For the past several weeks the media has been anticipating the entrance of Bill Clinton on the campaign trail for his wife Hillary. It has been a hotly debated subject, not just because he is a former president, but because he is regarded as a masterful communicator with the potential to shape the political landscape.
Among those eagerly engaging in the discussion is Fox News. They have broadcast numerous segments analyzing the former President’s ability to boost Hillary’s prospects, his continued popularity as a public figure, and the possible downside due to some old personal “indiscretions.” Fox has spent untold hours speculating about how Bill’s presence might affect the course of the campaign.
Well, today was the day that Bill made his debut appearance as a surrogate for his wife’s 2016 candidacy. He delivered a half hour speech to an appreciative audience in New Hampshire, the first primary state. The speech was carried live by both CNN and MSNBC. Fox News, however, showed just fifty-five seconds, then quickly cut away. That’s less than one minute of a half hour speech by a former president, and husband of a current presidential candidate, on his first campaign appearance, which was taking place in an important primary state. And for the record, there was no breaking news to justify snubbing this event.
Compare that the coverage that Fox News gives Donald Trump. They broadcast the entirety of his events live, despite the fact that they rarely contain anything more newsworthy than his standard stump speech that everyone has heard ad nauseum. Fox interrupts scheduled programming for these marathon speeches and repeats significant clips of them throughout the rest of the day. So far, Fox has not replayed anything from Clinton’s speech, although they have brought it up as an excuse to level attacks against the Clintons.
News Corpse has documented the wholly unprofessional and biased manner in which Fox News has virtually turned their network over to Donald Trump. No other candidate, even other Republicans, have received the sort of preferential treatment that Trump has enjoyed. And that’s even after he has repeatedly feuded with and insulted the network’s anchors, pundits, and owners. He even called for a boycott of Fox News after another delusional fit of whining about being treated unfairly.
So while Fox News kisses up to a crybaby who bullies them at every turn and has achieved nothing in the realm of public service, they completely ignore a former president who is widely admired with an unsurpassed record of achievement. And this is the network that wants people to believe they are “fair and balanced?” Some people may retort that this is Bill and not Hillary, so why should Fox broadcast it. Well, they have never aired a speech by Hillary live and in full either, so that argument doesn’t really fly.
How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.
Look for more of this bias as the campaign proceeds. Fox will continue to feature Trump and disregard Democrats as a whole, unless it is to disparage them. And they will especially avoid Bill Clinton because they know that he might be effective in making the case for Hillary. That’s something that Fox is simply too afraid to confront.
I don’t find this too disturbing. FOX viewers are never going to support Hillary. And we Dems can make something out of FOX refusing to give equal time. I sense FOX is more afraid of Bill Clinton than Hillary and how he will drive her numbers up.
It’s just more proof that Fox is not a reputable news enterprise. They are the PR division of the GOP.
Yes, but you are forgetting one important factor: Suppose a real news network pulled the same trick – refusing to cover, say, Donald Trump or Ted Cruz. How long do you think it would be before Fox Spews started whining about favoritism? “Oh, the evil lefty media won’t even be fair and balanced LIKE WE ARE and show both sides!! That is just un-American! They should have their licenses taken away!!”
And, of course, this will never convince Fox Spews that they should be not doing what they would condemn any other network if it ever did that. Hypocrisy is what makes Fox Spews go round. And Fox Spews will always be the greatest shame of the broadcast media.
News Corpse, your comments about Faux News cutting away from President Clinton’s is based on the assumption that they are a news organization. The flaw in your logic is that they are NOT a news organization but a propaganda tool of the Teapublican Party. I also view that cutaway as a victory for the Clinton team as Faux News was afraid the former president will make sense and damage their propaganda. I guess I’m a glass half-full kinda guy.
The sad thing is that a majority of right wing conservative voters ONLY listen to Fox and whatever they televise. Followers of Fox News have been proven to be less intelligent because they ONLY listen to one side of any topic and so they are less able to understand what is really happening. They believe that Fox is “Fair and Balanced” only because that is what Fox tells them they are.
In reality, Roger is probably afraid of Bill Clinton’s ability to connect with voters. Perhaps if the Republicans could find anyone to run who isn’t repulsive in one way or another, they wouldn’t be so intimidated. Typical for the Republican Party and conservative media, which prove themselves to be huge pussies every single day.