This is what "fair and balanced" means - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

FuglyStick · 08-17-2010, 10:29 AM

Quote:

Fox News parent firm gives $1 million to GOP group
(AP) – 51 minutes ago
WASHINGTON — The parent company of the Fox News Channel has donated $1 million to the Republican Governors Association and helped the GOP group more than double its fundraising in the second quarter of the year.
The RGA helps elect Republican gubernatorial candidates. Government filings show that it raised more than $19 million during the second quarter, compared to more than $9 million in the first quarter.
The parent company of Fox News, News America Inc., is a subsidiary of Rupert Murdoch's media conglomerate News Corp.
The RGA received $1 million from David Koch (COKE) of Wichita-based Koch Industries. Koch is a longtime supporter of conservative causes.
The Democratic Governors Association reported raising $9 million in the second quarter.

The Associated Press: Fox News parent firm gives $1 million to GOP group

Why can't Murdoch be sued for false advertising?

Wes Mantooth · 08-17-2010, 10:54 AM

I guess that's what you get when you turn news into entertainment, you have to keep you fan base alive by investing in it. More Republicans competeing in races and being in power means more interested conservatives watching your channel...it sure doesn't hurt from a PR prospective either.

It is sad that we have multiple 24/7 news channels and NONE of them seem either interested in or capable of presenting the viewers with an unbiased and complete look at the days news.

Seaver · 08-17-2010, 03:19 PM

While I stopped watching Fox News half a decade ago, complaining about $1 million in donations is pretty worthless.

$1 million won't do anything on a national level, and to be blunt decrying it only begs the opposition to point out every donation that the other side gets. It's like when the Unions/Lawyers donate hundreds of millions to the Democrats, and the oil/energy/etc donate hundreds of millions to the GOP, etc.

I just see this as such a minuscule issue compared to the bigger issues we're facing at the moment.

Martian · 08-17-2010, 03:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Seaver

While I stopped watching Fox News half a decade ago, complaining about $1 million in donations is pretty worthless.

$1 million won't do anything on a national level, and to be blunt decrying it only begs the opposition to point out every donation that the other side gets. It's like when the Unions/Lawyers donate hundreds of millions to the Democrats, and the oil/energy/etc donate hundreds of millions to the GOP, etc.

I just see this as such a minuscule issue compared to the bigger issues we're facing at the moment.

So you don't see anything hypocritical about an entity who claims a lack of bias as a core tenet donating a non-trivial amount of money to a political organization? And you don't see a difference between that and, say, a private citizen, or even a corporation who has made no pretense of neutrality making a similar donation?

Hmm.

FuglyStick · 08-17-2010, 03:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Martian

So you don't see anything hypocritical about an entity who claims a lack of bias as a core tenet donating a non-trivial amount of money to a political organization? And you don't see a difference between that and, say, a private citizen, or even a corporation who has made no pretense of neutrality making a similar donation?

Hmm.

And there's the crux. Yeah, we all KNOW that various entities make donations to different candidates and campaigns to advance their own interests. But don't advertise yourself as "fair and balanced" when you are obviously, most definitely, unquestionably NOT. Anyone buying that they are getting "the truth" from Fox News is either extremely gullible or stupid; there's no other way around it.

roachboy · 08-17-2010, 03:31 PM

if this was the first indication that fox news maybe---just maybe---processes infotainment through a hard right political lens, then i'd maybe be aghast. but the head of the "news" division is roger ailes for fucks sake.

corporate person news corporation is free to direct its automaton volition where-ever corporate person news corporation sees fit. and thanks to the workings of a conservo-dominated supreme court which has already shown itself willing to do quite radical things in the name of not being judicial activists (how's that work again?) there's not much in the way of limits on how much corporate person automata can direct at other corporate persons.

at the same time, it's not the case that corporate person news corporation is the same as any other corporate person. corporate person news corporation has a professional commitment to impartiality. you know, as an organization made up of journalists.

except it's fox. so it's all entertainers.
so no problem, right?

