Fox TV makes it official: It's refusing to air president Obama's address to a joint-session of Congress next week. Since Murdoch's media outlet has effectively transformed itself into the Opposition Party of the Obama White House, this move fits into their political attack machine.

Of course, placed in proper context, the idea that a media company has decided to so blatantly play a hardball brand of partisan politics is nothing less than shocking. But don't look for reporters to make much of Murdoch's snub. Look for it to reported as an “expected” move. Like it's normal for the fourth largest television outlet in the country to uniformly refuse to air any presidential appearances scheduled in primetime. (If NBC, for instance, had ever snubbed Bush when he addressed Congress would the news have been reported with a shoulder shrug? Riiiight.)

Two questions. Did Fox TV ever refuse to air one of president Bush's joint-session speeches? Indeed, has any U.S. TV network ever refused to air presidential speech before Congress?