Fox News

Fox News Host Accidentally Admits that Trump Colluded with the Russians to Win the Election

Posted by on January 8, 2018 at 5:49 pm. 1 Comments :

The Trump defenders at Fox News have been striving feverishly to dismiss any and all claims that Donald Trump had any connection to Russia’s documented interference with the 2016 presidential election. Many of them, along with Trump, deny that there was any interference at all. This campaign to rewrite reality has been relentless and intense, with absurd and slanderous allegations that the FBI, the Justice Department, and special counsel Robert Mueller are all corrupt, left-wing partisans.


Last week Michael Wolff released his book, Fire and Fury, that raised additional questions about the mental state of Trump and his fitness for office. The controversy surrounding it was the launching point for a segment on Monday’s episode of “The Five” on Fox News. Co-host, and emotionally stunted kindergarten dropout, Jesse Watters, leaped at the opportunity to twist this topic into another Fox-errific Trump-fluffing moment. He warmed up by calling the book’s author a “Wolff in sheep’s clothing” whose only motivation was “to take down Trump and actually lead to impeachment.” Then Watters let this zinger fly (video below):

“The main point of the book was that Trump didn’t want to win. So then, if he didn’t want to win, why did he collude with the Russians to win? The whole thing doesn’t make sense.”

Precisely. It makes no sense at all. According to Watters, it is the fact that Trump colluded with Russia that proves his intention to win the election. Therefore, Watters is conceding that Trump colluded with Russia. Thanks Jesse. We’ve been saying that for months.

The only other alternative is that Watters was mocking the allegations of Trump’s collusion. But then, if he didn’t collude, that destroys Watters’ argument that Trump wanted to win the election. Therefore, the assertions in Wolff’s book are validated. You can’t have it both ways.

This is the type of ignorance that Fox News viewers consume with relish, although only the good American kind and none of that unpatriotic Grey Poupon stuff. They regard these nonsensical contrivances as the intellectual foundation of their fantastical belief systems. And Fox News is all too happy to pump them out in a continuous 24/7 loop with smug, self-satisfied pundits assuring their glassy-eyed audience that it’s all true.

It’s not difficult to sell this BS since it’s aligned so perfectly with the same brand of BS that Trump spits out to the uneducated disciples at his rallies and on Twitter. Recall that Trump himself told us during the campaign: “I love the uneducated.” And why wouldn’t he? They are the only ones dumb enough to buy his deranged drivel.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Fox News Business Network Has Fully Transitioned From Financial Reporting to Trump Shilling

Posted by on January 8, 2018 at 11:03 am. 2 Comments :

When Fox News began in 1996, the intention was to develop an overtly partisan, right-wing network that would skew the news to the ultra-conservative views of Rupert Murdoch and Roger Ailes. After achieving that goal they set their sights on a business network that would eventually do the same thing.

Fox News Bartiromo

The Fox Business Network was never aimed at providing useful financial information. When it launched they put Neil Cavuto at the helm, a move that can only be interpreted as advancing the same conservative biases that infest his daily program on Fox News. And the execrable Lou Dobbs has long been a fixture on the channel. Three years ago they hired Maria Bartiromo who had been a financial correspondent on CNBC for twenty years. But it’s obvious now that Bartiromo has been inducted into the Fox mindset as she shamelessly disgorges wingnut propaganda.

On her Sunday program, Sunday Morning Futures, Bartiromo interviewed Republican inquisitioner Trey Gowdy on a subject that Fox News and the GOP have been desperately trying to revive: Hillary Clinton’s crime-riddled past (video below). Never mind that she has been the target of blatantly prejudiced investigations for twenty years that haven’t turned up a hint of wrongdoing. With all of Donald Trump’s illegal entanglements, the GOP needs to find ways to muddy the public discourse.

The questions that Bartiromo asked Gowdy are all that is needed to observe how hopelessly biased she is. Each one was a leading question that implied criminal intent to Clinton. As if Gowdy needed any help in turning his partisan innuendo into outrageous allegations. Here are the severely slanted questions Bartiromo asked verbatim:

“Do you now have the documents that you have been requesting to best assess whether or not there was a massive abuse of power by the FBI around the election last year?”