Wes Mantooth · 08-17-2010, 09:55 PM

It is a problem but what can you expect? Its fox conservotainment. I do wish they would just drop the "fair and balanced" thing once and for all it sounds incredibly stupid considering what you get but its a catchy tag line to get viewers, what can you do? If we sued every movie and tv show that advertised itself falsely we'd be have to set up special courts just to hear all the cases.

Plan9 · 08-17-2010, 11:03 PM

I like where the frames are going in this thread. Next:

"You mean Chevrolet isn't the Heartbeat of America?"

Tully Mars · 08-18-2010, 03:39 AM

Well one claims to be a news outlet and the other claims to be a vehicle manufacture... one of them is manufacturing vehicles, the other manufactures news.

Baraka_Guru · 08-18-2010, 05:01 AM

Yeah, to be comparable, the Chevrolet tagline would have to be something like, "Never breaks down!"

ASU2003 · 08-18-2010, 10:00 AM

This is why we need real campaign finance reform. Or just to randomly select people to lead...

And thanks Supreme Court for allowing corporations to give millions of dollars to politicians and other groups that run negative ads all the time...

Tully Mars · 08-18-2010, 10:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ASU2003

Or just to randomly select people to lead...

Sadly I think the result of this would improve our government.

FuglyStick · 08-18-2010, 10:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Plan9

I like where the frames are going in this thread. Next:

"You mean Chevrolet isn't the Heartbeat of America?"

Not really. A more accurate analogy would be if Chevy advertised "Don't drive that car that runs on fossil fuel, when Chevys run on methane," when all they're really doing is breaking wind at the gas station.

Plan9 · 08-18-2010, 11:30 AM

But Coca-Cola... it's the real thing. And you know what that means.

...

I get the point of this thread. I do. But it's about as Earth-shattering as the rich getting richer, the poor getting poorer and anything that our boy Paul Reubens has done. Seems that the media is divided into three flavors: Democrat (Liberal), Republican (Conservative), and the Onion (Satire).

Wes Mantooth · 08-18-2010, 12:38 PM

But how seriously do we really take ad slogans? Is Budweiser really the king of beers? It sure isn't the king of taste. Could a caveman really sit at a computer and sign up for Geico? Does Barq's literally bite you? How much of a licking can Timex take and still keep ticking?

In a perfect world "fair and balanced" would be a forgone conclusion in the world of journalism but we've come to accept that mainstream news is infotainment and silly ad slogans come with the territory...it is what it is I guess.

Cimarron29414 · 08-18-2010, 01:27 PM

I'm really trying to feel a sense of outrage over this. I...just...can't. Those of you who loathe Fox have one more reason. ~shrug~

I do wish that there actually was a fair and balanced news source. I'd watch it exclusively. Instead, I have to watch 2 or 3 or 4, plus 4 internet sites, and hope that provides a broad enough set of facts to get the picture. It's tiresome, wasteful, and I have to cut through too much opinion.

Baraka_Guru · 08-18-2010, 02:15 PM

Well, Fox has been in the business of manufacturing consent for a very long time. It just so happens that there are fewer rules now regulating what they finance.

To me, it's just another day at the circus of American politics and media. I always enjoy the show.

Wes Mantooth · 08-18-2010, 02:18 PM

I hear that Cimarron, I rarely ever have the time or energy to flip back and forth across 3 or 4 channels, cross reference stories on the internet and see what they have to say about it in the paper...I don't really know what they are hoping to achieve (aside from a profit) with the current formats any of these stations use.

Whats the best you can hope for? Three major stores recycled every hour with LOTS of commentary thrown in before covering the rest the days news by reading off a handful of headlines? Stories geared towards the stations demographic, dropping stories that aren't controversial or sensational, 40% of air time set aside for advertisement? Although you'd think with the scraps of news they actually do give us "fair and balanced" wouldn't be that hard to actually achieve.

Baraka_Guru · 08-18-2010, 02:30 PM

Do what I do: wait until the dust settles before caring. Reading about the Iraq War in 2003 is a completely different experience than reading about it now. It doesn't matter what your news sources were.

