{"id":12145,"date":"2014-04-07T13:26:45","date_gmt":"2014-04-07T20:26:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?p=12145"},"modified":"2014-04-07T13:26:45","modified_gmt":"2014-04-07T20:26:45","slug":"how-fox-news-is-spinning-the-obamacare-enrollment-success-story","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?p=12145","title":{"rendered":"How Fox News Is Spinning The ObamaCare Enrollment Success Story"},"content":{"rendered":"

Conservative opponents of the Democratic health insurance agenda are heavily invested in its failure. From the outset they have portrayed it as a dangerous descent into tyranny that would destroy the magnificent American health care system and the nation as a whole. In its role as PR division of the Republican Party, Fox News did its part to demonize the law and frighten people away<\/a> from signing up.<\/p>\n

Now that the numbers are in showing that, defying all expectations, the program surpassed the goals that had been set in an early analysis by the Congressional Budget Office, Fox News is shifting into high gear to dismiss the facts. The latest example of this determination to avoid reality comes with the release of an extensive survey<\/a> conducted by Gallup. The core of the survey’s results are apparent in their headline which reads “In U.S., Uninsured Rate Lowest Since 2008.”<\/em> And if that isn’t clear enough, Gallup leads off their analysis by saying that…<\/p>\n

“The uninsured rate has been falling since the fourth quarter of 2013, after hitting an all-time high of 18.0% in the third quarter — a sign that the Affordable Care Act, commonly referred to as “Obamacare,” appears to be accomplishing its goal of increasing the percentage of Americans with health insurance coverage.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The news of Gallup’s results was widely reported by the media. The Associated Press distributed an article to its member news organizations with the headline “Survey: Health insurance gains pick up.”<\/em><\/a> This story was published by numerous outlets that represented a broad array of opinion, including the Miami Herald, ABC, Washington Times, Newsmax, NPR, Houston Chronicle, and even local Fox affiliates in Atlanta, Orlando, Phoenix, Chicago, and more. All with the lede provided by AP. However, Fox News chose to handle the same AP story in its own unique way<\/a> by altering much of the content and changing the headline to “Gallup survey suggests sign-ups under ObamaCare not as high as White House says.”<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Fox<\/p>\n

For more shameless lies from Fox News…
\nGet Fox Nation vs. Reality. Available now at Amazon.<\/a><\/p>\n

Clearly Fox News contrived to present a more negative version of the story than the one told by the survey’s actual findings. A closer look at the differences between the AP’s original article and the one published by Fox reveals just how committed Fox is to misrepresenting the facts. The AP’s article began…<\/p>\n

“A growing share of Americans got health insurance as sign-up season for President Barack Obama’s health care law came to a close last month, a major survey released Monday has found.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The Fox News version altered that to say…<\/p>\n

“A major new Gallup survey suggests the ObamaCare sign-up numbers are not as soaring as the White House claims.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The AP’s article goes on to say that…<\/p>\n

“The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index provides independent validation for White House claims that the law is expanding access, particularly for working people with no coverage on the job.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

That sentence was removed entirely from the Fox article, which choose instead to focus on speculation as to whether the total number of enrollees reached the 7.1 million mark touted by the administration. Although another sentence that was edited out by Fox said that…<\/p>\n

“‘The Affordable Care Act, commonly referred to as `Obamacare,’ appears to be accomplishing its goal of increasing the percentage of Americans with health insurance,’ said Gallup’s analysis of the findings.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In addition, Fox removed a couple of quotes in the AP article. One was by White House senior adviser Dan Pfeiffer, who pointed out that there were “200,000 people who had started applications but weren’t able to finish by the deadline.”<\/em> The other by HHS spokesman Aaron Albright, who noted that “This survey and other independent analyses highlight a historic expansion in coverage.”<\/em><\/p>\n

To be sure, there were elements of the survey results that addressed possible shortcomings in the law’s uptake. These were covered by both Gallup and the AP. But they were featured prominently by Fox News, to the exclusion of most of the positive data. But Fox wasn’t satisfied with merely cutting out parts of the AP article that they didn’t like. They also added their own segments in order to further slant the coverage negatively. Where the AP said this…<\/p>\n

“The survey also speaks to concerns about the consequences from last fall’s wave of insurance cancellations. Gallup’s data suggest most of the people whose existing policies did not measure up under the law were able to get new coverage, or took advantage of exceptions belatedly issued by the White House.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Fox News substituted this…<\/p>\n

“Some feared the cancellations of more than 4.7 million policies that didn’t measure up to the law’s standards would actually swell the ranks of uninsured people. That created huge political problems for Obama, who had promised Americans they could keep their insurance if they liked it.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

