There’s a distinction between gathering operative intelligence and being a wholesale consumer of propaganda. You fall into the former and there is nothing wrong with that, however, most FAUX viewers – including my father – fall into that second category.

I watched five interviews of George Bush last week, as he made the rounds promoting his book. By far the most probing of questions of the former President was by Bill O’Reilly.

That’s merely one example.

Offhand, I think the only two things Fox offers that are generally not available are unvetted hoaxes gullibly accepted, and obnoxious falsehoods.

No, actually, some of us watch Fox in order to be reasonably conversant on both sides. It’s called being open-minded.

Which – in the current climate – is about the only way “fair & balanced” can be achieved. My TV gets 349 channels. Leaving it up to any particular bloviator to give me an unbiased view strikes me as naive.

It’s ironic. Rational people would never trust a government which would want to take a “news” network out.

But that is the irony Rockefeller implies.

Given Rockefeller’s 40 years of strong support of the First Amendment, I think one can not fairly conclude he’s calling for government intervention to shut Fox down.

But I suppose people who listen to Fox too much don’t know who Rockefeller is, nor what he’s done, nor what the First Amendment is, nor how to tell fact from opinion, nor Fox from news.

http://www.cirsa.org/

Foreign insurance companies insure all CIRSA claims over $400,000 per incident.

But that is the irony Rockefeller implies.

He might not realize it (I doubt it) but he wishes a return to the polite and genteel one-sided leftist media that reigned during my entire lifetime UNTIL Fox News came along.

During that polite and bland media time, blood ran in US streets from inner city riots and to Vietnam protests. From Watts, to Cleveland, to Detroit, cities burned. Crime rose.

Kent state happened.

All calmly and politely reported by Walter Cronkite and the bland but evil leftist media.

As bland and evil as those who wish a return to it.

(jokes as a weapon by the British forces)

“We soon had the jokes . . . in a form, which our troops couldn’t understand, but the Germans could.” (and thus, they would die laughing)

Thank you for that. Maybe we should all brush up on our (full) Monte, just to better understand our world.

“not one of them ever said the anti-Christ couldn’t be a comic in disguise”

Yeah, but I’d have to say the odds are pretty slim. Despite the following sketch, jokes are almost never fatal.

Excellent observation, to be sure. But I don’t believe the wise of us would disagree that “funny” and “evil” are mutually exclusive.

Prophets notwithstanding, not one of them ever said the anti-Christ couldn’t be a comic in disguise.

Had Congress not intervened on behalf of crappy news, to promote anti-news, Fox could not exist in its current formats.

I don’t see any threat of new government action. I see a come-to-James-Madison speech.

Certainly Foxistas will see it differently.

Of course they didn’t want to remove the two channels, but neither does Rockefeller. He just has the same bug inside that I do (about Fox, anyway) that wish they’d either tone it down or stop compeletely. He’s completely right about their making it harder for both people and politicians to talk to each other in a civil and productive manner.

Criticism is instructive. Cynicism is destructive.

“Comedy disguised as news sinks right into the cerebral cortex of the weakest minds in America.”

Herein lies our difference. I too have a problem with fake news, however, the word “disguised” is key to our difference. TDS is fake news in that they 1) don’t do investigative reporting and 2) they play what they present manifestly as humor.

FAUXNews, known for making shit up and presenting it as real> news, is far more problematic and damaging as propaganda because it’s inherently dishonest in both research and presentation and presenting itself as something to be taken on par with actual investigative journalism and news when if fact it is as much “infotainment” as TDS and far less honest about their content and agenda.

I have never heard anyone associated with TDS say it was anything other than a comedy show, yet I hear that rotund prick Roger Ailes or his master Mephistopheles Murdoch talking all the time about FOXNews like it was real journalism when actually it is real Neocon propaganda and nothing more. Propaganda with an evil fascist agenda I might add.

Personally, I’m more worried about the weak minded being led by the Evil rather than being influenced by the Funny.

And the scary aspect of the whole thing – it seems to me – is that all of these “newsy-infotainment” programs find their way into homes of people who can’t find the U.S. on a blank world map. How many of them can separate parody from reality? And pity, there is no IQ meter at the voting booth.

Comedy disguised as news sinks right into the cerebral cortex of the weakest minds in America. And their ability to separate fact from funny is hardly their strong point. In my particular town 20 years ago, it resulted in a shoo-in victory in the “Sonny Bono for Mayor” race. Voters bought into the theater of the event, loved the whole idea of “cool” sound-bites, and really couldn’t have cared less how truly inept he would be.

Kinda like Bristol Palin. Her voters keep her in the game and to hell with reality.

Of course. It’s Hell. It’s all showers.

If Halliburton/KBR built it, I would recommend Rupert try out the shower as soon as possible.

It’s important to remember Stewart is a comedian, not a newsman. The reason that he has become news by default for many is that comedians have the “luxury” of being able to tell the truth. That, as a nation, many have resorted to “The Daily Show” for news is a two-edged blade: it’s less impressive that a comedy show is successful than it is shameful that the 4th Estate has become such sycophants and puppets of industry that they no longer seem to care about truth let alone justice and force people to look for truth and justice wherever they can find it.