To a philosopher all news, as it is called, is gossip, and they who edit and read it are old women over their tea.
—From Walden, Henry David Thoreau

Wes Mantooth · 08-18-2010, 02:46 PM

That's very true, unfortunately it leaves me about 5 years behind the rest of the world when it comes to current topics, hehe. But yeah it provides a much better perspective then trying piecing together bits of information as they come out and get interpreted through the mainstream news.

It is sad though that so many rely on these stations to not only get news but formulate their opinion of the world and shape their political views. A little responsibility would go a long way in creating a better world for us all.

Craven Morehead · 08-18-2010, 06:53 PM

Wolf Blitzer on CNN reported this afternoon on how much ALL other news media parent corporations have contributed to BOTH political parties. He mentioned GE, Time Warner and other corporations as well as individuals such as Sumner Redstone and Ted Turner. At the end of his report he basically called this a non-story.

MSD · 08-19-2010, 01:01 PM

Doctored videos that ended up getting ACORN (which was a good, honest organization) shut down?

FAIR AND BALANCED

That whole Shirley Sherrod thing with doctored videos by the same guy responsible for the ACORN thing?

FAIR AND BALANCED

Actual Fox News poll from a few days ago:

Would Moving the Proposed Mosque Site a Few Blocks From Ground Zero End the Controversy?

Yes -- It's not about religious freedom, it's about doing what's right. I hope the developers can recognize this.

No -- There already is an Islamic center in lower Manhattan. Why is there a need for another?

Not sure, but I can't imagine it could make things much worse.

FAIR AND BALANCED

YouTube - Mr. Rogers is a evil Man

FAIR AND BALANCED

Linked because it's a huge picture
http://jherrera.com/50600_FoxNews_122_569lo-66f-a26.jpg

FAIR AND BALANCED

Uh, what was I saying?

FuglyStick · 08-19-2010, 01:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MSD

Linked because it's a huge picture
http://jherrera.com/50600_FoxNews_122_569lo-66f-a26.jpg

Shit, they really have abandoned any pretenses of being a "journalistic" enterprise, haven't they?

Wes Mantooth · 08-19-2010, 01:34 PM

Haha yeah, it is funny watching them try and pretend to be a news organization though. At least their propaganda is fair and balanced!

Wait...that's not right either...

Tully Mars · 08-19-2010, 04:40 PM

I didn't see this but seriously?

Quote:

Actual Fox News poll from a few days ago:

Would Moving the Proposed Mosque Site a Few Blocks From Ground Zero End the Controversy?

Yes -- It's not about religious freedom, it's about doing what's right. I hope the developers can recognize this.

No -- There already is an Islamic center in lower Manhattan. Why is there a need for another?

Not sure, but I can't imagine it could make things much worse.

FAIR AND BALANCED

Seriously? I knew they were fucked up but wow if that's an actual poll they posted then why would any one take them serious?

And that picture with all the screen shot pretty much says it all.

MSD · 08-19-2010, 05:03 PM

That poll was question of the day when the website headline was something about Pelosi allegedly calling for investigations of people who oppose the NYC "Mosque"

Tully Mars · 08-19-2010, 05:07 PM

Well then anyone who continues to watch them and thinks they're an actual new organization is frankly completely out of their freaking mind. How can so many intelligent people be so fucking snowed? I mean I get the dumb ass that never finish jr. high but people with serious careers and sheepskins on the wall?

I don't get it.

Plan9 · 08-19-2010, 06:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spoid Fragmauck

GLEN BECK IS RIGHT!!!

WHAT SCARES YOU MOST!?

OBOMA DOES THATS WHAT!!! AND LIBRILS!

LOOK AT THIS PIC OF MY HEROE GLEN BECK HE IS WEREING A SHIRT THAT SAYS BROKE? AND IT HAS WINSTON CHURCHIL BEING BROKE AND THAT RELLY RILED ME UP CUZ I AM BROKE TO LIKE GLEN IS!!!!!!!! OBOMA TOOK ALL ARE MONEY!!!!!!! ME AND GLEN ARE IN THE SAME BOAT THATS WHY I LIKE HIM SO MUCH AND WACH HIS TV SHOW AND GET MAD AT THE LIBRALS WITH HIM

LIBRALS HAVE ALL THE MONEY CUZ THEY AND OBOMA (MORE LIKE NOBOMA HAHA!) IS TAKING OUR TAXES AND SPENDING THEM ON IMIGRINTS AND IS BUILDING MOSKS RIGHT ON THE MIDLE OF GROUND ZERO CUZ THEY DONT SUPORT ARE TROOPS!!!!!!!!!!!

