Cavuto suggested he can't be both "a good American" and "a good journalist"
On the September 27 edition of Fox News' Hannity & Colmes, Fox News host and vice president for business news Neil Cavuto told co-hosts Sean Hannity and Alan Colmes, "I would much sooner go down as a pretty good American when I try to be versus a good journalist. The good journalist thing is not nearly as important."
From the September 27 edition of Fox News' Hannity & Colmes:
COLMES: Neil, listen, I love your commentaries, many of which are in their book. They're witty. But you can love America -- You have Iraq and patriotism, you have a piece on that. You can be against the war and still be a patriot.
CAVUTO: Absolutely.
COLMES: We're not all flag-burners because we don't agree with this particular mission. And you use the word "flag-burning," for example, in one of your commentaries, right?
CAVUTO: Yes, I do.
COLMES: I mean, we're not flag burners -- we're haters if we disagree.
CAVUTO: No, because my view, guys is very -- and I'll tell you, Alan, my view is very simple. A lot of people make fun and they're like, "Oh, you know, you're a Yankee doodle dandy, the flag pin." As [Fox News chairman and CEO] Roger Ailes has indicated, I'm pro-choice on flag pins. If you don't want to wear them, that's fine. I am saying this, though, that I would much sooner go down as a pretty good American when I try to be versus a good journalist. The good journalist thing is not nearly as important.
HANNITY: Well, I think you're a great American.
The other right-wing media mogul you should worry about
Palin's book and Obama's bow: a media week to forget
Media Matters: The Palin chronicles
Well, well, the "truth" at last. Don't worry Cavuto you are neither.
He should have said I can't be a good journalist and work for fox news
Given Thomas Jefferson's quote that given the choice between a government without newspapers and newspapers without a government "I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter," I'm wondering just what it is that Mr. Cavuto sees as the conflict.
(And please, don't anyone try to claim that he didn't imply such a conflict exists and he was merely "ranking" their relative importances. If he was not - at least supposedly - a journalist, just an outside observer if you will, that argument might hold. But he is - at least supposedly - a journalist and he clearly implied that being good at the one imperils being good at the other.)
The new journalistic standard, at least for the NeoCons, is advocacy "journalism", otherwise known as propaganda. Old style, objective journalism is a threat to the Republican power structure, and they fear it. Why do you think they've been regurgitating the "liberal media" myth for 30 years?
"...that I would much sooner go down as a pretty good American when I try to be versus a good journalist."
Shouldn't be a problem because you don't even try to be a good journalist.
He's neither. Not even close.
And Hannity with his very cliche' "you're a great American". What exactly does that mean? That you can wave the flag better?
When Hannity says "you're a great American," I think he means "you're a great American." Why is this hard to decipher?
If you edited out all of the backslapping and "you're a great American" crap, Hannity's radio show would be about 10 minutes long.
Isn't it creepy how Hannity and his viewers usually introduce each other/preface their comments with "you're a great American", or "you're a great patriot". It almost reminds me of something from invasion of the body snatchers how the aliens must give each other a signal to make sure they weren't human anymore. The U.S. is (was?) a great country but blind nationalism is never a good thing. And did I hear correctly or did a "journalist" from FOX actually admit that doing his job accurately would diminish his supposed patriotism? What does that say about our country?
Cavuto proves that it's pretty easy to be both a BAD American and a BAD journalist.
Of course, the not-so-subtle implication here is that if you dare report the ugly truth about the corrupt Bush administration, you are a traitor.
Journalism would never be considered at Fox. Neither are journalists.
The fact that Cavuto is an American, may just be an accident of birth....but he sure loves to blame America first... (clinton, Blanco...etc)......
So that precludes being called "good" before American.
so he is neither....and may never be.
Cavuto has it backwards. You cannot be a good American by being a bad journalist, which conventionally is qualified as not researching your stories using independent and objective stories and presenting the issue as a he said/she said argument. A good American is a patriotic American, which by any reading of U.S. history involves a good deal of skepticism and dissent from the governing powers. The fundamental flaw by Cavuto is his distorted equation of nationalism as patriotism. If he could understand what patriotism really is, then he would see that being a good American IS being a good journalist.