“So where does this lead? I mean, you’ve been stonewalled since August. You’re finally getting documents last week and this week week that you’ve been asking for since August. We know for example when you look at the Hillary Clinton side of things, her IT manager, Brian Tagliano, initially said he never deleted anything to the FBI. He told the FBI ‘I didn’t delete anything.’ Then apparently has an ‘aha’ moment and says ‘Oh wait, yes. I did delete emails.’ After we know that those were actually recovered. And he gets immunity. So he gets immunity despite the fact that he lied to the FBI, deleted emails, and didn’t tell anybody that there were these emails that existed.”

“Peter Strzok, when he was texting his girlfriend, Lisa Page, said that we need an insurance policy in place. Now Congressman, we have been hearing bits and pieces of this so-called Russia probe, so-called collusion between Trump and the Russians, with absolutely zero evidence. Was that the insurance policy? Peter Strzok essentially saying to his mistress, ‘Look, we’re just gonna keep on investigating Donald Trump should he win.'”

“Americans want to see the rule of law. If we cannot trust the FBI, the CIA – by the way, the IRS. We know what the IRS did a year ago, or two years ago. Then what is the point of the freedoms of America?”

“Let me ask you this because we’ve been watching this Russia probe. How long is this gonna go on? Because we still haven’t had any evidence of any collusion. When is it appropriate for Bob Mueller to come out and say ‘Yes, definitively there is no collusion here. But what I have uncovered is collusion at the top of the FBI between the FBI leadership and Hillary Cliinton.”

“We can’t have confidence if nothing is ever being done and there isn’t any accountability here. Obviously you have been searching for the truth. Devin Nunes is searching for the truth. But people are questioning the head law enforcement individual.

These are the sort of questions that hardly require answers. The response is built into the inquiry. Particularly notable is the question that seeks to put words into special counsel Mueller’s mouth implying collusion on Clinton’s part. And asserting that Gowdy and Nunes are truth-seekers is painfully delusional. They are among the most acutely biased Republicans in the country. But Bartiromo regards them as more credible than the nation’s top law enforcement professionals. Yet this is the unethical posture that Bartiromo has taken in order to serve her masters at Fox News and in the Trump administration. It’s downright embarrassing and more than a little nauseating.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Trump is a ‘Very Stable Genius’ Who Mindlessly Repeats What He Just Saw on Fox and Friends

Posted by on January 6, 2018 at 11:46 am. 3 Comments :

The questions about Donald Trump’s apparent psychological decline are rapidly becoming more than partisan speculation. And the person most responsible for affirming the President’s mental infirmity just happens to be Donald Trump. The more he talks about his own cerebral frailty, the more feeble he appears to be.

Fox News Trump

On Saturday morning Trump thought it was necessary to defend himself against the allegations that have been made by politicians, pundits, and mental health professionals. But his comments were a pathetic mess of ego and delusion. He tweeted that:

It is notable that these tweets were posted less than ten minutes after a segment on this subject was aired on Fox and Friends. This is a pattern that is repeated frequently by Trump who obviously watches the program religiously, despite saying that he doesn’t have time for television. The message in the tweets is one that should be of concern to all Americans.

First of all, the investigation into his involvement in Russia’s interference in the 2016 presidential election has not been proven to be a hoax. Quite the contrary. There have already been four indictments with two guilty pleas. The rest of what has been uncovered by the special counsel, Robert Mueller, is still under wraps. And PolitiFact awarded Trump it’s Lie of the Year for repeatedly making this statement about the matter being a hoax.

Secondly, no one has ever recognized Trump’s two greatest assets as his “mental stability” or “being, like, really smart.” And if he wants to make that claim himself he probably shouldn’t sound so much like a “Valley Girl.” (fer sure). His true assets were actually having been born into a wealthy family and having the shameless lack of character that permits him to lie, cheat, and steal to get what he wants.

His boasts about education are a lame attempt to cling to some alleged glory from half a century ago. And it’s all the more irrelevant since he refuses to release his college transcripts. Also, Trump has never been a successful businessman. He would be far richer if he had just invested his inheritance in an S&P 500 indexed mutual fund. With at least four bankruptcies, he can hardly lay claim to any business prowess. And like his college claims, Trump refuses to release his tax returns to validate his alleged success in business.

Finally, Trump’s self-exalting assertions about his sanity and brilliance are downright surreal. When was the last time you heard “a very stable genius” say he was a very stable genius? Smart people are the last people to say that they are smart. Trump’s bragging is actually a sort of certification of his ignorance and instability. And he elaborated on that theme in brief remarks to reporters at Camp David when a reporter asked “This morning you were tweeting about your mental state. Why did you feel the need to tweet about that this morning?”