HOW CAN U EVEN THINK OF PUTING A MOSK ON GROUND ZERO OBOMA??????? WHAT RIGHT DO U HAVE???? I WAS GOING TO JOIN THE MARINES BUT MY BACK IS HURT BUT SENSE I WAS GOIGN TO I HAVE A STRONG CONECTION TO ARMY FORCES AND ARE BROTHERS SERVING OVERSEAS AND THIS IS SO DISRESEPCTFLE TO ARE TROOPS AND NOT SUPORTING THEM AT ALL WERE IS YOURE ANSWER FOR THIS ONE OBOMA? HUH? HUH? THAT'S WAT I THOUT!!!!

DONT EVEN GET ME STARTED ON IMIGRINTS! BLACK BROWN ASIEN JEWS I DONT SEE COLUR THEY IS ALL THE SAME TO ME JUST TAKIN JOBS AND TAXES AND FOOD OUT OF MY MOUTH AND PUTING THEM IN THEIR FAMLYS MOUTHS BACK IN MEXICO AND AFRICA AND WEREVER!! WHAT RIGHT DO THEY HAVE TO DO THIS IT IS SO STUPID!!! DID U NOW THAT OBOMA IS AN IMIGRINT!?! ITS TRUE WERE IS YOURE BIRTH CERTIFICITE MR OBOMA WERE!?!?!? NONE OF THEM IS A CRISTIAN NEITHER THEY IS ALL MUSLAMS PROBLY THEY ARE BUILDING MOSKS TOO WITH OBOMA!!!

I WANT GORGE BUSH BACK HE NEW HOW TO HANDEL THOSE IMIGRINTS THATS WHY ARE TROOPS IS IN IRAQ AND AFGANASTAN RITE NOW TO MANY BROWN PEOPLE CASING PROBLAMS! IMPECH OBOMA AND GET SARAH PALINS IN THERE SHELL SHOW ALL YALL LIBRALS AN ILL SEE YOU WERE THE GOOD LORD TAKES YA!!!!!!

Tully Mars · 08-20-2010, 01:30 AM

What???

08-17-2010, 10:54 AM	#2 (permalink)
Wes Mantooth Junkie Location: Tennessee	I guess that's what you get when you turn news into entertainment, you have to keep you fan base alive by investing in it. More Republicans competeing in races and being in power means more interested conservatives watching your channel...it sure doesn't hurt from a PR prospective either. It is sad that we have multiple 24/7 news channels and NONE of them seem either interested in or capable of presenting the viewers with an unbiased and complete look at the days news. __________________ “My god I must have missed it...its hell down here!”

08-17-2010, 03:19 PM	#3 (permalink)
Seaver Junkie Location: Fort Worth, TX	While I stopped watching Fox News half a decade ago, complaining about $1 million in donations is pretty worthless. $1 million won't do anything on a national level, and to be blunt decrying it only begs the opposition to point out every donation that the other side gets. It's like when the Unions/Lawyers donate hundreds of millions to the Democrats, and the oil/energy/etc donate hundreds of millions to the GOP, etc. I just see this as such a minuscule issue compared to the bigger issues we're facing at the moment. __________________ "Smite the rocks with the rod of knowledge, and fountains of unstinted wealth will gush forth." - Ashbel Smith as he laid the first cornerstone of the University of Texas

