Fox News' Goler ignored his network's freak-out over school speech
Fox News White House correspondent Wendell Goler reported that the "controversy" over President Obama's September 8 speech to students on the importance of education "spread quickly over the Internet and on conservative talk shows, and some parents are now threatening to keep their kids home next Tuesday." But Goler ignored that Fox News has repeatedly hyped the "controversy," with hosts and guests describing Obama's speech as an "indoctrination;" advancing comparisons of Obama to dictators; and, highlighting the plans of some to "keep kids home" on the day of Obama's address.
Goler reported that controversy spread "over the Internet and on conservative talk shows"
From the September 3 edition of Fox News' Special Report with Bret Baier:
GOLER: Supporters say it was nothing more than a tempest in a teapot.
ANDREW ROTHERHAM (former aide to President Clinton): This is really innocuous stuff. It was ideas for ways to engage kids with the president's speech. I mean there wasn't anything that was sort of political.
GOLER: And even some critics say it was more of a dumb idea than a bad one.
CHRISTINA ERLAND CULVER (former deputy assistant secretary of Education): You know, hey, this isn't that big of a deal, but they really should be not sticking their necks out on projects like this that really take the attention away from the good things that they're doing.
GOLER: But the controversy spread quickly over the Internet and conservative talk shows, and some parents are now threatening to keep their kids home next Tuesday. Jim Greer has a different demand.
GREER: I do believe the White House has an obligation to release the president's text before Tuesday and tell parents across this country what he intends to say.
GOLER: Mr. Obama won't be the first president to talk to the nation's students.
But Goler ignored Fox News' role in hyping "controversy"
Hannity: "It seems very close to indoctrination." During an interview with conservative columnist Michelle Malkin, Sean Hannity said on his show that the president's speech "seems very close to indoctrination." Malkin replied in part: [T]his is not merely a morale-boosting speech that he's giving. He's giving it in the context of his Obamacare plan completely under siege. We know that the left has always used kids in public schools as guinea pigs and as junior lobbyists for their social liberal agenda." Later, Malkin said Obama will "actually deliver a very innocuous speech. I can guarantee you that. But in these classrooms, which are living laboratories for left-wing activism, what you're going to get are overzealous teachers, teachers' union brass who are in the hip pockets of the Democrat Party, urge their kids to write letters, to demonize Obamacare opponents, and to call them opponents of change." [Fox News' Hannity, 9/2/09]
Crowley: "This is what Chairman Mao did." On Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor, host Laura Ingraham said the speech is "just another slick attempt to brand Barack Obama" and that "it's a message being sent out by the Department of Education with these questions that without a doubt lead to the further branding of Barack Obama as a savior of our school children." Also during the segment, Fox News commentator Monica Crowley said, "[J]ust when you think that this administration can't get any more surreal and Orwellian, here he comes to indoctrinate our children," and, "[T]his is what Chairman Mao did, Laura. This is like Max Headroom, this is going into every single classroom. There is no escape from him." [Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor, 9/2/09]
Beck connects Mussolini to purported Obama "indoctrination next week." Discussing a bas-relief supposedly representing Benito Mussolini, Fox News host Glenn Beck said: "Gee, who is having indoctrination next week? Oh, yeah, that's right, the president, completely unrelated. This represents, at the time this was made, Mussolini. This was Mussolini. By the way, the artist that made this -- his son, ironically and tragically died fighting the army of Mussolini years after this was made." [Fox News' Glenn Beck, 9/2/09]
Tantaros: "They do this type of thing in North Korea and the former Soviet Union ... very cultish." Fox News contributor Andrea Tantaros responded to host Martha MaCullum's comparison of the treatment of Ronald Reagan's funeral and Obama's inauguration in schools by stating: "This isn't a historic moment. I mean it's historic in the sense that it's unprecedented. They do this type of thing in North Korea and the former Soviet Union." Tantaros later added: "I would argue it's a very fine line. You argue it's propaganda. It seems very cultish, very sort of get in the minds of the kids." [Fox News' The Live Desk, 9/3/09]
Fox & Friends hosted parents who plan to "keep kids home" from Obama stay-in-school "indoctrination" speech. On September 3, Fox & Friends hosted two parents who, in the words of host Steve Doocy, "are concerned [Obama's] message is less about education and could be more about teaching the ideals of a liberal presidential administration." Onscreen text during the segment read: "Education or indoctrination?"[Fox News' Fox & Friends, 9/3/09]
Fox Nation asked: "Will You Keep Your Kids Home the Day Obama Speaks to Schools?" On September 3, the Fox Nation website featured a headline asking, "Will You Keep Your Kids Home the Day Obama Speaks to Schools?":
Because the Murdoch empire owns & runs most of the media outlets in the world, there is a loud and persistent platform for their incesent petiness and griping.
Naturally, however, these rules only apply to Democrats ...
