TV news’ race to the bottom

>Archive - PWW Print Edition Archive - 2004 Editions - Oct 2, 2004


 

Review

The documentary “Outfoxed” examines how media empires, led by media mogul Rupert Murdoch’s Fox News, have been running a “race to the bottom” in television news. This film provides an in-depth look at Fox News and the dangers of ever-larger corporations taking control of the public’s right to know. Murdoch’s tentacles reach over 3 billion – that’s billion – people around the world.

As we listen to its employees, whose voices are disguised, and former employees we understand the tactics of Fox News: one-sided right-wing reporting. The technique used by the filmmaker to drive the point home is simply to run the network’s own coverage. The spin is mind-boggling. “Repeat a lie 1,000 times and it becomes the truth,” Joseph Goebbels, Nazi minister of propaganda, said.

There is one exchange between Bill O’Reilly and Jeremy Glick, whose father died in the attack on the World Trade Center. Obviously, O’Reilly was unaware of the young man’s politics, which were shaped to some degree by his father.

As the interview progresses and Glick shows himself to be anti-imperialist, O’Reilly becomes angry. He tells Glick his father would be very unhappy with what he was saying. When Glick tries to defend his position, O’Reilly cuts him off.

O’Reilly abruptly ends the interview and, while still on camera, motions to security to show his guest the door. When Glick goes to get some water, security advises him to leave rather than chance running into O’Reilly in the hallway, implying the threat of bodily harm.

MSNBC, CNN and other major news outlets are following Fox’s format, which has brought “journalism” to an all-time low. Like it or not, it’s where too many Americans get their “news.”