When comparing the presentation of the same data side-by-side, it couldn’t be more clear that Fox is endeavoring to manipulate their audience so that they come to a negative conclusion about ObamaCare. Gallup’s results are recognized as being a neutral snapshot of the nation’s opinions at a specific point in time. And even though many other news sources, including those with staunchly conservative views, published the AP’s story without alteration, Fox couldn’t help itself and chose instead to introduce a blatant bias into their reporting through a series of deceitful edits.<\/p>\n

It is this sort of unethical and unprofessional conduct that makes it impossible to take seriously the Fox claim to being “fair and balanced.”<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Conservative opponents of the Democratic health insurance agenda are heavily invested in its failure. From the outset they have portrayed it as a dangerous descent into tyranny that would destroy the magnificent American health care system and the nation as a whole. In its role as PR division of the Republican Party, Fox News did […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12148,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"How Fox News Is Spinning The ObamaCare Enrollment Success Story","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1,684],"tags":[33,1066],"class_list":["post-12145","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","category-media-bias","tag-fox-news","tag-obamacare"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/..\/Pix\/Trump\/foxnews-obamacare-signups.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4Ijg-39T","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":10774,"url":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?p=10774","url_meta":{"origin":12145,"position":0},"title":"Fox News Publishes Phony ObamaCare Attacks From Koch Brothers Funded “News” Service","author":"Mark NC","date":"10\/23\/2013","format":false,"excerpt":"In their three year effort to prevent Americans from getting affordable health care, Fox News has partnered with numerous conservative propagandists in the media, partisans in politics, and professional lobbyists and think tanks. However, recently they have begun incorporating the most extreme right-wing opinions disguised as journalism and originating from\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?cat=1"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":11178,"url":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?p=11178","url_meta":{"origin":12145,"position":1},"title":"Fox Nation vs. Reality: Misquoting Michael Moore: ObamaCare Is An Awful Godsend","author":"Mark NC","date":"1\/2\/2014","format":false,"excerpt":"One of the favorite methods of distorting the truth that Fox News uses frequently, is to quote liberals out of context or to leave out significant portions of their statements in order to create the false impression that they have abandoned their liberal allies and\/or their principles. And no one\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?cat=1"},"img":{"alt_text":"Fox Nation","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/..\/Pix\/Trump\/foxnation-reality-obamacare-moore.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":10580,"url":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?p=10580","url_meta":{"origin":12145,"position":2},"title":"Fox Nation Promotes Creepy Uncle Sam Video To Discourage ObamaCare Sign-Ups","author":"Mark NC","date":"9\/19\/2013","format":false,"excerpt":"As previously reported here, Fox News has been engaged in a coordinated campaign to drive down participation in the Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare) by preventing eligible citizens from learning about their options under the new law. It is Fox's goal to see ObamaCare fail because they prefer a system that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?cat=1"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":11273,"url":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?p=11273","url_meta":{"origin":12145,"position":3},"title":"Fox News On Mute: Federal Judge Rules Against Challenge To ObamaCare Subsidies","author":"Mark NC","date":"1\/15\/2014","format":false,"excerpt":"A couple of conservative activists sought to cripple the Affordable Care Act (aka ObamaCare) by filing a lawsuit that challenged the authority of the federal health care exchanges to offer subsidies to those who purchased insurance through them. It was a weak argument from the start, but one that had\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?cat=1"},"img":{"alt_text":"Fox News","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/..\/Pix\/Trump\/foxnews-obamacare-court-win.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":8956,"url":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?p=8956","url_meta":{"origin":12145,"position":4},"title":"So F**king What? ObamaCare Makes Smokers Pay More?","author":"Mark NC","date":"1\/28\/2013","format":false,"excerpt":"And the problem here is what? The Fox Nationalists are very concerned about the allegation that \"ObamaCare Makes Smokers Pay $5,100 More A Year.\" It's a display of empty outrage because insurance companies have required smokers to pay higher premiums for years. And why shouldn't they? Smokers are willfully engaging\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?cat=1"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":11605,"url":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?p=11605","url_meta":{"origin":12145,"position":5},"title":"JesusCare Being Pushed By Fox News As An Alternative To ObamaCare","author":"Mark NC","date":"3\/4\/2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Enrollment in the Affordable Care Act (aka ObamaCare) has been accelerating every month since the mangled launch of the Internet health insurance exchanges. Despite the early difficulties, nearly four million people have acquired insurance that is comprehensive and inexpensive. Millions more are now covered by Medicaid or policies purchased by\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?cat=1"},"img":{"alt_text":"Fox News JesusCare","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/..\/Pix\/Trump\/foxnews-jesuscare.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12145","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=12145"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12145\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12150,"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12145\/revisions\/12150"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/12148"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=12145"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=12145"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=12145"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}