If they did, not only would the "birthers" "deathers" and "tea baggers" look so stupid the first time around, but they would not give a platform to them again, and perhaps they would go away. Thanks to the media coverage we can expect these idiots back again.
Exposing them as crackpots, racists and dangerous would have been the honorable thing to do, but this media will give a microphone to any white person, no matter how ridiculous he is and treat it like News. Look at the people who brought guns to the President town hall meetings. The media gave THEM air-time and told US about their right to carry a gun.
Because of the stupid media keep putting these fools on the air and letting them off the hook more and more ridiculous people are coming out the wood-works. Like the nincompoops who claim Obama wants to indoctrinate school children.
The media is also the reason Obama poll numbers are down. The media is driven by conservatives and Republicans likes Carl Roves, Dick Cheney, Sean [Kl]annity and people who has a vested interest in Obama's failure.
What truthers? And *one* person who is for reform bites off a finger, and than indicts our whole cause? So are the anti-abortion people all as crazy as Timothy McVeigh?
A majority of southerners actually believe Obama is not a citizen. The birther movement was pushed and promoted by the right. No one on the left pushed biting off people's fingers.
And *one* person who is for reform bites off a finger, and than indicts our whole cause?
No, it doesn't indict your whole cause, but that's exactly the point of my post. This website is swamped with comments labeling those who voice any opinions against Obama as racist or facist . .. . Words like "reichwingers" and "republikkans," "teabaggers" are common parlance among the clever progressives here. Sure, there are crackpots on the right wing, but there obviously are crackpots on the left wing too, but progressives are so willing to turn a blind eye to the latter (e.g., van jones).
We rational progressive liberals are very concerned about Jones' affiliation with the "truther" movement. I want to know what he thinks and if he's a "fringer", he should be out! A signature on a form letter doesn't tell me enough to condemn him... yet.
But you use Jones to make some sort of deranged moral equivalence for your hoards of fanatics (literally millions of people including high ranking government officials) instead of calling them out for what they are.
Shame on all of you kooks and more shame to those of you who excuse them for your own political ambitions. You all suck! You are undeserving of the protections guaranteed to you by the Constitution!
they are tantamount to a britney spears or lindsay lohan... need to do or say something ridiculous to have people watch them. when they have everyone's attention, they take advantage of it with all the gossip they can think of. this is how the beck's, limbaugh's and oreilly's of the world operate. "we have your attention, now we will ravish you with the craziest stuff that has a small possibility of being factual, but at least you are watching us now and not our opponents."
If they have a problem with the policies then argue how your way would be better. Don't go the low road in called the President every name in the book and calling for his assassination.
"See, see," they say. "Our 'opinion' shows may be 'emotional,' but our 'unbiased' news covereage will mention (once) that there may be another side."
But they know their audience hears only the opinions and the other side never penetrates the wall of prejudice and jingoism that are the prime requisites for being a Fox Fanatic.
Also, there wouldn't be a one-to-one 'equal time' that would mean three hours to rebut Limbaugh, there would only be the opportunity to respond to specific points made, not a total rebuttal of the entire show.
At least that's what I learned in Broadcast Law, along with 'the public interest, convenience and necessity'.
Liberals say it doesn't go far enough. This is a completely idiotic reason not to have it, since we've got nothing now, and look at whatr's happening!
Conservative say it stifles free speech. This is utter nonsense, since it ENCORAGES more speech, and encorages debate on a given issue... Which is EXACTLY what "free speech" is all about! Getting rid of it effectively SILENCED the opposition to the corpratist line.
Both have said it's unworkable. Again, this is nonsense. It worked fine for decades. And we've been growing collectively dumber and dumber every years since it's removal.
Now I'm not exactly a stong advocate for it, I just saying that there's no reason it SHOULD "only exist in Wingnutistan." It deserves to be taken seriously by both sides. And we'd be better as a nation for it.
(And yes, to any idiot con out there who wants to ask if I'd include MSNBC in that: YES, I WOULD. OBVIOUSLY. I'm a principled man, after all. Just pleeeease get yourselves some actually intelligent commentators instead of the standard slew of slimy propagandists and nazi sympathisers.)
Also, what will white house spokesman Keith olbermann do when he actually comes face to face with the people he disparages, perhaps hide in his bathtub?
(I guess I should have payed better attention in school!)
"In September of 2009, Jones issued a statement regarding the 9/11 truth letter saying "the petition that was circulated today, I do not agree with this statement and it certainly does not reflect my views now or ever."
Woops!
He has also renounced his communism.
I don't believe you're that willing to be duped by his belated, and feckless, excuses. He's a Glenn Beck of the left, only he has power.
good attempt though. keep pluggung away those talking points
But that doesn't mean the above folks are harmless. To the contrary, they are being stoked by FoxNews, echoed on talk radio and spread throughout wingnuttia on the web. They're the most ill -informed people on the planet
It must be countered in some way beyond sites like MM and allow them to see that a whole vast part of the country thinks they're nuts