Fearmongering on Fox: Hannity, Hunt, and Gibson exaggerate N. Korea missile threat
SUMMARY: Fox News' John Gibson and Sean Hannity hosted segments hyping the threat posed by reports that North Korea will soon conduct a test launch of a long range missile. Most notably, Fox News analyst Col. David Hunt baselessly suggested on Hannity & Colmes that North Korea could attack the U.S. with a nuclear weapon at any moment.
On the June 19 editions of Fox News' The Big Story and Hannity & Colmes, John Gibson and Sean Hannity hosted segments hyping the threat posed by reports that North Korea will soon conduct a test launch of a long range missile. Most notably, Fox News analyst Col. David Hunt baselessly suggested on Hannity & Colmes that North Korea could attack the U.S. with a nuclear weapon at any moment, stating: "They have the atomic bomb and now the missile that can hit Kansas City." Hannity then appeared to accept Hunt's suggestion that the U.S. could be "at war" with North Korea "by the end of the week." On Big Story, Gibson suggested that residents of Los Angeles and Berkeley, California, are now "on the bull's eye," and could "get hit ... easily."
In fact, as the Associated Press reported earlier on June 19, "most experts" believe North Korea is "a long way off from perfecting the technology that would make the missile accurate and able to carry a nuclear payload."
Moreover, although reports vary, Hunt apparently exaggerated the range of the missile by claiming it could hit Kansas City. The AP report stated that the missile could reach the U.S. West Coast at full range, but according to a June 18 Los Angeles Times report, the missile "would be capable of reaching Guam, but not the U.S. mainland." The New York Times reported on June 19: "American intelligence officials say they believe that the system is a Taepodong 2 missile and that a three-stage version could strike all of the United States. One administration official said the missile at the launching pad was a two-stage version."
Gibson's discussion of the purported North Korea threat also included baseless attacks on former Vice President Al Gore and West Coast residents: "They [West Coast residents] don't like Bush because he is worried about the axis of evil and they do like Gore because he is not so worried about the bad guys unless they are driving an SUV and melting the polar ice caps." He added that "being on the bull's eye" of a purported North Korea attack might "focus" Los Angeles residents' "attention," but that since Berkeley, California, residents' "hatred for Bush and his wars is even more intense" than that of Los Angeles residents, "I wouldn't expect much from them."
From the June 19 edition of Fox News' Big Story with John Gibson:
GIBSON: "My Word." I know the liberals in Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, Malibu, and the Hollywood Hills hate any war talk unless it's a war movie. They don't like Bush because he is worried about the Axis of Evil, and they do like Gore because he's not so worried about the bad guys unless they're driving an SUV and melting the polar ice caps. But things may change, and I'm anxious to see the West Coast discussion that is bound to ensue over the next few days. What's changed is the North Koreans are about to test a missile that could hit -- well, a lot of places, according to this map, but most particularly, Los Angeles. This brings the axis of evil much closer to home.
I lived in L.A. many years. I know the tendency there is to worry about box office, a good sushi place, beach weather, and the traffic headed to the valley. But being on the bull's eye tends to focus one's attention. It should focus the attention of folks in Berkeley, too. They could get hit just as easily as L.A. evidently. But their hatred for Bush and his wars is even more intense, so I wouldn't expect much from them. But the Los Angelinos might now see they are as vulnerable as New York. They should have seen it anyway; after all, the "millennium bomber" planned to blow up LAX [Los Angeles International Airport]. But they forget quickly out there.
When you live on the East Coast, you kind of get it when it comes to terrorism. The terrorists want to blow up Times Square, the Capitol. It all makes sense. For my West Coast brethren, it's been a little more disconnected. It's been, "Hey, aren't we over that 9-11 thing?" Well, no, we're not. And maybe now they won't be over it either.
North Korea is a plaything of a nut job who can't be counted on not to use his missile or many of them if he could build them fast. He couldn't be counted on to not build a bomb. We have made a mistake thinking he only wanted it for deterrence. Maybe he did want nukes in order to put them on missiles he could use to threaten the United States. Maybe that anti-ballistic missile system we're working on isn't such a bad idea. Maybe the hard left located on the far left coast will see that now. Being on a bull's eye changes one perspective dramatically. That's "My Word."
From the June 19 edition of Fox News' Hannity & Colmes:
HANNITY: Colonel Hunt, why Korea doing this now?
HUNT: Because they can, because we haven't stopped them. They're a terrorist state that probably -- that has the bomb. And now, they've got a missile that can reach Kansas City and Chicago. If they're not going to launch that missile at us, they could sell it to terrorists. They're doing it because they can. We've got to stop this. It cannot be allowed. They have the atomic bomb and now the missile that can hit Kansas City.
[...]
HANNITY: The next question is, is what does the United States do? As [Secretary of State] Condi Rice was saying, this is a provocative act. If they launch this missile, and we have the ability to knock it out of the air, should the United States take that missile out?
HUNT: Yes. But if we do that, we have to understand we've just gone to war. We can do a lot of stuff in the air, Sean. We can do evasive anti-missile stuff. We don't have the ground troops because we're committed other places, but I think we have to be careful. The reason is South Korea is such an easy target to the North.