Whereupon Trump regurgitated his tedious refrain about having been an “excellent student” and becoming a successful businessman and TV star. Then he drifted off into a diatribe against Fire and Fury author, Michael Wolff, and his former top White House aide, Sloppy Steve Bannon. Watch this video and see for yourself if he ever approaches a coherent answer to the question regarding his mental state:

Remember, the question was “Why did you feel the need to tweet about [your mental state] this morning?” The answer was aimless blather about his perception of his own awesomeness and his perceived enemies. That isn’t the response of someone who is either stable or a genius. If anything, Trump’s response this morning affirms the broadly held assessment that he is unfit for the office he holds. His inability to maintain a focus on the topic is a symptom of cognitive dysfunction. It’s a cry for help that everyone – from his family to his Republican peers – is ignoring. And the peril this represents to the nation, and the world, cannot be overstated.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Certified Nutcase Donald Trump Tries His Hand at Psychoanalyzing Steve Bannon

Posted by on January 3, 2018 at 2:04 pm. 4 Comments :

The fate of the world is shifting by the minute. On Tuesday Donald Trump was tweeting threats to Iran, Pakistan, and North Korea, and comparing the size of his “nuclear button” to that of Kim Jong Un. By Wednesday the battle royale was between Trump and his former friend and White House aide, Steve Bannon.

Trump/Bannon

A new book by Michael Wolff, Fire and Fury, presents a revealing look into the Trump White House. Some of the first publicly released excerpts show how Bannon really feels about the president he once served with such apparently fawning loyalty. And it’s not a pretty picture. Bannon is reported to have said that Don Junior’s meetings with Russians were treasonous and that Daddy Trump knew about them, despite his denials.

The book contains many other revelations that expose Trump as a flagrant fool who commanded no respect from those around him. Rupert Murdoch, CEO of Fox News, reportedly called him a “f**king moron.” And an aide tasked with explaining the Constitution described Trump as becoming bored and unwilling to continue past the Fourth Amendment. But it’s the Bannon comments that have caught the attention of Trump and, therefore, the media. Consequently, Trump released an official reply from the White that was as unhinged as anything we have ever seen from this acutely disturbed pseudo-president. He said in part:

“Steve Bannon has nothing to do with me or my Presidency. When he was fired, he not only lost his job, he lost his mind. Steve was a staffer who worked for me after I had already won the nomination by defeating seventeen candidates. […] Steve was rarely in a one-on-one meeting with me and only pretends to have had influence to fool a few people with no access and no clue.”

This is typical Trumpian behavior that he employs to distance himself from close associates he later turns against. Although the degree of unrestrained anger reflects someone shockingly unglued from rational thought. Often Trump’s wrath is aimed at those he regards as having personally betrayed him. Even when he initiated the break in the relationship as he did in this case by firing Bannon. Shortly after his termination, Trump had this to say about his former senior counselor: “Now Sloppy Steve has been dumped like a dog by almost everyone.”

Contrary to Trump’s outburst, Bannon was not merely a “staffer” on the sidelines of his presidency. Bannon was his campaign manager, and later the White House Chief Strategist with a seat on the National Security Council. In other words, the coffee boy. And Trump had a decidedly different opinion on the day that Bannon was released from his White House duties last August:

Just prior to his dismissal, Trump described Bannon in glowing terms calling him “a good person and I think the press treats him frankly very unfairly.” Now Trump asserts that Bannon has “lost his mind.” That’s a subject that Trump can claim some expertise on. Many psychiatric professionals have concluded that Trump is “too mentally ill to serve.” A group of psychiatric doctors and academics who met at Yale University found that Trump displays symptoms of a variety of mental illnesses, including antisocial and narcissistic personality disorders. That assessment agrees with others that found Trump suffering from “malignant narcissism” and an “inability to distinguish between fantasy and reality.” More recently, a doctor writing for The Atlantic noted Trump’s abnormalities in speech and movement that justified implementing routine mental evaluations for presidents.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Trump’s unbridled rage and fluctuating opinions are obvious symptoms of an acute mental disorder. And if something isn’t done about it soon, we can expect it to manifest in ever more perilous ways. That includes the potential for anything from continued soap opera melodrama in the White House to military conflicts and nuclear showdowns. And the more Trump feels threatened, either by former colleagues or special counsel investigations, the more dangerous he will become.

