Elephant in Fox Clothing

Letter to NPR about Fox Correspondents on Their Staff

[updated 6/17/2010]

I'm sure I join a loud chorus of listeners that are sick of your correspondents that also work for Fox News.  You need to completely purge your organization of these contaminated, damaged anti-journalists.   Fox News is not a news organization and you should not allow anyone to be employed by NPR and Fox simultaneously.  You don't have correspondents that are in the employ of the RNC's PR office, do you?  There is no difference except the RNC might lie less.


On today's ATC, Fox employee Mora Liasson in a typical Fox-style meaningless aside commented that the President was "reading from a teleprompter."  This is unnecessary information and serves only one function:  To belittle the President of this country.  Do you know what a Dixie dog whistle is?  Well saying Obama was reading from a teleprompter is a wingnut dog whistle and you should be ashamed you let it on the air.  Every single President since Carter has used teleprompters constantly.  GWB always had one though he obviously had trouble reading it.  The only people that make note of this President's use of a teleprompter are people that hate him and are out to end his career.  You seriously need to check your editors and producers about this kind of crap, or is NPR more worried about getting teabaggers to listen to ATC than in presenting the news in a truly fair and balanced manner?

[response from NPR 6/17/2010]

Sent: Thursday, June 17, 2010 2:46 PM

Subject: Re: Right Wing Fox News Language – Message ID:26967

Response to Message #26967:

Dear Alan,

Thank you for contacting the Ombudsman. We appreciate your feedback on NPR National Political Correspondent Mara Liasson who also appears on Fox New.

It is not uncommon for NPR reporters to appear on other networks, such as CNN and PBS.  Ombudsman Alicia Shepard wrote a column on this issue. NPR continually evaluates what its reporters say, how they present their work, and whether that crosses an ethical line, and NPR staff is held to a strict code of ethics and practices. These standards are in place to protect and support the integrity, impartiality and conduct of journalists.

When recently asked, Senior VP of News Ellen Weiss confirmed that NPR is continually evaluating how appearances on other news outlets may or may not undermine the NPR journalist’s reputation as an impartial source of information. 

Again, thank you for bringing your observations and thoughts regarding language used in Mara Liasson's report on All Things Considered to our attention. We appreciate you taking time to write.

Best,
Alexandria Neason
Office of the Ombudsman
NPR

[My response]

Please let it be known that I think any correspondent with a link to Fox News is damaged merchandise and should not be allowed airtime on NPR.  With no problem I can find you 10 qualified individuals in New Orleans that can do her job without throwing in disguised insults against our President in the process.  Anyone that is associated with Fox News is contaminated by their fascist leadership and should not be allowed a voice on National Public Radio.

 

Also you did not address her noting the President was reading from a teleprompter.  This is unacceptable on every level, especially that of journalistic behavior.  It is a BS partisan slur and you damn well know it whether it is stated specifically in your code of ethics (which it isn't) or not.

You may not watch Fox News (what sane person can?) but this teleprompter nonsense has been one stick in the continuous drumbeat of opposition to our President, along with the birther nonsense and more recently the "he's not angry enough/he's too angry" blather that you have also stooped to covering.  When will NPR have the balls to say enough is enough?  Fox News is a propaganda wing of the GOP and to say it is other is to lie to oneself.

 

 

The Rape and Pillage Agenda

I just cannot understand why any real news organization would defend Fox Noise for two tenths of a second. They are no more a legitimate news organization than The Weekly World News or Mad Magazine and nobody's worried whether or not they get interviews from the White House.

Just Watch This, Fox Noise Fans

Was Congressman Ensign Tipped Off By Fox "News?"

Fox, Coburn knew about affair before Ensign's admission

by Jed Lewison (Daily Kos)

Fri Jun 19, 2009 at 09:19:40 AM PDT

A week before John Ensign's admission that he'd carried on an affair with a former political aide, her husband wrote a letter to Fox anchor Megyn Kelly detailing the affair and appealing to Kelly and Fox for help...

Again proving they are nothing but a Republican propaganda machine, Fox "News" is the last network to report Senator Ensign's affair despite being the first and only network told about it by the adultress's husband, Doug Hampton, in advance of Ensign's news conference where he admitted to being a worthless SOB. Hampton only wrote to Fox News, and reportedly Ensign held his news conference because, "Mr. Hampton first approached the media. He approached a major television news channel before Tuesday. We learned of this fact before the press conference," Ensign's spokesman said. So Fox Noise tipped off Ensign and then did not report on the affair until everyone else had pitched in. Really reprehensible, but what more can we expect from these lying fuckers?

I think my favorite part of this is how Hampton tells Fox how much he admires them in his letter. And then they shit on him. Typical Republicans.

Fox "News," Your Wadded Panties are Showing

Bill Moyers for President

Ok, maybe that's a bit extreme. But he by god (or is that bi-god?) should run the FCC for a few years. I love that Fox News had their little toady from Bill (the worthless bag of shit) O'Reilly's show ambush Moyers afterwards. These fuckers have such big blinders on that they didn't realize there would be a crowd of reporters around with cameras. So first, the keynote address:



Now the Fox ambush (two versions):





And finally a little history of O'Reilly's idea of journalism: