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Fox News misinformation, now in print

September 18, 2009 4:27 pm ET by Oliver Willis

Fox News ran a full page ad today in the Washington Post, NY Post, and Wall Street Journal touting their coverage of the Tea Party protest.

FNC

Of course as Media Matters has documented, Fox essentially acted as a sponsor of the protest. But even worse, Fox claims in the ad that their competitors (ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN) didn't cover the demonstration. But as TVNewser reports, they did.

NBC News had crews on the mall and correspondent Tom Costello reported live for NBC Nightly News Saturday. A Nightly News spokesperson tells TVNewser, "and more than 5.2 million viewers watched our coverage." It was Weekend Nightly's best Total Viewer delivery since April.

ABC News was there too with reports for Good Morning America Saturday and Sunday. Kate Snow interviewed GOP Sen. Jim DeMint who was a speaker at the rally. ABCNews.com even had to correct a report about the number of attendees which was erroneously attributed to the network. Matt Kibbe of FreedomWorks, the organizer of the event, made that claim. He would later say, "I regret misrepresenting the network as [ABC's] coverage that day was fair and honest." And from NoonET Saturday to NoonET Sunday, ABC News Radio referenced the rally in 69 separate newscasts.

And CBS News was there -- with multiple crews -- TV and radio. Congressional correspondent Nancy Cordes reported it as the lead story on Saturday's CBS Evening News. CBS Radio News provided hourly reports throughout the day and CBSNews.com reported the story as the rotating lead all day, using Cordes' video before it appeared in her Evening News story.

CNN was there as well, their Radio correspondent even got up close with the crowds.

If Fox can't tell the truth about a simple issue like this...

Tags: Fox News Channel

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    • Author by justhnkng (September 18, 2009 4:41 pm ET)
      1  
      CNN's Rick Sanchez "Fox "News"...U Lie!"

      long overdue!
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      • Author by Limit Corp. Ownership (September 18, 2009 5:03 pm ET)
        1  
        Nice one,

        Rick blistered some Fake News ass! Well done.
        Report Abuse
      • Author by The_Cat (September 18, 2009 5:33 pm ET)
           
        Awesome link, justhnkng, thanks! I watch CNN occasionally. I obviously need to ramp that up a bit. Here's hoping the other networks provide equally loud and indignant responses to FOX Propaganda.
        Report Abuse
        • Author by justhnkng (September 18, 2009 6:12 pm ET)
             
          de nada! (you're welcome)! lol!

          of course mmfa has a video up of it now! was so anxious 2 share it couldn't wait! lol!
          Report Abuse
      • Author by The_Cat (September 18, 2009 5:34 pm ET)
           
        Awesome link, justhnkng, thanks! I watch CNN occasionally. I obviously need to ramp that up a bit. Here's hoping the other networks provide equally loud and indignant responses to FOX Propaganda.
        Report Abuse
      • Author by DellDolly (September 19, 2009 12:32 am ET)
           
        CNN's Rick Sanchez pegged it right.

        The issue is that the other news organizations didn't promote the events.

        FoxNews is acting like promoting the event would have been a good thing for all the news networks to do. (Hint, Fox - it wouldn't have been.)
        Report Abuse
      • Author by steeve (September 19, 2009 11:18 am ET)
           
        Part of Sanchez's rant seemed to be "no fair, we're conservative too".

        I'm probably being unfair, but the CNN coverage he showed bugged me. I simply don't know how it's possible to say that the protesters want low taxes without immediately saying that their taxes didn't go up under Obama. It's so obviously relevant that leaving it out denies reality.
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    • Author by terrapin53 (September 18, 2009 4:43 pm ET)
      1  
      but Fox had Glenn Beck in studio for 2 hours in the afternoon. oooooooooo....scarey
      Report Abuse
    • Author by rwmacdonald2091 (September 18, 2009 4:51 pm ET)
      1  
      Yes we all saw the story, and Yes we really didn't care about watching and hearing about nutjobs , 24/7
      Report Abuse
    • Author by rwmacdonald2091 (September 18, 2009 4:52 pm ET)
      1  
      Oh I forgot, when does the 29.95 DVD of your coverage go on sale? I can hardly wait.

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    • Author by bintx (September 18, 2009 5:05 pm ET)
      1  
      Hmmm . . . I didn't watch a lick of Fox last Saturday, yet I saw reports on the phony grassroots "protest." Most of the folks I saw really had no clue why they were there, they just yelled out the stuff they'd been seeing on Fox.
      Report Abuse
    • Author by New Frontier (September 18, 2009 5:12 pm ET)
      1  
      It's really funny how in that ad you can't see certain signs. Like the "Bury Obamacare with Kennedy" one, or the "Lyin' African" one, or the various Hitler ones, or the Confederate flags.

      How did FOX miss that story?
      Report Abuse
    • Author by nssparrow (September 18, 2009 5:14 pm ET)
         
      Gotta love Rick Sanchez for calling em' out!
      Report Abuse
    • Author by 24enak (September 18, 2009 5:22 pm ET)
         
      Rick Sanchez called out Fox News on their flat out lie, and it was awesome. Fox News not only cover it, they promoted it.
      Report Abuse
    • Author by bintx (September 18, 2009 5:58 pm ET)
      1  
      I love the fact that the idiots who put the ad together apparently used CNN's tower cam feed. Cheesh, how STUPID is that?
      Report Abuse
    • Author by MickD (September 18, 2009 6:08 pm ET)
         
      I wonder if this will p*ss off the oligarchs in the other board rooms (Viacom, Time Warner, Disney, GE) to actually take any action or will they just puppy dog it because they want to bring Obama down, too. If they had integrity (which I doubt), they would go full guns, especially the networks. Edward R. Murrow, we need you.
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    • Author by mattcable250650 (September 19, 2009 12:27 am ET)
         
      This story feeds into Foser's latest column. Essentially, Time Magazine had a choice. They could do a journalistically satisfactory piece and be denounced by wingnuttia as having produced a despicable hit job or they could do a fanboy piece more appropriate for Tiger Beat (Back in the 60s, it covered whatever heart-throb had captured the fancy of teenage girls that week) and have Beck and his fans approve. Hmm, please the left blogosphere or Beck's/Fox New's fan base? We can see which way Time Magazine went.
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