Fear and Desperation Spur Trump to Announce His Own ‘Reality TV’ Fake News Awards

Posted by on January 3, 2018 at 8:42 am. 4 Comments :

The current President of the United States is someone whose previous job was hosting a so-called reality TV game show. And that utterly irrelevant experience is showing as Donald Trump continues to embarrass himself and the nation on the world stage. His obvious intellectual and emotional inadequacies prove that he is ill-equipped for the job of president, which may explain why he spends so little time doing it.

Donald Trump

Much of the world faces crises that threaten the stability of international affairs. At times like these it is important to have a leader who recognizes the risks and provides security and solutions. Unfortunately, Trump offers just the opposite. In a series of ignorant tweets on Tuesday, the President managed to inflame everyone from Iranians to North Koreans to Pakistanis to Palestinians to his own “Deep State” Department of Justice. And true to form, his approach was childish and ego-driven. He actually got into a phallic showdown with Kim Jong Un over whose “Nuclear Button” was bigger.

Amidst this crazed tweetstorming, news broke that tightened the legal noose around Trump’s neck. In an op-ed for the New York Times, the founders of Fusion GPS say there are credible allegations of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, and that Republicans in Congress are suppressing it. So consistent with his psychological pathology, Trump is seeking to mask his fear with diversionary tactics. On this occasion his desperation could not be more transparent. He posted a tweet slamming the media in a way only a former TV game show host could:

Well gosh, we can all hardly wait for that. Who will win his BS awards? Do you think it might be the “failing” New York Times or “fake news” CNN? Perhaps there was a clue on his website where Trump posted a poll seeking to “Crown the King of Fake News.” The poll had only three questions, each asking whether a particular news item was “fake,” “faker,” or “fakest.” (Here’s a screen shot). Trump foreshadowed this gala awards ceremony a few weeks ago with a tweet that said:

So Trump has been thinking about having this contest for some time. And he was smart enough to exclude Fox News from the competition. He must have have known that Fox would dominate every category. In fact, shortly after that tweet Rasmussen Reports conducted a survey based on Trump’s fake news trophy idea. And surprisingly, for the notoriously right-wing pollster, “40% of all voters think Fox News should be the winner of the first annual Fake News Trophy.” CNN came in a distant second with only twenty-five percent of the vote.

We’ll be watching for Trump’s announcement on Monday for the results of his awards show. Even though the outcome could not be easier to predict. But no matter who “wins” the true award will still go to Donald Trump for being trusted less than the media he despises. Recent polling shows that, despite Trump’s attempts to smear the media, most Americans continue to trust the press more than they trust the President. It’s not even close. And part of the reason is that he engages in stupidities like this fake news award. Americans are smart enough to know that he’s only doing it to divert attention from his criminal and treasonous behavior that is being revealed more every day.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Trump Finally Leaves His Palm Beach Resort to Return to His Day Job: Watching Fox News

Posted by on January 2, 2018 at 2:23 pm. 3 Comments :

On Christmas day, Donald Trump posted a tweet wishing everyone a “great Christmas” (not merry?) and then promised that “tomorrow it’s back to work in order to Make America Great Again.” He then spent the next seven days at his luxurious Mar-A-Lago golf resort in Palm Beach, Florida. He had no presidential duties on his schedule and his only public appearances were on the golf course or at private galas.

Donald Trump Fox News

On January 2, Trump finally made it back to Washington, D.C., and the White House he has called “a dump.” It took him a week from his tweet, but he eventually returned to what he considers to be his job: Watching Fox News. That was apparent by the stream of tweets he posted Tuesday morning. Each one following closely a segment from that morning’s airing of Fox and Friends. He began the New Year Twittapalooza with a dark message that affirms his authoritarian tendencies:

In that one tweet Trump manages to breach a variety of principles required for a free society. First, he makes unsubstantiated allegations against Hillary Clinton, a former political opponent, and her aide, Huma Abedin. Trump actually calls for them to be jailed, without evidence, or even a trial. He was tipped to this nonsense while watching a correspondent from the Daily Caller on Fox and Friends. The Daily Caller is the website run by by Fox News host Tucker Carlson.

