On Fox's MediaBuzz, Jennifer Griffin addresses her network's misinformation about causes of Ukraine crisis
Jennifer Griffin: “This was a very careful chess game that we saw played out in real time... A lot of the punditry has really been proven very wrong”
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From the February 27, 2022, edition of Fox News' MediaBuzz
HOWARD KURTZ (HOST): There's been a lot of media chatter about why didn't President Biden prevent invasion, why didn't he send troops to the border of Ukraine in advance. Is that a reasonable critique?
JENNIFER GRIFFIN (REPORTER): I don't think so. I think, if you look at what you were dealing with, this did not surprise the western intelligence. Back in October, they got an indication of it. They began working behind the scenes to come up with a strategic plan that did not end up with NATO, the U.S., and Russia, all nuclear powers -- in a war. If you started to send troops prematurely to the border, that would have given [Russian president Vladimir] Putin a pretext. So, this was a very careful chess game that we saw played out in real-time.
The sanctions that you've seen rolled out in the last few days, you know, I continue to hear some distortions about what those sanctions are. Liz Claman and I have discussed and, you know, the sanctions on the central bank and the SWIFT, getting the Europeans on board with that, the unity of NATO that we've seen. The things that we were told for weeks by pundits on the air that Germany wouldn't do, Germany has now done. They are now increasing their defense spending, they are giving weapons to Ukraine, and they agreed to the SWIFT sign-off, and the Nord Stream 2. So, a lot of the punditry has really been proven very wrong. I think the reporting and the reporters have done a really good job, actually.
KURTZ: Well that sets up my next question, which is a Washington Post story yesterday calling you a linchpin of Fox's news division. It's headlined "Jennifer Griffin keeps fact-checking her Fox News colleagues on Ukraine." Now, I read that as you don't want to get drawn into opinion debates. How do you see your role during this war?
GRIFFIN: My role is no different than it's been since I joined Fox in 1996 in Moscow. I cover the news. I've been part of the news division since those beginning days. I'm not here -- I'm here to fact-check facts, because I report on facts. And my job is to try and figure out the truth, as best as I know it. I share those facts internally, so that our network can be more accurate. That's what I've always done. There's nothing different than what I've done for the last 26 years working for Fox.