HANNITY: But wait a minute, though. So if they fire this missile by the end of the week, we should be prepared, if we have a chance, knock it out? But if you're saying that that happens, we're at war?
HUNT: I think if you launch -- yes, that's the last straw. We should do everything up to that point. I don't think -- the problem we've got is we're blind intelligence-wise in North Korea.
The crown jewel of Puddinhead's foreign policy is in the crapper, the Gay Marriage Amendment came and went way too fast, it looks like the idiotic Flag-Burning Amendment may do the same...how can they get the Troglodytes to the polls, and get even richer in the process?
STAR WARS RETURNS!
This profitable boongoggle went to the back burner when Osama launched his low-tech attack...now we have missiles that need shooting down again. WooHoo! More tax breaks for the rich...get out the credit card! Hot Dam!
Where have we heard this before?
Sorry, 'Pubs. Your credibility is shot.
I thought Republicans were the macho individualist, pull yourself up by your own bootstraps I don't need anyone else helping me kind of guys?
Why are they so worried about a country that might have one nuclear missle that could hit our country?
The U.S. has about 10,000 of them.
I certainly don't like the idea of ANY nuclear missles myself as I am sure most people feel the same way.
Fear is what works best for them. Just read Right On's posts on the subject of the war on "turr"; they're laced with fear (that's how we know it's Tommy).
They "won" the 2004 election on fear. When the people are afraid, they will gladly give up their freedoms for a little safety, and gladly squander the national treasury on redundant defense systems and foolish foreign adventures. And guess who gets rich in the process...
THAT is why they're doing this.
I love that. nuclar turr is hard work.
Nerzog you are right on (the position not the conservative troll). It is all about fear. Fear Saddam, fear Ahmadenijad, fear Kim Jong Il, fear immigrants, fear gays, fear civil liberties, fear free speech, fear flag-burning, etc. We're even supposed to fear information because if we know about the NSA collecting our phone records or about secret prisons in Eastern Europe then the terrorists will gain an advantage. I guess the only thing we're not supposed to fear is fear itself. It is a sad era we live in when our leaders gain political sustenance from fear-mongering and negative, reactionary policies.
is Bush himself
The 2004 GOP Convention
the 2000 election based on fear of Al Gore.
Was decided by the Supreme court, not the voters.
If Leatherhelmet's assertion that Bush "WON" because of "fear of Gore" is TRUE, you have corrected him properly.
THE PEOPLE voted in majority for GORE (and a combination of Republican vote tampering, the Electoral College, and the Supreme Court managed to install Bush AGAINST the will of the people.)
But think of what this NOW means, according to Leatherhelmet. THE PEOPLE voted in majority for Gore based on "FEAR OF BUSH".
And now, of course, all our worst fears have been realized.
I work for a defense contractor who has done a lot of work for the program. I work as a support person so don't have classified access. I do get a glimpse at the promotional materials however and have a good idea of how much of our time is devoted to it. The likelihood it would work is a long shot. An argument could be made that it may get better but after how many billions. We should be investing in peace as part of our defence strategy and the situation with NKorea is an excellent example of failed diplomacy and arrogant grand standing. It wasn't a perfect relationship but during the Clinton years a deal was struck to feed and provide nuclear energy in exchange for monitoring the nuclear plants. One of the first things Bush did was tell North Korea the deal was off. Pretty stupid in hindsight. Now according to Colonel Hunt we have no intelligence but somehow we know they have a missle that will reach Kansas City. Who's the alarmist now?! This guy should lose some stripes for such assanine comments. Either he knows and is giving up intelligence secrets or he's trying to scare people or just very dumb. What do we do now? Talk to them. That's what they appear to be asking for bi-lateral talks. Why Bush won't I don't know. But if he doesn't and the nut job in North Korea does deploy a nuclear weapon and all hell breaks loose it is on Bush's head and the blood spilled on his hands. As if he cares.
TERROR LEVEL: Escalating exponentially.
Only an American scared to death can be expected to vote for Republicans. Sane, happy, reasonable people are the Republican's worst nightmare. Thus, fear of imminent death and destruction must once again be ginned up by the Rightwing Media.
Throw in hatred of gays and immigrants, and promote Democrats as FOR "flag burning", and the GOP figure they can hold onto control.
you really think they believe this stuff and they're really this scared and concerned? Life has always been wrought with danger; but to live your life in constant fear is not healthy. I've never gotten up and wondered is today the day I'm going to be killed. Who wants to live like that? Don't get me wrong you take smart precaustions, and make saftey plans but obsessing about danger is going to ruin the quality of life.
People will only take it for so long. Terror alert level is yellow and no one cares anymore. Like fire drills in school. The kids get immune to the urgency of the clanging bell. I think the wedge issues and fear mongering can only last so long. It's the only strategy the repugnicans have and it's worn out it's usefullness.
Don't worry; the NeoCon's "concern" with FEAR and DANGER and looming DISASTER is something they only bring up around election time, and then in RHETORIC only.
