Fox news is more than a bubble. It is a fortress. America is under assault. Close Ranks.
Trump has his base, and the news they get reinforces the mentality of siege.
It is useful to know why some 40% of Americans feel as they do.
Some of this blog's readers watch Fox News. Some avoid it. Today's post is a scouting report. In the Fox News view, Trump is the innocent patriot set upon in a witch hunt by jackbooted Democratic partisans in the FBI and media, while normal good old fashioned white America is set upon by the super-villain Hillary Clinton, wealth-confiscating Socialists, violent and deadbeat immigrant invaders, criminal homegrown blacks, and people who don't share our culture, religion, and values.
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| Photo for Trump on border wall. |
Their choice of news stories fleshes out that view, and nothing on Fox contradicts it.
Story One. Trump is still a hero, strong and proud. He didn't lose, he didn't back down. His hands are open. He is reasonable.
Meanwhile, Pelosi and Schumer are out to undermine America. The side story is headlined "Obstruction or Justice" with a query from Sean Hannity saying it is time for them "to decide if they are on America's side."
A third story, relying on comments by a former Trump campaign manager, has a photo of Schumer and the headline, "Are Democrats solely out to destroy Donald Trump?"
Trump is shown as wise, steadfast, and un-bowed, with headline "Trump renews call to 'build the wall' after reopening government."
Story Two. Cultural invasion from the New Democrats: Muslim Socialists.
The number two story is a story about freshman Member of Commerce Ilhan Omar, describing her getting "new scrutiny" over a letter she wrote a judge while a state representative, saying that 30-year prison sentences for men convicted of planning to go to Syria to assist ISIS were counterproductive.
Subtext: terrorist enabler in a head scarf.
Ilhan Omar and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are favorite subjects of Fox News coverage. Ocasio-Cortez has a story headlined that she was disappointed to be missing the Sundance Film Festival. She was "sad" not to see a film that was a documentary of her run for congress. The story headlines says "she will 'miss' Sundance film premier 'due to complications' from partial government shutdown."
There is an ongoing meta-message about these two woman. Omar is Muslim and is undermining America. Ocasio-Cortez is a frivolous young woman, dancing, wanting to go to movies, trying to get an apartment, looking pretty, spouting off socialist or extremist nonsense about taxes, health care, and socialism. Dangerous and silly.
Story Three. Democratic Scandal. Young Kamala Harris associated with Willie Brown. Sex!
The story puts the accusation out there by asking it in a question,"extramarital affair with Kamala Harris?" In a second story, Fox headlines by saying that Harris and Willie Brown were once "close," saying they "dated," and inserting the wink-wink scare quotes in both cases.
The story said that Brown assisted Harris in her early campaigns by helping her raise money, something he did for multiple other elected officials. Then the story says that Willie Brown was a womanizer. Late in the story the article quotes Brown comparing Harris to other people he had supported politically by saying "The difference is the only one who, after I helped her, sent word that I would be indicted 'if I so much as jaywalked' while she was DA." Meta message: backstabber.
The story concluded with a description of Brown's marital history, separations and girlfriends, and a report that he fathered a child in 2001 with a campaign fundraiser while married to his wife of sixty years.
The overall subtext: Harris is dirty and got ahead with good looks and easy virtue, then scrambles to make up for it.
Story Four. Witch hunt. Jackbooted thug FBI. Roger Stone and Donal Trump victims.
This set of stories include headlines like "Defiant Roger Stone post picture of Mueller's 'nothing burger' as Trump comes to his defense."
Moreover, the FBI arrested him in a ridiculous show of force. His threats to harm witnesses were empty; he was a harmless old white collar victim who would have submitted to custody willingly.
However, all is well because Trump defended both himself and Stone. Related stories say that the Mueller indictments actually show the opposite of the intuitive observation. They show Trump's innocence. "The indictment is just the latest blatant demonstration that Special Counsel Robert Mueller's office, the Department of Justice, and the FBI have known for many months that there was no such conspiracy" to collude with the Russians.
Story Five. Everyone Picks on Us. Praise for the martyrs of the faith, in the face of scorn from the stylish Left.
Today's webpage has two prominent stories on the same theme. One is on the model who had felt it necessary to hide her support for Trump to protect her career but who, finally, "came out" and admitted she liked Trump.
A second story relates the same essential story of persecution, this one involving movie star Daniel Radcliffe who the headline says "slams Tom Brady over Trump support and MAGA hat." Brady keeps a Trump had in his locker, the story reads. Football star Tom Brady supports Trump and agrees with Trump regarding players kneeling during the National Anthem, the story reads.
Story Six. The Fake News media is out to get us.
Today there are a suite of stories on this subject. One is the Covington, Kentucky rush to judgement on the nervous smile, or was it an insulting smirk? "Covington students, journalists mired in Twitter's toxic stew." Conclusion: the students were persecuted unjustly.
A second reveals the media plot to "expose Trump in the 2020 campaign."
A third is on Trump's opining that the layoffs at the Huffington Post and BuzzFeed were due to "bad journalism" and "one sided Fake Media coverage." Trump criticized CBS [correction: CNN] for having cameras to record Stone's arrest, and then wrote: "Trump on Saturday also mocked CBS News, asserting that its reporting on Stone neglected to include details on the 'Fake and Unverified "Dossier"' which Trump described as a "total phony conjob, that was paid for by Crooked Hillary."
Conclusion:
Fox viewers and AM talk radio listeners do not see a weak, vulgar, dishonest Trump, on the political ropes because of his misbehavior. They see a good, strong man under attack for standing up for old fashioned American values. They liken Trump to the Covington youth in the red MAGA hat, and the model, and Tom Brady, and every other misunderstood and unappreciated American. All are under siege by the media, and by snobs, Muslims, Socialists, Democrats, and criminals.
