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Fox News needs to state facts, not biased opinions

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Last updated: 10/22/09 10:48pm

Editor,

I am pleased to see that over 50 percent of the people who have voted so far in this week’s online poll recognize Fox News as nothing more than a mouthpiece for conservative-based propaganda. Also, about 25 percent more people at least felt that the arguments presented by Fox News were rather one-sided. That makes over 75 percent of our current pollees who can see right through them.

However, I am still concerned about the other 25 percent who believe Fox News is a legitimate news source. I will tell you now: Fox News is a joke. I knew this when, during this last election, Bill O’Reilly was trying to shame a magazine editor for being unfair because there was some eight front covers with Barack Obama, Michelle Obama or Joe Biden on them, and only five with John McCain or Sarah Palin. I knew this when, on practically every show, none of their hosts could grasp the concept that it just might be possible to be friends with people without necessarily condoning certain actions they have done in the past or conforming to every last one of their ideologies.

I knew this when, on practically every “O’Reilly Factor” show, they’d bring in Dick Morris, the man who wrote a book called something like “How Barack Obama is going to destroy our country, our future, our great American way, kill our children and share their souls with the demonic socialist leaders of Europe atop our ruined cities.” On the show, he’d always be explaining what Barack Obama was doing wrong — which was just about everything — and the “conservative” way to do it right.

Folks, there’s something simple you have to understand here. It’s good, unbiased journalism when you present nothing but the facts. This is what we could call “news.” When you start including opinions, it is no longer news, and I don’t believe it matters if you present one side of opinions and then present another side to be fair. Furthermore, when you start spinning the facts, leaving out certain details and completely ignoring other facts, it’s not fair anymore, and then when you only present one side to the issues, it isn’t even balanced. Thus, when Fox News claims to have “fair and balanced news coverage,” you should instantly realize that it’s a load of crap and false advertisement.

If Fox News were to get their claws on this opinion column, they would most likely lambaste it, calling me a far-left lunatic with no justification for my accusations, and try to drag the Daily Lobo down with it. But in reality, it doesn’t really matter if I am “conservative” or “liberal.” The reason I formulate these opinions is because I’m not an idiot and can see right through them. For you Fox News enthusiasts, I recommend you check out The Young Turks. I didn’t get my opinions from them, but I certainly agree. I am certain you would find some good reasons to be suspicious of Fox News after seeing a few of their videos.

Chris Cuellar
UNM student

Published October 22, 2009 in Letters, Opinion

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189 comments

News Watcher

October 23, 2009 at 12:34 AM
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You keep bringing up “the O’Reilly Factor”, which leads me to believe that you are completely unfamilar with the rest of the Fox lineup. My suggestion to you would be to watch Fox&Friends, America’s Newsroom, Special Report, Happening Now, The Live Desk, and Studio B. The “O’Reilly Factor” is a commentary show where Bill O’Reilly along with his guests provide their take on the news, just like “Countdown with Keith Olbermann” on MSNBC.

ken

October 23, 2009 at 2:10 AM
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in this time when all you hear from t.v. radio,and see in the newspapers is liberal pablum,fox news at least comes close to reporting the truth,that liberal fascists like you want to destroy them to is sickening,you should go back to whatever socailist country you came from and stay there.

Sue

October 23, 2009 at 6:05 AM
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There can be both opinion ahows and news on the same network. Can you spot the difference? Why don’t you discuss Olbermann instead? Does he do ‘‘good, unbiased journalism’‘?

Steven Aragon

October 23, 2009 at 7:03 AM
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If you are so concerned with facts, why do you preface your letter with unscientific, online polls?

slowhike

October 23, 2009 at 7:12 AM
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Fox news does have a bias, and their bias is the same as mine. They perfer traditional conservatism to liberal chaos. Sure they slant their views in this direction, but they also have facts to back a significant percent of their information. The fact that the White House has come out against Fox News is the best possible compliment they could get in my opinion. Shame on all the other Broadcast News Centers, CNN, NBC, ABC, etc for not coming to their defense on this topic. Can you imagine if Bush had come out and said that a liberal news station that broadcast negative information and disagreement with his policies should be “hushed”?

thomas

October 23, 2009 at 7:26 AM
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OMG has any one taken a look at MCNBC? Folks it’s all about ratings. So guess what, its entertainment. What do you want a disclaimer like this one from Neil Boortz;
Don’t believe anything you read on this web page, or, for that matter, anything you hear on The Neal Boortz Show, unless it is consistent with what you already know to be true, or unless you have taken the time to research the matter to prove its accuracy to your satisfaction. This is known as “doing your homework.”
Folks take responsibility for your own thoughts and opinions and do not rely on TV entertainers.

elmerfudd

October 23, 2009 at 8:09 AM
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For all of you narrow minded imbeciles. Watch CNN, MSNBC and the rest of the news organizations. Fox New has the same stories. The Washingto feud reminds me when some one is being
questioned to see if he is telling the truth or has something to hide, if he doesn’t have a problem he will answer questions but if he does, he will get defensive, and would yell for his lawyer.

