The Award Winning Fox News Channel

[lame54]

http://www.buzzflash.com/articles/honors/155


BUZZFLASH MEDIA PUTZ OF THE WEEK

April 16, 2009

Fox News

For reporting that is an embarrassment to the profession of journalism, and for being beholden to corporate paymasters rather than the citizens of America.

The bowl games at the end of the college football season used to have simple names: Cotton, Rose, Sun, Orange. Now, we get AT&T Fed Ex Capital One Papa John's Tostitos bowls. Sponsorships run amok, but these are businesses trying to associate their name on a product for publicity.

This week, we had the "FNC Tax Day Tea Parties" -- at least, this is the way the events were portrayed on the Fox News Channel. The day featured FNC personalities on the road as part of the process: Neil Cavuto in Sacramento, CA, Glenn Beck in San Antonio, TX, Sean Hannity in Atlanta, and Greta Van Susteren in Washington, DC.




You may have heard the phrase from serious journalists that "they never want to be part of the story." A good journalist knows this. But then again, we are talking about the Fox News Channel.

Covering events is part of what journalists do. Promoting events, including but not limited to putting your initials before the event, is not what journalists do.

There are several Fox News contributors who are directly involved with the teabagging parties. Then there is the outright hosting of a party as Fox News' new Web site, The Fox Nation, will "host a virtual tea party."

What's funny is watching how the Fox "News" Channel promotes the tea parties, but sometimes goes out of their way to say that they aren't sponsoring the tea parties. From Steve Doocy of "Fox and Friends":

"Right here on Fox & Friends, we're going to be kicking things off throughout the day. And Fox isn't sponsoring any of this stuff."
Gee, Steve. According to the transcript, no one said you were sponsoring the events. Guilty conscience??

Having Neil Cavuto try and justify the difference in covering events was made even more hilarious as he claimed the channel covered an event (Million Man March) that happened before the channel went on the air. Nice research there, Neil.

But it's what Cavuto said before his Million Man goof that speaks volumes to the "journalism" practiced by FNC.

"we are going to be right in the middle of these protests because at FOX we do not pick and choose these rallies and protests."
Smack in the middle of the teabagging: a very strategic position. Seriously though, you aren't supposed to be in the middle of anything. You stand outside and you cover.

It would be nice if there was footage of Fox News covering the Iraq War protests with equal passion, but of course, there is no video.

The piece de resistance was on Teabagging, er, Tax Day when Cavuto was caught exaggerating the crowd in Sacramento by at least 100%-200%, according to Daily Kos.

Why would you need to exaggerate the count unless your tie-in credibility would have otherwise suffered?

Fox News likes to pretend it's in the journalism and cable news business. But its support of teabagging events ins much more in line with its actual mission, spreading right-wing propaganda under the guise of "fair and balanced" and "journalism."

For giving this honorable profession yet another black eye, Fox News wins the Media PUTZ of the Week award.

Fox News previously won the Media PUTZ of the week on May 15, 2008.

[lpbk2713]

1. I loved how KO nailed Cavuto last night.

Cavuto was caught off (network) camera asking an official what his guess was at the Sacramento TeaBag Fest. The official guessed around 5,000. Seven minutes later Cavuto went live on Faux Noise and said there were around ten or fifteen thousand there.

[lame54]

5. find a clip of that

[lpbk2713]

8. Here's a link to the video.

Link: http://origin.dailykostv.com/w/001168/


In the link the off-screen party Cavuto is talking to is identified as a producer, my bad.

[NC_Nurse]

2. I HATE Fux news. When is there going to be a protest against them?

Propaganda Central. I am so sick of their shit. They are a poison to truth and justice.

It's so depressing that they even exist in this country. :(

[bdamomma]

3. they are the reason why there are so many uninformed,

uneducated people in the country look at all those teabaggers from yesterday. Dick Armey must be smiling his head off.

[mnhtnbb]

4. Jon Stewart skewered Faux News last night for their denial of sponsorship

of the tea parties. He put up the graphic shown in the OP, and also mentioned all the corporate
sponsorship of bowls. He really made the point that FNC IS sponsoring and promoting the
faux outrage over taxes.

[nvme]

6. you pisse me off!

you stole my fire. Lol. Even our "liberal Drive-by-media" make a point of covering a story,and Not making it an hourly pronmotion. The lack of objectivity is what makes Fox news channel a farce. How can you cover a story if you are participating in it. Keep in mind, Rupert Murdoch does own that pig of a cable channel. It is the national Enquirer of Television. Did we forget their coverage of Obama's Madrassa, William Ayers, The Honorable Reverend Wright. This cable channel has no other purpose than generate sales, that is their beginning, middle and end.

[lame54]

7. My favorite was...

Gibson's book "The War On Christmas"

They literally produced a good and were hawking it like a 24 hour infomercial

[lame54]

9. ,