Secondly, Trump disparaged the Department of Justice as a tool of the “Deep State,” a term of paranoia that he picked up from his pal, Sean Hannity. Of Course the Justice Department is currently run by Trump appointees and he recently said that he has the “absolute right to do what I want to do with the Justice Department.” That’s a scary thought, and it isn’t true, but it calls into question his criticism that implies the whole institution is conspiring against him and his glassy-eyed disciples.

Finally, Trump made a point of dragging former FBI Director into this web of alleged criminals that he wants to lock up. That would be a legally perilous act since he would be persecuting someone that is a likely witness in charges that may be filed against Trump and his associates. It would add to the counts of obstruction of justice that might already be pending.

The tweet immediately following that one thanked Brandon Judd of the National Border Patrol Council. Judd had said some nice things about Trump on Fox and Friends a few minutes before the tweet. Obviously, Trump was watching and wanted to express his gratitude, along with promoting the utterly useless border wall that has become an obsession with him.

Trump also tweeted about the situation in North Korea, reprising his infantile use of the nickname “Rocket Man.”. He bragged that sanctions (which have been in place for years) were having a “big impact,” despite the fact that recent reports reveal that North Korea is planning new ballistic missile tests within the next few days. Apparently that wasn’t part of the report that Fox News aired, so Trump didn’t hear it. And we all know he relies on Fox rather than the intelligence agencies the president commands.

For someone who insists that he doesn’t have time to watch TV, he sure watches a lot of TV. And just one network in particular. Trump’s tweeting patterns have long been documented as regurgitations of something he just saw on Fox. He rarely has an original thought. And when he does, it’s likely to be praise to himself for something he had nothing to do with.

For instance, his tweet Tuesday morning citing a report that there were zero jet airliner fatalities in 2017. He attributed that to his having been “very strict” on commercial aviation. Of course, there is no record of his having done anything that would affect this statistic. What’s more, there were also zero jet airliner fatalities in the U.S. for the past eight years, long before his do-nothing presidency. However, Trump did repeal safety regulations for coal mining, and 2017 saw a surge in mining fatalities. Is he taking credit for that too?

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

With everything going on in the world today, it’s comforting knowing that Trump is so focused on what he thinks is his job. Because most Americans would rather he be watching TV and tweeting than creating international crises or adding to the domestic trauma and divisiveness he’s responsible for. Hopefully his babysitters in the White House will keep him glued to Fox News and out of the Situation Room.

Bill O’Reilly’s Two for 2018: 1) The Media Hates Trump 2) Evil Women Who Expose Sexual Predators

Posted by on January 1, 2018 at 3:33 pm. 4 Comments :

Everyone has been compiling “Best Of” lists for 2017. But not Bill O’Reilly, He’s jumping feet first into the new year with his “Two Big Stories Brewing for 2018.” The disgraced former Fox News star and serial sexual deviant is trying desperately to remain relevant in a world that has left him at the side of the road.

Bill o'Reilly Fox News

O’Reilly published a brief message on his deserted website that he hopes will rope people into subscribing to his “premium” service. Presumably that will buy you exclusive access to his ultra-arrogant perspectives on all the crap he hates and knows nothing about. The posting purports to identify a couple of stories that O’Reilly believes will dominate the new year. And both have a conspicuously self-serving slant. As O’Reilly tells it:

“First, the American media will continue to try and negate Donald Trump’s election to the presidency. This is by design. Most press chieftains despise everything about the President and their viewpoints are well known among their employees. Thus, negative stories about Mr. Trump will continue while positive stories will be suppressed.”

Poor Billo. He thinks that the media is conspiring to overthrow Donald Trump by viciously reporting the things he actually does and says. What a devious plot. And it is by design. It’s what journalists do. If Trump doesn’t want his words and actions to be documented, he got into the wrong business. And if O’Reilly thinks that covering the President accurately is an act of treason, he’s on the wrong planet.

It shouldn’t surprise anyone that O’Reilly is upset by journalists doing their job. It’s what got him thrown from his ivory tower at Fox News. Reporters uncovered a bunch of settlements paid out to women who were victims of O’Reilly’s sexual abuse. That included a payment of thirty-two million dollars to one woman. Because the terms of the settlement impose a gag on the victim, we can only imagine what he must have done to justify that kind of compensation. Which brings us to O’Reilly’s second big story for 2018:

The second vital story this upcoming year is the payment and other compensation to women in order to smear the President and others. Vile attorney Lisa Bloom has admitted receiving big money from the likes of fanatical far left smear merchant David Brock in her quest to defame Donald Trump before the election. Bloom was also involved in attacking me.

