Fox News Channel, the brainchild of Nixon operative Roger Ailes and bankrolled by media mogul Rupert Murdoch, launched on October 7, 1996. In the ensuing two decades, the right-wing network has released a torrent of hateful messages, misogyny, and fraudulent smears, all in the guise of journalism.
In reality, Fox News is an enforcement arm of the conservative movement and the Republican Party.
Fox News has time and time again been a malignant force, utilizing its airwaves to attack progressive activists and politicians, elevate conservative activists and officials, and slant facts and information -- sometimes completely inventing it out of whole cloth -- in service of a right-wing conservative agenda.
While Fox has steadily grown in influence within the conservative movement, its star has considerably faded as a force within the wider media since its height during the Bush presidency.
After having devoted dozens of hours of airtime to Donald Trump, massively assisting his quest to secure the Republican Party’s presidential nomination, network chief Roger Ailes was ousted from his position when a slew of women accused him of perpetrating years and years of sexual harassment at the network.
Former anchor Gretchen Carlson, reportedly armed with audio tapes of Ailes, alleged that he had repeatedly sexually harassed her and demoted her when she refused his advances. Soon at least 25 other women came forward with similar stories to Carlson’s about Ailes’ behavior, and it was reported that prime-time host Megyn Kelly was also included among Ailes purported targets. Ailes no longer runs the day-to-day operations of Fox News, but his top lieutenants who allegedly helped to cover up his behavior remain in charge, while Ailes is now advising the campaign of the candidate his network helped to build.
Here is an overview of some of the lowlights of Fox’s 20 years on the air:
1996
1997
1998
Fox employees said management made them “cook the facts” to tilt news stories to the right
1999
Fox gave TV show to internet gossip Matt Drudge
2000
Fox News poll asked whether Bill Clinton or Al Gore was “most likely to cheat at cards”
Fox News employed George W. Bush cousin John Ellis who prematurely called election in favor of Bush
2001
Fox’s Special Report had Republican and Democratic guests at an 8-to-1 ratio
2002
2003
Bill O’Reilly said the Iraq War would “not last more than a week”
Fox anchor said the network was “very reluctant to show these pictures” of an anti-Iraq War protest
O’Reilly said that “once the war” in Iraq began, those opposed to the action should “shut up”
O’Reilly argued that the U.S. military should “flatten Baghdad”
Fox falsely reported that a “huge chemical weapon factory” had been found in Iraq
O’Reilly cut off the microphone of anti-war activist Jeremy Glick, whose father was killed on 9/11
2004
Fox executive wrote memo telling anchors to downplay Abu Ghraib story
Fox News aired less of the Democratic Convention than any other cable news network
Fox claimed that Christmas was “under siege”
2005
Fox News doctored AP copy to mimic language preferred by the Bush White House
Fox News aired 58 segments promoting the “War on Christmas”
Fox used a TV psychic to claim Terri Schiavo was “clear” on what was happening around her
2006
Host Bill O’Reilly said same-sex marriage was linked to interspecies relationships
Fox correspondent called waterboarding “a pretty efficient mechanism to get someone to talk”
Fox argued that a civil war in Iraq could be “a good thing”
2007
Fox hosted a “body language expert” who accused Hillary Clinton of exhibiting “evil laughter”
Fox & Friends reported on comments from Michelle Obama with the term “the claws come out”
Fox News used a photo of Rep. Harold Ford while talking about Barack Obama
Fox host Brian Kilmeade said Barack Obama “went to a madrassa” as a child
2008
Fox anchor asked if Obamas engaged in “a terrorist fist jab”
Fox News executive pushed on-air lies claiming Barack Obama promoted socialism
Fox contributor Newt Gingrich warned of “gay and secular fascism”
2009
Ailes reportedly said he sees the network as “as the Alamo” against President Obama
Beck said President Obama is a “racist” with “a deep-seated hatred for white people”
Beck said Obama’s agenda was based on “reparations”
Beck imitated Obama pouring gasoline on the “average American”
Beck pretended to poison Rep. Nancy Pelosi
Fox organized and promoted anti-Obama “tea party” protests
Host Sean Hannity said conservative protest attracted 20,000 when Capitol police said it was 4,000
Fox contributor Dick Morris used the network to raise money for a PAC that was paying him
Fox plagiarized a GOP press release and passed it off as its own research
2010
Beck questioned whether Obama was really a Christian
Beck said Obama returned a Churchill bust to England because he hates the British
Beck said, “There will be rivers of blood if we don’t have values and principles”
Beck said the Obama administration might kill “10 percent” of the population
Fox host Brian Kilmeade said “all terrorists are Muslims”
2011
Beck said the “American left” is “funding terrorists or working with terrorists”
Fox hosts said the ownership of appliances negates the effects of poverty
Multiple Fox News shows pushed racist birther conspiracy about Barack Obama
Fox headline: “Obama’s Hip-Hop BBQ Didn’t Create Jobs”
Fox hosts blamed SpongeBob Squarepants for “pushing a global warming agenda”
2012
Fox analyst Karl Rove refused to accept that President Obama won Ohio in the election
Fox & Friends claimed that President Obama had a diplomatic meeting with a pirate
Fox contributor compared food stamps to a diet plan
2013
Host Megyn Kelly asserted that Jesus and Santa Claus are white
Fox contributors said men should have the dominant role in the home
At least nine Fox contributors used the network to test the waters before running for office
2014
Fox host Tucker Carlson said reporting statutory rape is “whiny”
2015
Fox News told young children to run toward active shooters
Fox contributor called President Obama “a total pussy”
Fox’s prime-time lineup demonized the Black Lives Matter movement
Fox contributor Brit Hume blamed “the deregulation of sex” for campus sexual assaults
2016
Host Sean Hannity spent an entire week promoting Clinton health conspiracies
Fox cited online polls favoring Donald Trump after calling them “worthless”
Fox figures attacked the idea that debate moderators would fact-check candidates
Fox promoted Donald Trump’s conspiracy theory that the election would be “rigged”
Fox figures defended Roger Ailes against sexual harassment allegations, then Fox settled the claim