Even out of the mouths of jokers.

I can’t remember any time in my life when the “news” programs blurred the edges of reality, as they do now, trampling all over each other to preen for camera time. Walter Cronkite is rolling over in his grave.

But to stick to the subject here, if Rockefeller was really paying attention, he’d see that both sides are not only pandering by giving their “opponent” (read: comrade in arms) air-time, they’re manipulating viewers in their transparent “wow! look at how fair & balanced we are” scheme for ratings.

I never cared for Dan Rather, and Tom Brokaw sounded like a fellow with a mouth full of tuna. But Lord, do I miss them now.

And I’d kill strangers for another 10 years of Peter Jennings.

Camp, 67, a Senior U.S. District Judge in the Northern District of Georgia, pleaded guilty to two counts of unlawful possession of controlled substances and one count of conversion of government property. Camp’s guilty plea was accepted by Senior U.S. District Judge Thomas J. Hogan for the District of Columbia, who was sitting by designation in the Northern District of Georgia. Sentencing has been scheduled for March 4, 2011, at 11:00 a.m.

As part of his guilty plea, Camp admitted that between May 2010 and Oct. 1, 2010, he unlawfully possessed and used cocaine, marijuana and Roxycodone, a Schedule II controlled substance. Camp also admitted to giving an individual, whom he knew had a prior felony drug conviction, money to purchase cocaine, Roxycodone and marijuana. Camp admitted that he unlawfully gave the individual a U.S. District Court laptop computer for her personal use. Camp was arrested on Oct. 1, 2010, after attempting to purchase drugs from an undercover FBI agent posing as a drug dealer.

The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Deborah Sue Mayer and Tracee Joy Plowell of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section. The case was investigated by the FBI Atlanta’s Public Corruption Squad. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation provided substantial assistance in this case.

10-1328
Criminal Division

http://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/2010/November/10-crm-1328.html

Marty Didier
Northbrook, IL

As am I, Gingerbaker. He should have his citizenship revoked too since the only reason he got it was to circumvent foreign ownership rules for media and to further his clearly fascist and unamerican agenda. Rupert Murdoch is one of the truly evil people on the planet (that is evil by choice) and it’s not to late to keep his line from breeding further if you ask me. If there is a Hell, Rupert isn’t just going there. Satan (along with Halliburton) have built him his own wing.

“There’s a hurricane coming.”

There are few sentences that the desperate to get famous in television love to hear more than that.

Suckers.

Mother Nature will kill you whether the cameras are rolling or not, but think of the ratings is she does kill you on camera! Nothing says success like, “I earned my Peabody Award the old fashioned way . . . by taking a wind driven two-by-four through the chest.”

“…Anyone who trusts either outlet as a news source, let alone a sole news source, isn’t very good at telling fiction from reality and are largely so because of their ability to swallow propaganda and lies without critical thought.”

Unfortunately for our country, it looks like more than 3/4 of the members of the Republican Party do trust Fox News, based on polling acceptance of some of their wilder propaganda.

You know, real people are dying and our country may just go down the tubes because of the bad decisions made by our electorate. And for a good portion of them, propaganda lies from Fox and Clearchannel radio ARE their opinions. The idiocy that engenders and sustains the Tea Partyers, for example, is manufactured, not endemic.

I am quite serious about Fox News being taken off the air, and Rupert Murdoch deserving to be in prison.

“@Gingerbaker, but I bet you’ll defend MSNBC. Does the word hypocrisy mean anything to you?

The only difference between Fox News and MSNBC is that people actually watch Fox News.
“

No – The difference between Fox and MSNBC for my argument is that Fox calls itself “NEWS” and MSNBC does not. A big difference, because, as I said, on broadcast TV the word “News” means something.

The only difference between Fox News and MSNBC is that people actually watch Fox News.

How can a station which labels itself as “News”, let alone “Fair and Balanced” be considered to have fulfilled its charter obligation to be in the public interest when it has been demonstrated continually that Fox News is terribly biased and actively promotes falsehoods?

The term “News” has a meaning in broadcasting. And the functioning of our democracy is dependent upon a robust and honest press. Fox “News” has completely failed to meet its crucially important societal obligation as a news organization, poisoning the well for all of the fourth estate, as it operates as a propaganda arm of the corporate elite and the Republican party.

Fox News should lose its charter immediately, and Rupert Murdoch belongs in prison. In my humble opinion, of course.

And you can quote me on that!

“The person that wants powers is the person that you can’t trust with any.”

Hear, hear to that… Well said.

The political equivalent to Marx’s “I’d never join a club that’d have me as a member” is “The person that wants powers is the person that you can’t trust with any.”

With a Democrat like this, who needs Republicans ….

“I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter: So help me God.”

And consider that he and the rest of his colleagues in the Senate are obstructionist pricks protecting people who ordered torture out of party fealty and greed over their SWORN DUTY to protect the Constitution.

When considering these items together, it’s clear that Jay needs to STFU.

We need MSNBC and Fox News, the truth is probably somewhere in the middle. If Rockefeller doesn’t like criticism then maybe he should retire to a bucolic lifestyle and raise pansies or buttercups and change his name to Casper Milquetoast.