-26T20:34:30Z")
> [@Aspenglow](#): > > Oh, my. That was sweet, sweet, sweet!! Proud of Ted Koppel today. Hannity looked truly shocked. I guess he usually talks to people who adore him. ---
**Author:** ![Beren\_Erchamion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/90ced4/32.png) [@Beren\_Erchamion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beren_Erchamion)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/1365 "2017-03-26T20:36:34Z")
Having a slant is fine. We’re all humans anyway, so we always view (and recount) everything through the lens of our own perspective and biases; having a slant is in fact inevitable, and doesn’t automatically discredit something–it’s on the consumer of media to read/watch/listen critically. In fact, I wish everyone would be more open and honest about that, because it’d make it easier to know what we need to be wary of. And getting stuff wrong from time to time is fine, too. We’re all humans anyway, so we’ll always make the occasional mistake; as long as you acknowledge and correct it when it’s pointed out to you. The problem with FOX News isn’t that they have a slant, or that they’re honestly mistaken from time to time. The problem with FOX News is that they lie. They make shit up. That’s not having a slant or making a mistake–that’s being dishonest. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/1366 "2017-03-26T20:42:08Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > Hannity looked truly shocked. I guess he usually talks to people who adore him. LOL, he did! Made me want to slap that smarmy little pucker off his lips. Like I need an excuse. ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2017, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/1367 "2017-03-26T23:32:09Z")
Foxnews sent out a [“News Alert”](http://thehill.com/homenews/media/325863-social-media-questions-fox-news-tweet-about-trump-working-at-white-house-over) stating that “POTUS spending weekend working at the White House”, which is problematic both because it wasn’t true, as he spent most of the weekend golfing (as usual), and even if it had been true is not exactly newsworthy. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2017, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/1368 "2017-03-27T01:47:22Z")
Maybe they thought it was news because Trump working as he claimed that he was going to be during the campaign would be news indeed. I bet many conservatives (even from the right wing news) are getting tired to carry water for the lazy in chief. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2017, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/1369 "2017-03-27T02:48:06Z")
Ted Koppel has something to say to Sean HANNITY. [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-M5FHcCO9Zc) ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2017, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/1370 "2017-03-27T03:22:47Z")
> [@Beren\_Erchamion](#): > > The problem with FOX News isn’t that they have a slant, or that they’re honestly mistaken from time to time. The problem with FOX News is that they lie. They make shit up. That’s not having a slant or making a mistake–that’s being dishonest. Well, the problem IMO is they have an agenda. Every story they run is supposed to make the viewer come to some conclusion – that welfare is too high, that the economy was doing badly under Obama, that BLM is a terrorist organization that has no legitimate greivances, etc. And most of the time they don’t need to lie to do this. What they do is only run stories that support their agenda and ignore others. If they’re forced to run a story that on face value runs contrary to their agenda, then they will spend the majority of the time trying to imprint a particular interpretation on the viewer. And they never update a story where the update would diminish whatever point they were trying to make. I’m sure some will retort “But all news does that!” but I would argue that the above three sentences are not true for most legitimate news agencies. e.g. CNN would absolutely run a story about Obama taking too many costly trips at the taxpayers’ expense, if he was taking significantly more trips than presidents typically do. What does Fox have to say about Trump going to Flordia every weekend? Either nothing, or some rant about how Dems are much worse for some reason. ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Hedonia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ann_hedonia/32/319_2.png) [@Ann\_Hedonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Hedonia)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2017, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/1371 "2017-03-27T03:28:50Z")
So every now and then I watch a little Fox News in the name of opposition research. It can be enlightening, sometimes they forget that a liberal might be watching and they’ll actually come straight out and say the stuff they usually dog-whistle around. That’s how I learned that there was never an intention to replace ObamaCare, which is why they didn’t have a plan ready. So I watched Jeanne Pirro give her impassioned defense of Trump last night , basically ripping Paul Ryan a new one for not delivering either the votes or a decent bill. Then today I saw part of a Trump progress report town hall meeting that had a bunch of ordinary people raving about how awesome Trump was and what a great job he was doing. They were also doing a lot of reporting on crimes committed by immigrants. Then something about the tone, the vocabulary, the cadence, the phrasing used in the pieces struck me. FOX is now broadcasting to an audience of one. The know Trump is watching, and they make sure he only hears what he wants to hear. They gear absolutely everything to him. It’s funny and frightening at the same time. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2017, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/1372 "2017-03-27T13:27:11Z")