The implication seems to be that giving the American people the truth, which is what good journalists should do, would make him a bad American. Thinking this way is what makes him a bad American. WE are the rulers of this country the citizens. Giving us the truth, the necessary tools to make decisions about policy, is obviously a good thing. Cavuto is not in any way talking about, or thinking about, what is good for America. Rather he is only interested in what is good for the elites, serving POWER, not America is the clear agenda for Cavuto
Cavuto proves it is possible to be a good jingoist,a good chauvinist, and a bad journalist, all at the same time.
Neal said that because back after Sept 11th when he wore the flag pin, people were complaining about it. Some said it was "biased" and didn't reflect "fair & Balanced". Can you imagine, an American Citizen publicly wearing an American Flag and some how even that's not politically correct. Back then he said those viewpoints were stupid and it's obvious he holds to it. If you have to go after Neil Cavuto to find someone to attack, it really shows how pathetic you are.
Cavuto is an obnoxious, petty, jingoistic Republican hack. He deserves to be attacked. What is truly PATHETIC is the idiotic notion that criticizing the government is, by any stretch of the imagination, unpatriotic.
Shannon: "If you have to go after Neil Cavuto to find someone to attack, it really shows how pathetic you are."
Why? Is Neil the pope or something? He made a rediculous comment that showed how he and Fox truly look at journalism. He exposed that he and the network feel towing the party line is more patriotic than telling the American citizens the truth.
"...people were complaining about it. Some said...."
Perhaps those people were made of straw.
shannon - Thursday September 29, 2005 10:04:55 AM EST
While doing your usual schtick as a shameless appologist would it be too much trouble to actually adress or at least mention the topic at hand? Cavuto is saying doing his job as a journalist would make him a bad American. Do you subscribe to this propagandistic and supine approach to journalism? Do you think being fed propaganda and talking points will help you perform your function as a citizen? Do you goosestep when you march in lockstep with the right? Inquiring minds want to know
What's worrisome about this is that Cavuto may actually be correct -- and not for the reasons that other people have mentioned above! Ever since 9-11, patriotism seems to have become equated with blind devotion in the minds of many people to the point that questioning current U.S. policy in any way is not only construed as a criticism of the current administration but of America itself. What these people don't understand is that there is a difference between patriotism and nationalism. Both patriotism and nationalism are defined as a love for one's country -- but some forms of love are less healthy than others. One of the most important hallmarks of a healthy love relationship is the freedom to resort to "tough love" when necessary -- there are times when genuine love means drawing someone's attention to aspects of their behavior which are destructive to themselves and/or to other people so that they can take steps to fix the problem. Patriotism allows for this -- nationalism does not. When nationalism is equated with patriotism, then it potentially does set up a conflict between being a good American and being a good journalist because the ethics and ideals of the journalistic profession require that the truth should be told even if it is less than pleasant or paints the country in a somewhat less-than-ideal light.
Solon writes:
"While doing your usual schtick as a shameless appologist would it be too much trouble to actually adress or at least mention the topic at hand? Cavuto is saying doing his job as a journalist would make him a bad American. Do you subscribe to this propagandistic and supine approach to journalism? Do you think being fed propaganda and talking points will help you perform your function as a citizen? Do you goosestep when you march in lockstep with the right? Inquiring minds want to know"
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Solon,
Now you see why I hardly view this site anymore! Many of you are so far off the deep end, you are fill your brains with delusions, of course this is when when you're not filling it with recreational drugs in order to cope! You boast about how compassionate and open minded you are, yet want to destroy anyone who may have a different point of view. There is no reasoning with you!
As I said before, Neal made that comment about he'd rather be a good American rather than a good journalist because after 9/11, some people complained about his American Flag pin. They thought the pin on TV wasn't "politically correct" anmd could be "offensive". Too bad. THAT is why he made the commen ,"I would much sooner go down as a pretty good American when I try to be versus a good journalist. The good journalist thing is not nearly as important." I guess when you've had both cancer & muscular sclerosis, you learn what is important to you. I think you can be both, but obvious to the one of the "pin complainers" you can't.
Now, if you don't think I "schtuck" to the topic, YOU are wrong. I "schtuck" to the real meaning of his comment rather than the "spin" the Libs want to put on it. I can't believe I had to spell it out for you. (Well, actually, I can.) Personally, I can't believe people would make such a big stink over the pin or the comment. But then again those kind of people are the same people who are upset whenever ANYONE says they love their country.
My info came from hearing what Cavuto had to say the other night and his comments 4 years ago. Yours came from............
I guess your Kool-aide is stronger than mine!
