NOTICE: Serious discussion only, I don't want people throwing one sentence long posts at me saying "Faux News sucks".

Now, I have to wonder, why do people (CN Boiler Room in particular) hate Fox News so much? I grew up in a house where Fox News was basically the only news channel watched. My dad watches it, my grandfather watches it and I even watch it from time to time. I've posed this exact question to my father before, he told me, and I quote,



So, I pose this question to the CN Boiler Room. Explain to me why you see Fox News as (from what I gather) as an unreliable, biased news channel. And if you can, then by all means, let me know when Fox News has been inaccurate in their reporting, without citing Glenn Beck or any other talk show on Fox News, just the straight news that's reported on it.

Fox news is purposely misleading and is extremely biased towards the neoconservative agenda. Their slogan that they're a "fair and balanced" form of media is one of the longest running jokes on television. Their newscasters are constantly badgering and trolling legitimate research, proven facts, etc.

What sealed the deal for me though was the networks refusal to air an investigation by Fox researchers on the Monsanto Milk Scandal, ie;(that it was carcinogenic). In doing so they endangered peoples lives due to a partnership they shared with a company.

Fox news is unenlightening, unintelligible, neoconservative -- bile. Nobody in their right mind would use it as a legitimate source of news.

FOX is the most misleading and misinforming bunch out of the American media outlets. The clowns they employ only worsen the effect. That is why I dislike FOX news, it isn't news.

I would love a source to this. Are you 100% sure that this was the straight news and not one of the evening talk shows? There's a legitimate difference between a talk show where people argue about their veiwpoints and actual news.

I dislike major media outlets since whenever I turn it on, it's either useless crap or it's biased reporting.

For example, just pulled up Fox New's website and saw this....


On the side video screen you have "Lindsey Lohan at all-time low?, NBC Anchor mistakes Jackson for Sharpton, and Will Obama's war with Fox backfire?"

CNN isn't much better... the main story? "Behind Michael Jackson's Mad Money"

MSNBC's website doesn't seem to have any stories like the others, but it's other than the Health Care Public Option story, I can't see a major story of interest in its first section... either way, doesn't absolve the channel of it's bias to the left.

The one story shared by all three news websites was that plane missing MSTP by like an hour and flying over Wisconsin (what was up with that anyway?)


All these guys might have unbiased news from time to time, but sadly it gets drowned out in nonsensical, biased crap that makes up cable news.

I don't live in America so I don't watch Fox News; however, I would remind you that someone doesn't have to be demonstratively factually incorrect to be biased/nonsense. There can be bias in the stories covered or the time given to them, the opinions voiced and the time given to them (eg. bring on a bunch of talking heads to question global warming - even if the news station doesn't state 'it's a hoax', that's still the strong impression the viewer is left with), there can be lies of omission, etc.

The most obvious recent example of this (stolen from the Daily Show for the aforementioned reason) would be the coverage given to the 'tea party' march compared to lack of coverage given to the gay rights march. You couldn't argue that Fox News was factually "wrong", but you can easily argue that it shows that they are more interested in reporting an agenda than the news.

More directly, they did once take former employees to court on the basis that it was legal for them to lie: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jane_Akre

And just for fun, since someone sent me this image last night: http://files.kinabrew.com/images/foxnews.jpg

Because it shows an opposite view than liberals believe in. Because they disagree with the conservative view (spin?) that makes it all lies and not news at all.

Conservatives feel the same way about some of the other liberal channels.

It's all dumb. If you don't agree with it, then don't watch it. Quit crying.

Way to completely handwave the issue. You totally resolved that for us. We're all dumb liberals and conservatives, that MUST be the reason. Get serioius, FOX news is a horrible news service because it spreads misinformation and misleading reporting. It's nowhere near what a good news organization should be and is.

I have problems with both their opinion shows and their news coverage.
1) Their opinion shows all exclusively feature conservatives (Beck, Hannity, O'Reilly). I actually have no problem with conservative shows but for some reason Fox is giving shows to conservatives who also happen to be idiots.
2) Their "news" shows are very selective about what news they show and how they present it. For example - Fox spent weeks promoting and cheerleading the Teabag movement (not just covering it), giving breathless coverage to the march in Washington, and then managed to completely ignore a march of almost identical size that featured gay rights advocates just a couple of weeks later. Their coverage of some of the most important issues of the day (e.g., health care debate, global warming, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan) are almost completely slanted toward the conservative or idiotic position. This slant is reflected in their opinions shows (Beck et al), their morning show, their business show, their editorial discussions (Fred Barnes, Krauthammer, Hume et al), and in the way that they select who to interview or what to cover in the rest of their programming.