I don’t know what you’re so upset about. _Somebody_ has to run the country, and I (slightly) prefer Rupert Murdoch to Steve Bannon. ---
**Author:** ![standingwave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@standingwave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/standingwave)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2017, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/1373 "2017-04-07T23:06:41Z")
[Hannity was against striking Syria before he was for it.](http://www.newshounds.us/before_hannity_loved_striking_syria_he_thought_it_was_a_dangerous_waste_of_effort_040717) > [@](#): > > **2013 HANNITY** > Number one, the threat which, I think, is real, clear, present-danger credible, and that is that Syria and Iran will, in fact, retaliate against Israel. And the second one is, we ultimately could help Al Qaeda-linked rebels in their battle against Assad and that would not be – either scenario is not good for us or them, for Israel. > [@](#): > > **2017 HANNITY** > North Korea is watching tonight. The Iranians are watching tonight. The Russians … they’re watching tonight. What is the message? How is this going to be received? That America’s back after seven years of war crimes and death and misery and the use of these weapons, that it will no longer be tolerated? That this, the goal of this is to prevent any further mass casualty of civilians, that that will now be non-negotiable with the United States of America? ---
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2017, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/1374 "2017-04-08T02:53:07Z")
> [@standingwave](#): > > [Hannity was against striking Syria before he was for it.](http://www.newshounds.us/before_hannity_loved_striking_syria_he_thought_it_was_a_dangerous_waste_of_effort_040717) This thread could have ended if someone had simply replied “Hannity” in post #2. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2017, 8:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/1375 "2017-04-10T08:01:38Z")
This Hannity tweet from 2013 is also making the rounds: > [@Sean Stupidhead](#): > > Glad our arrogant Pres. is enjoying his taxpayer funded golf outing after announcing the US should take military action against Syria. The man is positively psychic. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2017, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/1376 "2017-04-19T19:04:10Z")
O’Reilly out! > **[Bill O'Reilly out at Fox News](https://money.cnn.com/2017/04/19/media/bill-oreilly-out-fox-news/index.html)** > > Bill O'Reilly's 21-year career at Fox News has come to a sudden and ignoble end. ---
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2017, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/1377 "2017-04-19T19:12:41Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > O’Reilly out! > > [Bill O'Reilly out at Fox News](http://money.cnn.com/2017/04/19/media/bill-oreilly-out-fox-news/index.html) So long Bill. You will not be missed. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2017, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/1378 "2017-04-19T19:31:36Z")
I wonder if Sean Spicer is calling Bill saying “Don’t quote me on this, but I have it on TOP authority that there will be a very public-facing opening here at the White House. Get your resume in order so I can get it to the President, OK? Please?” ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2017, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/1379 "2017-04-19T20:43:58Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > I wonder if Sean Spicer is calling Bill saying “Don’t quote me on this, but I have it on TOP authority that there will be a very public-facing opening here at the White House. Get your resume in order so I can get it to the President, OK? Please?” White House Communications Director would be _perfect_ for O’Reilly. ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_lining](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aca169/32.png) [@Silver\_lining](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_lining)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2017, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625/1380 "2017-04-20T14:20:18Z")
> [@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? All major news in the USA pushes an agenda whether you can sense it or not. Some news networks ignore important topics unpurpose, others play gotcha for political points. Therein lies the most obvious bias. The less subtle bias is the video played or edited. Lately, the left has jumped the shark with fake news headlines, and flimsy reporting that has no sources, uses words like allegedly, according to sources with are never names, and speculation. Remember a few month back Putin and Trump had a bromance going…according to the press. I guess not. An independent news source with integrity is badly needed in the USA, until then British BBC tells the news the way it is happening in the USA with the least amount of bias. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625.md?page=68) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fox-news-really-all-that-bad/636625.md?page=70)