Neal made that comment about he'd rather be a good American rather than a good journalist because after 9/11, some people complained about his American Flag pin. by shannon
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Well, I had to look that up. Here is Cavuto's essay about that:
[link to www.jewishworldreview.com]
"some" people turns out to be one person. And apparently Cavuto's been milking that email ever since.
Cavuto hasn't been "milking the issue". If I recall, MMFA are the ones making a big deal about the comment.
Cavuto hasn't been "milking the issue". If I recall, MMFA are the ones making a big deal about the comment.
by shannon - Thursday September 29, 2005 09:23:43 PM EST
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Right, shannon, he never mentions it...he keeps it such a secret that you didn't even realize it was just ONE email that complained about the pin. And he certainly didn't mention it on Hannity's show, did he?
Maybe, just maybe he was thrown by how ridiculous the comment and email were. I know I would be! Regardless, he still has every right to say what he said. Example, I would rather be know as a good mother than a good nurse. Is that saying I can't be both? I'm simply saying one is more important than the other. Considering the credibility of journalism in the past years, I can see where he is coming from!
Regardless, he still has every right to say what he said.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Of course he does. And other people have every right to disagree, and say so publically.
MMFA spins his comments with their title: "Cavuto suggested he can't be both "a good American" and "a good journalist". I just gave you a personal example of basically the same thing. Did I suggest I can't be both? If not, why would someone say Cavuto suggested he can't? You are in someway "offended" at his comments. Why on earth would you be upset that someone is proud to be American and hold that higher than the career choice? Or is it that whole "America is good" thing that upsets you? Of course you have the right to publicly disagree with him, I just don't understand why you would.
You are in someway "offended" at his comments.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Actually, no, and I don't really agree with MMFA that he was saying he couldn't be both (though I don't think he is a good journalist). What I was objecting to was your misrepresentation of the flag pin incident.
MMFA claims: "Cavuto suggested he can't be both "a good American" and "a good journalist"
I post: "Neal made that comment about he'd rather be a good American rather than a good journalist because after 9/11, some people complained about his American Flag pin."
Oh, I can see how you could object to my "misreprentation". The obvious problem here is exactly how many people complained about the pin! Hell with the liberal spin placed on this "non-story"! How could I have missed that! Good for you to point that out. We just can't have another right winger stating the obvious around here.
The obvious problem here is exactly how many people complained about the pin!
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Exactly. You attempted to exaggerate the extent to which people objected to his pin (one person actually did) and I pointed out your exaggeration.
We just can't have another right winger stating the obvious around here.
by shannon - Thursday September 29, 2005 10:41:21 PM EST
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Only if by "stating the obvious" you mean "mangling the facts"
Maybe, just maybe he was thrown by how ridiculous the comment and email were.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Of course, you are ignoring my original point, which was that he commented on one email which you interpreted as "some people" complaining, and you implied that a big deal was made about his flag pin, when it was just one person writing a crank email.
Anybody other than Cavuto might just have hit the "delete" button...but then most people would not have anticipated that they could continue to mention the matter two years after the fact to imply that they are holding on to their patriotism in the face of persecution. Maybe he could persuade "Fred" to write him another nasty email, so he can milk it for awhile longer.
Anybody other than Cavuto might just have hit the "delete" button...but then most people would not have anticipated that they could continue to mention the matter two years after the fact to imply that they are holding on to their patriotism in the face of persecution. Maybe he could persuade "Fred" to write him another nasty email, so he can milk it for awhile longer.
by wanderwoman - ======================================================
First of all, I heard his commentary about it shortly after 9/11. That was 4 years ago, not two. You either have your timeline wrong or it was a different email. Secondly, although I don't watch the show regularly, he receives plenty of nasty mail. No "persuasion" is needed. He has the #1 money show on cable. Money show, not patriotic show. I don't really think he needs to "milk" the pin issue. I really think it's bigger issue with you than with him.
First of all, I heard his commentary about it shortly after 9/11. That was 4 years ago, not two.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Perhaps you could link to a transcript, then. The essay he wrote about it was in August of 03, but perhaps he talked about it on TV before that. So in that case he's been milking it for 4 years. I stand corrected.
i think it's pretty funny in this thread that shannon thinks "schtick" is incorrect and that she's being accused of not sticking to the point. hey shannon schtick means act or performance.
mefirst,
I know what it means. It's a stupid word, so I was throwing it back at Solon. Hence the "".