“The FBI and IRS should be investigating Bloom, Brock and others. Will they? President Trump, for his own sake, should order it. That’s the real attempted subversion of the 2016 election – secret money being offered for defamatory testimony. The allegations are staggering.”

Notice how O’Reilly’s big story is one that involves someone who is attacking him? Surely it’s just a coincidence. Just because he was exposed as a serial sexual predator by multiple women who worked for him or Fox News (not exactly a den of liberals), what he calls a “smear” is next year’s hot topic.

For the record, O’Reilly is referring to a story that alleges that media watchdog David Brock contributed to a fund to help Trump’s victims in the event they required assistance with security. Making accusations against a president who is worshiped like a cult leader can be decidedly dangerous. And the funds were only for security-related purposes. There was no attempt to coerce testimony from anyone in exchange for money. In fact, that was explicitly forbidden by the attorney, Lisa Bloom. What’s more, the fund was later abandoned and the money returned because it ended up not being necessary. That’s what O’Reilly regards as a scandal worthy of Trump siccing the FBI on women who are already suffering, and their lawyers.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

There is a strange irony, though, in O’Reilly’s whiny complaint. He’s trying to condemn others for donating a couple hundred thousand dollars to help victimized women come forward with the truth. But he’s the one that actually did pay out tens of millions, not to encourage openness and honesty, but to keep women from talking about his disgusting behavior. He would rather shut women up than help them speak out. And these are the stories that he thinks will, or should, fill the headlines this year. He might just get his wish, but not in the way he thinks.

The Lies Fox News Told in 2017 That They (Kind of) Admitted or Corrected

Posted by on December 31, 2017 at 2:15 pm. NO Comments :

Well, it’s that time of year. The time for end-of-year lists and collections of the best/worst whatever that we all endured for the past twelve months. The prospect of compiling such lists for 2017 seemed particularly daunting considering the wealth of material created by our sociopathic president, Donald Trump, and his PR division at Fox News. After all, no one was going to read through a 1,000 best/worst list for the year. And how could it be pared down to ten?

Donald Trump

So News Corpse found a category that would not be too overwhelming. Fox News has told literally thousands of lies this year. But they have only acknowledged or corrected a handful. That’s because they don’t practice the sort of journalistic ethics that a legitimate news enterprise normally would. In fact, their mission is to disinform and deceive. Consequently, they have no use for retractions or apologies. But News Corpse did document the rare occasions when Fox News was forced to at least make a comment about some blatantly false story that they leaked into the mediasphere. What follows are some stories that even Fox couldn’t pretend were true (kind of).

The Seth Rich Story

May 24: There is a conservative mythology that Democratic operative Seth Rich was assassinated by some nefarious lefty cabal because he leaked stolen DNC documents to Wikileaks. However, there’s no evidence of any such activity, and the police have concluded that the crime was a botched robbery. Nevertheless, Fox News, and especially Sean Hannity, repeatedly advanced the ludicrous conspiracy theory.

The Comey Files

July 11: Steve Doocy of Fox and Friends falsely reported that former FBI director James Comey made documents public that were classified as “Top Secret.” But Doocy had to retract that report the following day because it wasn’t true. Donald Trump retweeted the original false story, but never corrected the tweet.

Bogus Baghdadi

July 24: Fox News contributor Gen. Tony Thomas accused the New York Times of allowing a terrorist leader to escape. Then Fox weekend host Pete Hegseth elaborated on the charge that Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi would’ve been captured if not for the Times. The Times responded with proof that Fox’s story was false, but Fox continued reporting the same lies, as did Trump.

Smearing the Good Lawyers

September 9: Fox’s Greg Gutfeld rattled off some falsehoods that portrayed the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) as charlatans and associates of violent nutjobs. He accused them of financial improprieties and failing to perform the legal they work that is their mission. The SPLC responded with a letter proving Gutfeld’s remarks to be false. But Fox ignored the letter and never corrected their libelous story.

The Verdict is In

December 5: Fox and Friends co-host Pete Hegseth erroneously reported that MSNBC failed to cover the not guilty verdict in the Kate Steinle murder trial. […] The false reporting by Hegseth was uncorrected for at least twelve hours despite the network being informed of the error.