Trump is the good guy. That's what they see.
5 comments:
So...
"Story One. Trump is still a hero, strong and proud."
How can anyone call this a win when it was about the "wall", with multiple daily tweets and comments that there would be no backing down, no compromise. Democrats simply and wisely made this the central issue also and clearly said no.
Despite lackeys applauding the announcement there was NO WALL in the "compromise".
It's not about the wall per se, it's about a midterm election that sent a message to Democrats loud and clear: Stop it.
"Story Two. Cultural invasion."
So FOX appeals to the racist, sexist, bigoted. This is nothing new.
"Story Three. Democratic Scandal. Young Kamala Harris associated with Willie Brown. Democratic sex."
See Story Two above, with the addition of the promotion of innuendo. Right wing web sites are the main source of the story and FOX runs with it. The source of the story is a single short editorial by Brown which ran last week.
https://www.sfchronicle.com/politics/article/Sure-I-dated-Kamala-Harris-So-what-13562972.php
"Yes, we dated. It was more than 20 years ago. Yes, I may have influenced her career by appointing her to two state commissions when I was Assembly speaker."
The main exaggeration is in regard to Brown being "married"...he technically was, but had been separated for some years.
So far Sen. Harris has not commented. Nor should she.
"Story Four. Witch hunt. Jackbooted thug FBI. Roger Stone and Donal Trump victims."
This is the continuing narrative that FOX has been promoting since the first revelations of Trump's Russian connections. The dark and mysterious "deep state" is gunning for Trump and anyone associated with him because they are attempting to reform and expose a murky conspiracy to somehow turn America into...Canada?
"Story Five. Everyone Picks on Us. Praise for the martyrs of the faith, in the face of scorn from the stylish Left."
Yes, it's true Progressives are dismayed by the ignorance and self destructive tendencies of Regressives in our society. The unfortunate result of the meltdown of the Republican party is the empowerment of the worst among us. Unable to take responsibility for their own shortcomings they claim to be victims of a conspiracy promulgated by Mexicans and college professors to impoverish and enslave them.
Question: Are we to believe that Trump is the only Republican politician compromised by Russia?
"Story Six. The Fake News media is out to get us."
We live in a complex world with no simple stories, but FOX attempts to present events in a simplistic way by relating to emotional issues like race, security, and other prejudices rather than a nuanced and contextual presentation of the facts. FOX is the model for all the other Regressive media outlets, online and otherwise, so much of their misinformation is amplified and thus given the imprimatur of truth. While responsible news organizations are not perfect, journalistic standards and integrity are given the highest importance. FOX viewers simply have chosen not to believe the other 99% of information sources when it contradicts their delusions.
We are left asking ourselves why there are so many of them?
Good analysis, Peter and Rick. Not much has changed since "What's the Matter with Kansas"
(Thomas Frank). Jonathan Haidt pretty much covers how conservatives think in "The Righteous Mind: Why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion." George Lakoff ("Moral Politics") does this as well but reminds liberal readers that responding to accusations only reinforces the initial fabrication as does using the oppositions language/framework. How did, for example, the Affordable Care Act mutate into "Obamacare," widely and sadly used by liberals?
Better to focus on what we are for, eg., "healthcare for all," "a green economy."
"Come into my parlor, said the spider to the fly..."
It's not called "Fox" news for no reason...
Andy Seles
Nice recap Peter. I think many would agree that our worldviews are shaped by what we feed it, and I suspect most of us are oblivious to the biases we develop. Prior to the 2016 election, my primary news sources were NPR, New York Times the Atlantic and reading this blog.
But also my job developing investments in "Green/healthy Building" technologies and Sustainable development (i.e. environmental stewardship, climate change, renewable energy, social equity, etc..) means I was surrounded by people of the same mind-set. I considered myself well-read and well-informed; and part of a growing movement of forward-thinking people working for a better world for future generations. For the most part, I also saw it as consistent with my evangelical (small ‘e’) Christian faith because it involved caring for all of God’s creation and loving my “neighbor” (and even my enemy).
It wasn't until the 2016 election and I began reading this blog, did I understand to what extent many people felt fearful, defensive, angry and marginalized. And they saw people like me as the Liberal" enemy. What honestly surprised me was how many self-identifying conservative Christians were in that camp.
What I have come to realize after tuning into Hannity, Limbaugh and the like, is how they are in many ways similar to leaders of a religious sect. They tell you what to think and believe; they maintain with a certain righteous indignation which they use to viciously attack and vilify those who don’t agree – or don’t belong to their following. The kind of loyalty that engenders is pretty powerful – especially when religious leaders like Franklin Graham and Jerry Falwell tie loyalty to right-wing politics to your faith (i.e."your very Salvation is in question if you don't support Trump"). Seriously.
Recently I went on a total “news fast” – including social media - to the extent you can these days. First, I highly recommend it if for no other reason that my stress level dropped in half. Second as Nassim Talib has noted, less news frequency actually keeps you better informed. But our FOMO keeps us connected. What I discovered is that even those old “reputable” news sources – including good ‘ol NPR isn't as balanced as I had thought. Or perhaps it’s the fact that outrage or at least being provoking is the fuel for subscriptions, eyeballs, sponsorship and ad revenue. And these are all businesses after all.
If one wants from time to time to do this kind of check on Fox there's a website.
http://www.newshounds.us
It's tag line is "We watch Fox so you don't have to."
Phil Arnold
Peter,
It was not CBS that had the hot tip on the Stone arrest, it was CNN.
Bill Haberlach
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