Watch this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axU9ngbTxKw

When the entire point of a channel is to mislead, that makes if, by definition, a terrible source for news.

Is it misinformation or do you just not agree with it? Are there bold lies about facts in everyday run-of-the-mill news stories or do you just not agree with their view on the stories or how they spin it to promote their agenda? Do liberal channels do similar things with news stories to promote their agendas?


edit: typo

so your father's answer was essentially "people hate fox news because Fox news is unbiased and they're biased"?

that's as dumb an answer as "muslim extremists hate us for our freedoms".

A few lightning fast examples of Fox being inaccurate in their reporting:








(this was from a year BEFORE he switched parties)



this next one was notable for the fact that it was a "big story" about something not only irrelevant but incredibly insultingly framed:

oh, and this is a direct link to an image on Fox's website from a february 2008 story. Look at the file name, look at the image, and tell me they have no bias:

http://www.foxnews.com/images/root_images/...8_doomsday2.jpg

These sorts of posts confuse me. Every news station in the USA has some bias, and goes about things in a different way. The point of news is not to mislead.

So, they accidentally put a "D" instead of a "R". Wow, that's huge. I'm sure a lot of people were really mislead and terribly confused.


Those were more examples of crappy editing than anything.

I'm sorry Lamuella, but I don't see at all how this is false reporting, really only the last one is unbelievable to me. How were those photos taken? Plus, it's rather easy to change up an image, for all I know you took a bunch of random pictures from Fox News and slapped new captions on the bottom. I don't know where those images are from, I don't know the context of the stories they're reporting, I don't know if the pictures were taken during a news broadcast or from something like Hannity or Beck.

Ya, tell me MSNBC or CNN aren't biased either.




Exactly, just because the Right does it, doesn't make it any worse than the Left doing it.

he was asking for times they were inaccurate, and I gave him some.

Note that one of these was from THE MARK FOLEY SCANDAL, and was followed up with this image:



They had a picture of Republican Mark Foley labeled as a democrat, and followed it up with a huge headline about DEMOCRAT SCANDALS.

so there's nothing at all that I could post that you would believe for a second.

That's all right, I'll just stop bothering to respond to you, as you've made up your mind and stuck your head in the sand. have fun being ignorant.

MSNBC and CNN are pretty terrible news sources as well. MSNBC because it is biased left (though not to Fox's extent) and CNN just because they are terrible.

But Fox, it seems to me (and many others), they their purpose is to deliver the news specifically in a way to make the right look good and the left bad. That is not journalism, that is misinformation.

I've made my mind up, yes, but I certainly haven't stuck my head in the sand. I also don't think I'm being ignorant, as I'm still replying to people and I'm still listening. If I were being ignorant, I would just wait for you to post a link then say "nope you're wrong I'm right" without providing any real argument.

I'm also reading some of your posts and while you make so many references to Fox being inaccurate, you make no mention of MSNBC or CNN. When others make those references, you ignore them completely. Care to explain this?

So, they have a secret campaign to incorrectly label parties and skew people's political beliefs with subliminal messages?

I agree. I've just heard the same thing from people that are on the right, believing that MSNBC does the exact same thing for the Left.

Where's a super right-winger when we need one?!

THAT IS WHAT YOU JUST DID

"it's rather easy to change up an image, for all I know you took a bunch of random pictures from Fox News and slapped new captions on the bottom."

Where is the real argument" in that?

jesus christ...

he said "let me know when Fox News has been inaccurate in their reporting"

this was an occasion when fox had been inaccurate in its reporting.

I was giving him what he asked for

There is no way for me to argue that, as I can't prove if those images are faked or not.

And you're doing it again. You completely ignored the rest of my post over one little sentence.

They're extremely biased.

If I have to use them as a source, however, I will. If someone won't accept that as a reliable source, then $%&@ 'em. Not my problem.

Those images have been on the net for a while now, I believe most have all been verified as authentic.

This is what I'm asking for. Reply to this otherwise this argument's over and don. If you don't reply to this I'll clearly see you won' listen to anything I say if it doesn't have the words "Fox News" in it.

I'm very sorry that I don't spend my time searching for Fox News inaccuracies.

no, you just start threads asking other people to do it for you, and then dismiss anything they find.