Please, No Moore

December 10: A Fox News headline falsely asserted that “Roy Moore accuser admits she forged part of yearbook inscription attributed to Alabama Senate candidate.” There was just one little problem with that. The accuser, Beverly Young Nelson, never admitted any such thing.

It’s interesting to note that Fox News made a big deal about a few incorrect reports during the year by ABC News or CNN. These were portrayed as proof that the entirety of the media was fake. Many of Fox’s pundits went so far as to accuse the press of making these mistakes deliberately. And of course, that was Trump’s standard approach as he labeled everything “fake news.” However, Fox went to great lengths to avoid mentioning any of their own falsehoods when discussing this subject. They’re pure as the driven snow. It’s the same way they treat the subject of sexual abuse. Harvey Weinstein and Al Franken are always brought up as examples, but Roger Ailes and Bill O’Reilly are forgotten figures from some distant past.

To be sure, the list above doesn’t represent the full picture of Fox’s dishonesty. They continue to press flat out lies about the Uranium One deal, which their own “hard news” correspondent, Shepard Smith, utterly debunked. And Fox News is obsessed with tarnishing the reputation of the FBI and special counsel Robert Mueller. If you watched nothing but Fox News you would come away believing that Mueller was an unscrupulous Democrat determined to crush Donald Trump with manufactured tales of collusion. Never mind that in reality he is a life-long Republican selected by a Republican Acting Attorney General, who was appointed by Trump.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Next year is almost certainly going to be more of the same. Fox News will defend Trump from any and all criticism, while writing new talking points for him to tweet. Trump will adopt Fox’s rhetoric and disgorge it on Twitter and to friendly reporters. Then Fox will cover what Trump said bringing the circle to a close, ready to recycle in an endless loop of lying. And on that depressing note, News Corpse would like to wish everyone a very Happy and Healthy New Year.

Rachel Maddow Dominates an Increasingly Hysterical Sean Hannity as 2017 Winds Down

Posted by on December 29, 2017 at 1:40 pm. 10 Comments :

This has not been a particularly good year for Fox News. After the disaster of 2016 that saw their founder and CEO, Roger Ailes, fired for multiple instances of sexual harassment and abuse, 2017 was supposed to be a year of rebuilding. However, their problems escalated as their biggest star, Bill O’Reilly, was also terminated for the same deviant reasons. Several other Fox News hosts and executives were likewise jettisoned, and they faced lawsuits for both gender and racial discrimination.

Rachel Maddow

That left Sean Hannity as the default face of Fox News. He was moved up to the 9:00 pm slot and expected to carry the primetime schedule with newcomers Tucker Carlson and Laura Ingraham. He would also be airing head-to-head against MSNBC phenom, Rachel Maddow. Surely the most embarrassing outcome for Fox News would be for Hannity to lose to a left-wing lesbian on a liberal network. But as the year comes to a close, that’s precisely what happened.

In the first half of December, Maddow outright beat Hannity nine out of eleven days in the coveted 25-54 year old advertiser demographic. On four of those days she also won in total audience. Her demo margin of victory was an impressive average of 656,000 viewers, more than 50,000 above Hannity’s average. And Maddow helped to carry her colleagues to wins over Fox News. Lawrence O’Donnell took five of eleven nights, and Brian Williams took six of the eleven. [Note: The second half of December is not included in this analysis because most of these programs had guest hosts].

What’s more, Maddow has been steadily pummeling Hannity throughout the year. The annual figures for these programs put Maddow in close contention with Fox’s long-running leaders. In total audience, Maddow grew an astonishing seventy-seven percent. In the 25-54 demo she was the number two program (after Hannity) following a seventy-four percent growth surge. And among younger viewers (18-49) Maddow was number one.

Along with those achievements in ratings, Maddow also won two News and Documentary Emmys this year, something Fox News has never done. Which shouldn’t surprise anyone. Fox News is not regarded as an especially reliable source for news. They exist only to pump disinformation into the muddled heads of Republican partisans and Donald Trump cultists. Their coverage of any issue is predictably focused on advancing right-wing politics and defending Trump for whatever outrageous thing he did or said that day.