08-17-2010, 03:31 PM	#6 (permalink)
roachboy Super Moderator Location: essex ma	if this was the first indication that fox news maybe---just maybe---processes infotainment through a hard right political lens, then i'd maybe be aghast. but the head of the "news" division is roger ailes for fucks sake. corporate person news corporation is free to direct its automaton volition where-ever corporate person news corporation sees fit. and thanks to the workings of a conservo-dominated supreme court which has already shown itself willing to do quite radical things in the name of not being judicial activists (how's that work again?) there's not much in the way of limits on how much corporate person automata can direct at other corporate persons. at the same time, it's not the case that corporate person news corporation is the same as any other corporate person. corporate person news corporation has a professional commitment to impartiality. you know, as an organization made up of journalists. except it's fox. so it's all entertainers. so no problem, right? __________________ a gramophone its corrugated trumpet silver handle spinning dog. such faithfulness it hear it make you sick. -kamau brathwaite

08-17-2010, 09:55 PM	#7 (permalink)
Wes Mantooth Junkie Location: Tennessee	It is a problem but what can you expect? Its fox conservotainment. I do wish they would just drop the "fair and balanced" thing once and for all it sounds incredibly stupid considering what you get but its a catchy tag line to get viewers, what can you do? If we sued every movie and tv show that advertised itself falsely we'd be have to set up special courts just to hear all the cases. __________________ “My god I must have missed it...its hell down here!”

08-17-2010, 11:03 PM	#8 (permalink)
Plan9 I Confess a Shiver	I like where the frames are going in this thread. Next: "You mean Chevrolet isn't the Heartbeat of America?" __________________ *Whatever you can carry.* "You should not drink... and bake."

08-18-2010, 03:39 AM	#9 (permalink)
Tully Mars Living in a Warmer Insanity Super Moderator Location: Yucatan, Mexico	Well one claims to be a news outlet and the other claims to be a vehicle manufacture... one of them is manufacturing vehicles, the other manufactures news. __________________ I used to drink to drown my sorrows, but the damned things have learned how to swim- Frida Kahlo Vice President Starkizzer Fan Club

08-18-2010, 05:01 AM	#10 (permalink)
Baraka_Guru warrior bodhisattva Super Moderator Location: East-central Canada	Yeah, to be comparable, the Chevrolet tagline would have to be something like, "Never breaks down!" __________________ Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing? —Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön Humankind cannot bear very much reality. —From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot

08-18-2010, 10:00 AM	#11 (permalink)
ASU2003 immoral minority Location: Back in Ohio	This is why we need real campaign finance reform. Or just to randomly select people to lead... And thanks Supreme Court for allowing corporations to give millions of dollars to politicians and other groups that run negative ads all the time...

08-18-2010, 11:30 AM	#14 (permalink)
Plan9 I Confess a Shiver	But Coca-Cola... it's the real thing. And you know what that means. ... I get the point of this thread. I do. But it's about as Earth-shattering as the rich getting richer, the poor getting poorer and anything that our boy Paul Reubens has done. Seems that the media is divided into three flavors: Democrat (Liberal), Republican (Conservative), and the Onion (Satire). __________________ *Whatever you can carry.* "You should not drink... and bake." Last edited by Plan9; 08-18-2010 at 11:34 AM..

08-18-2010, 12:38 PM	#15 (permalink)
Wes Mantooth Junkie Location: Tennessee	But how seriously do we really take ad slogans? Is Budweiser really the king of beers? It sure isn't the king of taste. Could a caveman really sit at a computer and sign up for Geico? Does Barq's literally bite you? How much of a licking can Timex take and still keep ticking? In a perfect world "fair and balanced" would be a forgone conclusion in the world of journalism but we've come to accept that mainstream news is infotainment and silly ad slogans come with the territory...it is what it is I guess. __________________ “My god I must have missed it...its hell down here!”

08-18-2010, 01:27 PM	#16 (permalink)
Cimarron29414 Still Free Location: comfortably perched at the top of the bell curve!	I'm really trying to feel a sense of outrage over this. I...just...can't. Those of you who loathe Fox have one more reason. ~shrug~ I do wish that there actually was a fair and balanced news source. I'd watch it exclusively. Instead, I have to watch 2 or 3 or 4, plus 4 internet sites, and hope that provides a broad enough set of facts to get the picture. It's tiresome, wasteful, and I have to cut through too much opinion. __________________ Gives a man a halo, does mead. "Here lies The_Jazz: Killed by an ambitious, sparkly, pink butterfly."