I would like for you to stop ignoring my previous posts and actually answer my question for once.

You can't start a thread about Fox News and then declare it over when people don't attack their rivals instead. Don't ask questions if you aren't interested in the answer.

A: Prove to me that X is bad.
B: Here is proof that X is bad.
A: Why aren't you discussing Y?!

lol... Wow, I was just kidding, Lam. Don't freak out. I'll be sure to add the little smiley face next time.

That was more of a reference to my argument with Lamuella, I didn't say that the thread would end. Though if it gets too ridiculous I will request a topic lock.

all right:

"I'm also reading some of your posts and while you make so many references to Fox being inaccurate, you make no mention of MSNBC or CNN. When others make those references, you ignore them completely. Care to explain this?"

first of all, I don't talk about fox news all that much.

Second of all, whyile I don't post about CNN and MSNBC as much here, I've criticized them a lot in the past for the poor quality of their reporting. I sent CNN a long email last month asking why they devoted so much time on their ticker talking about inanities such as George W Bush getting a Twitter account, or Sarah Palin posting something on Facebook.

The difference between them and Fox news is one of scale. CNN's bias and inaccuracies seem accidental, whereas many time those of Fox seem part of a particular and chosen editorial mandate.

So the right (i.e. big business interests) own all the major media corporations. Not exactly news.

So you DO think there's a subliminal conspiracy!


There's a difference between typos, poor editing, biased, misinformation, and lies. I mean, it's hard to tell without proof if Fox does it on purpose or if people are just looking for things that aren't there. I'm not saying you're wrong, they very well may do it. But, who knows for sure. I mean, clearly they are biased toward the right. It's pretty obvious. I think what N Reeki wasn't aware of was that whereas you were saying Fox sucks balls, you're weren't saying that MSN was full of greatness and truth. But, again, it's hard to say CNN or MSNBC's bias seems accidental any more than Fox's does.


Also, Twitter is the next great step in dumbing-down the world's population.

I'd recommend that guy 'Liberalviewer' that has his entire channel devoted to blatant Fox News bias... but I think I would be disarming my own arguement with his choice of name...

I'm not exactly a lib, however his videos are concrete stuff...

MSNBC is biased towards liberal ideals because they have , The ED show, Keith Olbermann,Rachel Maddow,Chirs Matthews, want me to go on?

Fox News has the most equal amount of registered republicans, democrats, and independents..I thinks theres a reason. Fox News strives much more than the other news channels to be fair and balanced, and for the CN liberals to HATE fox new cuz they question authority, just like what they did the last 2 presidents.

Short answer: because under Bush it was not a news organization, it was a Ministry of Propaganda. Longer answer: because it has no allegiance whatsoever to truthfulness or journalistic integrity and is a tabloid organization bent on getting ratings by talking about which Americans we should hate because they're less virulently jingoistic than the officials at the Ministry.

Not saying they're that much worse on some of those standards than other cable infotainment networks, the entire industry is a revolting cesspool ... but their hatred of other Americans is the most off-putting to me personally, and most damaging to our ability to hold any rational national discourse between parties who disagree on simple matters of policy.

Only 20% of Americans self-report as Republicans. Therefore, a balanced news organization would have 20% of its viewership as Republicans.

MSNBC may be biased towards the Democrats (which is DEFINITELY not the same thing as having a left-wing bias), but Fox News just goes so much further in being the official media wing of the Republican party.

Fox question authority? No, they question anything left of Reagan. Tea parties are ok, LGBT rights marches are unimportant, in their eyes.

Many would argue you could sub "MSNBC" and "Obama" into that paragraph and have equally truthful results.

See the entirety of my post.

Ah, when I first read it, I thought when you said "cable infotainment networks", you meant channels like E! or TMZ, etc. Sorry for the misinterpretation.

Roger ... there is no longer any such thing as a cable 'news' network in this country. As I've said before, you could power California on the energy harvested from Edward R. Murrow spinning in his grave now.

Awesome line.

Pure factual inconsistencies? I'm sure everyone has heard of bashing they gave Mass Effect, but here's the link anyways.

http://kotaku.com/347350/keighley-sets-mas...ght-or-tries-to

Although this is a much more accurate review:

http://kotaku.com/350170/fox-news-mass-eff...rodies-a-parody

Yes, I do want you to go on. I want you to go on and mention Joe Scarborough and Pat Buchanan, at the very least.