{"id":10515,"date":"2013-09-06T12:56:38","date_gmt":"2013-09-06T19:56:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?p=10515"},"modified":"2013-09-06T12:56:38","modified_gmt":"2013-09-06T19:56:38","slug":"fox-news-media-analyst-howard-kurtz-absolves-fox-of-its-sins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?p=10515","title":{"rendered":"Fox News Media Analyst, Howard Kurtz, Absolves Fox Of Its Sins"},"content":{"rendered":"

When Howard Kurtz announced that he was leaving CNN to become a media analyst at Fox News, he said that…<\/p>\n

“Fox wouldn\u2019t have hired me if it wasn\u2019t interested in my independent brand of media criticism. So, I\u2019m very comfortable that I\u2019ll have the freedom to criticize anyone I need to in my new role.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

First of all, Fox never hires anyone for their independence or accuracy. In fact, the further you stray from reality<\/a>, the better your employment opportunities at Fox.<\/p>\n

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Secondly, Kurtz has not been as comfortable, or as independent, as his statement suggests. Media Matters has published a study<\/a> that shows that Kurtz has rarely criticized Fox when there were obvious opportunities to do so. For instance, he said nothing about the controversial firing<\/a> of Fox’s head of communications, Brian Lewis. He said nothing about the much-ridiculed interview<\/a> of author Reza Aslan by Christian reporter Lauren Green. These were two of the biggest media stories in the two months since Kurtz moved to Fox, but not one word was said or written about them.<\/p>\n

Today Kurtz posted the latest issue of his Media Buzz column on Fox News. In it he purports to cover the publication of a study (pdf)<\/a> from Harvard University’s Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy. It’s a pretty mealy review of the study’s fascinating insights with regard to the impact of social media on modern political campaigns.<\/p>\n

Somehow Kurtz managed to leave out entirely a portion of the study that directly referred to Fox News. The study’s author, Peter Hamby, spoke to Mitt Romney’s senior adviser Eric Fehrnstrom (of Etch-a-Sketch fame), about how the campaign took advantage of the friendly environment provided by Fox:<\/p>\n

Fehrnstrom:<\/strong> We’d much rather go on a Fox program where we know the question is going to come up and Mitt can give his answer and it’s not going to a frenzy of questioning. He will be able to give his response. There may be a follow up or two, and then that’s it. The frenzy is not something that you would willingly do if you had other options. It’s like here you can either do this frenzied news conference, or we can do a more sedate studio appearance with Sean Hannity. I’d take the sedate over the frenzy any day.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

It’s funny how that remarkably candid admission escaped Kurtz’s notice. If you are reviewing an academic study that specifically cites the organization for whom you work, it would be appropriate to make some mention of it. But since this casts a negative (or accurate) light on Fox, Kurtz elected to ignore it. That’s not exactly a fulfillment of his promise to be independent or to criticize anyone. In fact, Kurtz is behaving more like Fox’s PR agent, promoting his client’s interests and suppressing bad publicity. For someone who identifies himself as a media analyst, it is the death knell of credibility.<\/p>\n

By the way, here is what Kurtz’s new colleagues at Fox had to say about him prior to his joining the team:<\/p>\n