08-18-2010, 02:15 PM	#17 (permalink)
Baraka_Guru warrior bodhisattva Super Moderator Location: East-central Canada	Well, Fox has been in the business of manufacturing consent for a very long time. It just so happens that there are fewer rules now regulating what they finance. To me, it's just another day at the circus of American politics and media. I always enjoy the show. __________________ Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing? —Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön Humankind cannot bear very much reality. —From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot

08-18-2010, 02:18 PM	#18 (permalink)
Wes Mantooth Junkie Location: Tennessee	I hear that Cimarron, I rarely ever have the time or energy to flip back and forth across 3 or 4 channels, cross reference stories on the internet and see what they have to say about it in the paper...I don't really know what they are hoping to achieve (aside from a profit) with the current formats any of these stations use. Whats the best you can hope for? Three major stores recycled every hour with LOTS of commentary thrown in before covering the rest the days news by reading off a handful of headlines? Stories geared towards the stations demographic, dropping stories that aren't controversial or sensational, 40% of air time set aside for advertisement? Although you'd think with the scraps of news they actually do give us "fair and balanced" wouldn't be that hard to actually achieve. __________________ “My god I must have missed it...its hell down here!”

08-18-2010, 02:30 PM	#19 (permalink)
Baraka_Guru warrior bodhisattva Super Moderator Location: East-central Canada	Do what I do: wait until the dust settles before caring. Reading about the Iraq War in 2003 is a completely different experience than reading about it now. It doesn't matter what your news sources were. To a philosopher all news, as it is called, is gossip, and they who edit and read it are old women over their tea. —From Walden, Henry David Thoreau __________________ Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing? —Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön Humankind cannot bear very much reality. —From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot

08-18-2010, 02:46 PM	#20 (permalink)
Wes Mantooth Junkie Location: Tennessee	That's very true, unfortunately it leaves me about 5 years behind the rest of the world when it comes to current topics, hehe. But yeah it provides a much better perspective then trying piecing together bits of information as they come out and get interpreted through the mainstream news. It is sad though that so many rely on these stations to not only get news but formulate their opinion of the world and shape their political views. A little responsibility would go a long way in creating a better world for us all. __________________ “My god I must have missed it...its hell down here!”

08-18-2010, 06:53 PM	#21 (permalink)
Craven Morehead Custom User Title	Wolf Blitzer on CNN reported this afternoon on how much ALL other news media parent corporations have contributed to BOTH political parties. He mentioned GE, Time Warner and other corporations as well as individuals such as Sumner Redstone and Ted Turner. At the end of his report he basically called this a non-story.

08-19-2010, 01:34 PM	#24 (permalink)
Wes Mantooth Junkie Location: Tennessee	Haha yeah, it is funny watching them try and pretend to be a news organization though. At least their propaganda is fair and balanced! Wait...that's not right either... __________________ “My god I must have missed it...its hell down here!”

08-19-2010, 05:03 PM	#26 (permalink)
MSD The sky calls to us ... Super Moderator Location: CT	That poll was question of the day when the website headline was something about Pelosi allegedly calling for investigations of people who oppose the NYC "Mosque"

08-19-2010, 05:07 PM	#27 (permalink)
Tully Mars Living in a Warmer Insanity Super Moderator Location: Yucatan, Mexico	Well then anyone who continues to watch them and thinks they're an actual new organization is frankly completely out of their freaking mind. How can so many intelligent people be so fucking snowed? I mean I get the dumb ass that never finish jr. high but people with serious careers and sheepskins on the wall? I don't get it. __________________ I used to drink to drown my sorrows, but the damned things have learned how to swim- Frida Kahlo Vice President Starkizzer Fan Club Last edited by Tully Mars; 08-19-2010 at 05:10 PM..

08-20-2010, 01:30 AM	#29 (permalink)
Tully Mars Living in a Warmer Insanity Super Moderator Location: Yucatan, Mexico	What??? __________________ I used to drink to drown my sorrows, but the damned things have learned how to swim- Frida Kahlo Vice President Starkizzer Fan Club