The GOP is busily raking in every dollar they can lay hands on, and are in no danger of being sent into battle. If danger strikes, Bush RUNS, as he did on 9/11.
So the FEARMONGERING is only an election year ploy, to stir up and terrify the Republican "base", and try to rope in a few independents who have weak bladders. Bush himself knows no fear, because he has nothing to guage fear BY. He's been protected and coddled all his life, and MOST of his life he stayed anethetized on booze and beer. Guys like that have a warped basis for determining things like danger and empathy.
When you live on the East Coast, you kind of get it when it comes to terrorism. The terrorists want to blow up Times Square, the Capitol.
Exactly. Which is why New Yorkers overwhelmingly preferred John Kerry in the 2004 election. Seems they believed he could do a better job protecting them than Bush.
I'm stuck in the middle of the country in bigotsville Colorado. It's dry, dusty, too sunny and the specter of the KKK is everywhere. Sometimes I feel like a missionary.
from a fellow east coaster. I was catching Amtrak at the NYC Penn station and I struck up a conversation with a native east coaster that is now living in Iowa or Nebraska I believe she said. She was just looking at the faces in the train station and she was talking about how nice it was to be home. She said it looked like a nations of benteon add. She missed the noise and most of all she said the diversity of humanity in the North Eastern USA. It's just what you're used to I guess.
The thing I miss most, the history. I grew up with part of the underground railroad and the Revolutionary war battle sights in my back yard. The land of the Iroquois, home to a civil war POW camp. I've been able to trace my family history back to when it was considered "the West," the frontier. Sigh* The Finger Lakes region of good ol' upstate New York. I had went to Florida and married a gal from Connecticut who wanted to live in Colorado and here I am. This has nothing to do with North Korea, just feeling home sick.
I'm amazed these guys could even leave their houses during the cold war.
The way they're talking now you'd think they would have been cowering under their beds knowing the Soviets had 15,000 missles aimed at us.
Henny Penny the sky is falling! Someone should tell the Republicans in Washington that a "nukelar" attack is happening. They'll run to their secret bunker and we'll lock them in.
has consistently called for direct, bilateral negotiations with the United States, but has been rebuffed.
Am I the only one who recalls the threatening statements John Bolton made to North Korea back when was at the State Department in 2003? The truth of the matter is that Clinton had managed a peace with Kim Jong-Il, albeit an uneasy one, but it was sure a hell of a lot better than what we have now. If the U.S. is so concerned about nuclear proliferation, why has it tried to undermine and destroy the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty repeatedly? Why has it expedited the sale of nuclear technology to India, a nation that is not even a member of the NNP, and thus has provided no account of its nuclear arsenal?
North Korea is developing missiles in self-defense, and they believe that sincerely. If the U.S. decides to intitate war with North Korea, they can expect MASSIVE casualties, in the hundreds of thousands. North Korea spends nearly 1/3 of its GDP on its military, and has over 1 million enlisted men ready to wage war on the Korean peninsula if provoked. Clearly, this is a situation that demands prudence, NOT alarmism.
West Coast brethren, it's been a little more disconnected. It's been, "Hey, aren't we over that 9-11 thing?"
I'm willing to bet that not one single person on the West Coast has ever said such a thing. Pathetic.
She seemed to think those widows should have gotten over 9/11 by now.
When our numbers are so poor in Iraq we need to call in the National Guard? If North Korea is such a big threat, why don't they call on Bush to DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT? Oh right, because it's much easier to use it to smear people based on where they live (I guess Gibson got bored of calling them "liberals" and so just moved on to smear LA as a whole).
in reality, the "liberals" of Berkeley and L.A. should hate Bush and his international policies because they, more than anything else, helped to engender this "crisis" at hand. It was clear that the Bush approach to North Korea was to verbally attack it and its leader and take an entirely stick-based approach to that nation, what with the "axis-of-evil" statement and all. Such beligerent behavior is the reason for North Korea's resumption of its nuclear missile program.
New York City is one of the bluest parts of America, so that clearly undermines Gibson's implication that the people of New York believe a hard-line conservative like Bush better protects America than a "liberal" like Kerry.
knowing a N. Korean missle could only reach the West Coast instead of clear into Kansas!!! Wait!!! I live on the West Coast, although inland from large metropolitian areas. Is the N. Korean nut case trying to blackmail us into feeding the people in his country that the great socalist country is unable to take care of by themselves?????
I watched Fox at various times on the 19th and they repeatedly hyped the threat of a North Korean missile and how Bush's untried Missile Shield could protect us. The graphics were repeatedly "North Korean Missile could hit US."
None of the other news channels had anything like this hype.
It appears that as a branch of the Republican Party the talking points memo that came out that morning was to scare the viewers because it was good for the party and distracted them from anything else.
Going to more in depth analysis online, South Korea is not worried about the missile and most experts think it is a another North Korean try at launching a satellite.
That such stalwart patriots as these might resort to fear-mongering for reasons of political expediency?
OK. No argument from me.
F*ck the bastards.