And Hannity is the worst of the lot. He openly colludes with Trump, who he reportedly speaks with almost every day. He has appeared in campaign ads for the President. There is simply no more brazenly brown-nosed Trump-fluffer than Sean Hannity. Not even Trump’s TV babysitters on Fox and Friends. And as his fortunes decline, Hannity gets ever more extreme. He is outdoing Alex Jones’ Infowars for crackpot conspiracy theories. This year he has spent hours on pure nuttery like Pizzagate, the Seth Rich murder, Hillary Clinton’s email (still?), and most recently, his fetish for smearing special counsel Robert Mueller. Hannity has led the charge to slander Mueller as a corrupt, dishonest, charlatan determined to stage a coup against Trump. Never mind that Mueller is a decorated Marine veteran with a long and distinguished career in law enforcement. And a life-long Republican to boot.

2018 may bring even greater rewards for Maddow and her MSNBC colleagues. She has the intelligence and the insight to make some very dry subjects both interesting and educational. And there is clearly an audience for smart, honest news analysis. The country yearns for programming that is more light than heat. And that’s what Maddow specializes in. She never books hostile adversaries simply to provoke on-air fights the way Fox and CNN do. Her mission is to inform, not infuriate. And when truth is on one side of the debate, lies are never presented just to have a perception of balance. That’s the Maddow model, and the rest of cable’s newscasters should seek to emulate it. It’s obviously a winning strategy, with the added benefit of having journalistic integrity.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Fox News: ‘You Don’t Have to Like Donald Trump’ – America: We Already Know That, and We Don’t

Posted by on December 28, 2017 at 1:00 pm. 2 Comments :

The arguments by Donald Trump’s defenders are becoming more strained and ludicrous with every passing day. At the beginning they were happy to exalt him as an outsider who would “drain the swamp” and use his business skills to “Make America Great Again.” But as the nation got to know Trump better, these transparently phony marketing gimmicks made less and less sense.

Donald Trump

Donald Trump has been a leading member of The Swamp since its inception. As president he’s proven that by his appointments of The Swamp’s most ardent advocates to critical government positions where they have proceeded to fleece the country and enrich themselves. As for Trump’s business skills, most people now know that they consist primarily of scams and bankruptcies.

All of this makes it more difficult to lavish praise on a character that is so lacking in character. The Trump shill army has stopped pretending that he isn’t a serial sexual predator, and now dismiss the issue as having been decided by the election. They avoid any discussion of his financial corruption and self-dealing by staking claim to the current economy, which is still operating under the policies of Barack Obama. And now, even the simple assertion that they just have a personal affinity for the Tweeter-in-Chief is a bridge too far to cross. On Fox News’ Outnumbered, the normally fawning co-hosts all agreed that Trump is just plain not likable (video below):

Lisa Boothe: His Likability – he wasn’t well-liked, if you look at the polls in 2016, that didn’t matter.

Kennedy: The bottom line is a much better metric with most voters than whether or not you want to got to a cocktail party with Donald Trump.

Katie Pavlich: It’s going to be difficult for Democrats to argue against everyday people who are seeing their lives getting better. And the argument that $1,000-2,000 isn’t benefiting you really isn’t going to fly. I think it’s actually very offensive to people who think that is a significant amount of money, because it is. When it comes to how Democrats approach this, and President Trump’s approval numbers, you don’t have to like the President. It’s a likability thing. His approval rating isn’t necessarily based on his policies. His approval is based on not his policies, but his personality. You don’t have to like Donald Trump to like what he’s doing.

So it’s unanimous. Nobody likes Donald Trump. However, the suggestion that Americans still like what he’s doing is a total fabrication by the Fox News Trump=fluffers. The GOP tax scam that was just passed was literally one of the most unpopular bills in decades. Voters know that it rewards Trump and his wealthy pals at the expense of everyone else. And that same negative sentiment sticks to nearly everything Trump touches. The Gallup poll of issues puts Trump firmly underwater on every issue in the survey:

Approve Disapprove
Economy 45 51
Foreign Affairs 33 61
North Korea 35 60
Healthcare 31 64
Taxes 37 55
Immigration 39 60
Terrorism 46 53
Russia 30 66
Environment 32 63
Federal Budget 36 57
Relations w/News Media 34 64
Trade 45 51

Contrary to the glassy-eyed idolatry of Fox News pundits, Trump obviously has failed to connect with voters on any of the important issues that they care about. And now Fox News agrees that even his personality is repugnant. What does that leave for anyone to admire about Trump? His remedial oratory? His gross ignorance? His racism, misogyny, and xenophobia? His infantile behavior? Let’s face it, the only thing that anyone is going to like about Trump is how he looks in an orange jumpsuit as he’s being escorted out of the White House.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.