docsavage

October 23, 2009 at 8:20 AM
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@slowhike

Get real, slowhike. Why should the other news agencies come to Fox’s defense? Fox spends 90 percent of its airtime bashing the ‘liberal’ media. When pigs fly …

mateo

October 23, 2009 at 8:58 AM
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Get real yourself docsavage. It headlines today. All the other news agencys did come to Fox’s defense and refused to interview the treasury “czar” unless Fox was included. Read it and weep.
And as for the Fox bashing from Chris Cuellar…..too bad!
Sorry you don’t like the fact that Fox news is watched and appreciated by 25% of the students at UNM, but that doesn’t surprise me. The facts show that Fox news is the preferred outlet for news and opinion by MOST of america. The rating show that Fox leads all other networls in viewers, and ratings, and market share. Why do you think that is?
It’s because Fox is balanced. Fox gives you the news straight. Fox has the best anchors, and Fox puts the smartes people in front of your screen. Not some dough head, fake tanned Ken-Doll, or Barbie.
Facts are facts, and the facts prove out that more Americans watch Fox news and get their news from Fox than any other channel, cable or not.
Most CEO’s of majow American companies get their news from Fox news. Most business managers get their news from Fox news. Most successful leaders in our country get their news from Fox news. …………..
unfortunately most air head, left leaning, living off their mommy and daddy’s, uemployed college students don’t. And most of them complain that Fox is nothing more than a branch of the “cast right wing conspiracy!”
Good luck with that….

Holden caulfield

October 23, 2009 at 9:06 AM
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And Rachel Maddow and Keith Olbermann are not unbiased? Please, get your head out of your arse.

JD

October 23, 2009 at 9:31 AM
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Funny how the same people who screamed and ranted about the (utterly fictional) ‘liberal media’ bias during the Bush nightmare have no problem with the totally biased right wing propaganda being spewed upon the current administration.

God, hypocrites suck!

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There is so little actual news presented to Americans on any of the major networks anymore it’s no wonder we are the most clueless nation on earth. Ignorance rally IS bliss, I guess. Sometimes I wish I was dumb enough to believe everything I see on TV, especially on one specific network…

Can you imagine the outcry there would have been if any news organization had tried to portray Bush as unpatriotic (or worse) while he was commander in chief? Not that I expect hypocrites to consider this fact, mind you.

Frankly, I have never watched FOX “news”, but clearly the fact that Americans are so ill-informed about the world in general can be blamed on the complete lack of substantive coverage of truly important issues from any of the so-called ‘respectable’ news organizations.

Journalism is long since dead in this country with the exception of a few alternate on-line media outlets. The fact is that the US has much less freedom of the press than many of the countries FOX derides.

Here is a link to a story from that bastion of liberal bias, THE WASHINGTON POST, from 2006: “U.S. Rank on Press Freedom Slides Lower”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/23/AR2006102301148.html

We were ranked 53rd out of 168 countries on press freedom. Deal with it. If you want real freedom of the press, move to Scandinavia.

But as some of the posters on this site point out, Americans clearly don’t want actual news. We want fear-mongering, immigrant bashing, minority scape-goating, celebrity worship, police chases, lots and lots of sports, and plenty of heart-warming stories about our service men and women spreading peace and justice throughout the world.

Sigh.

In other words, childish fantasies.

You all are free to watch whatever “news” you prefer – but please don’t pretend you are more informed than anyone else. Because you’re not.

It’s okay – I know you THINK you are more informed than your fellow citizens. It’s a pathological condition. Look it up.

david

October 23, 2009 at 9:44 AM
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Every journalistic corporation’s goal is to survive it’s competitors. They can do this by conforming to a popular opinion on a given subject, ensuring it’s demographic’s dependence, or they can essentially throw a “stick in the spokes” to draw attention to themselves. However, I believe they (or anyone else) wouldn’t do the latter if it cost them their jobs, so they stay close to the facts. EVERY broadcasting station has an opinion on their stories, whether they explicitly state it (like Fox) or not. But Fox is not alone in it’s bais’.I try to watch a variety of the networks to form my own opinion from “both sides.”
The one thing I will always change the channel for is when the journalists bash other journalists from other networks.This is because I don’t care about what they think of each other, I just want the news.

Matty D

October 23, 2009 at 9:57 AM
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JD hit it right on the head. Pretty sure that’s why i watch Stephen Colbert and John Stewart. If every self-proclaimed “news” station is nothing but a joke, you might as well get a laugh out of this so called “journalism.” Its just entertainment now…

chayal

October 23, 2009 at 10:00 AM
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I think it’s funny that some bonehead is upset enough about fox news to write about it and the daily lobo actually printed the crap. Too funny. Get a life and stop with the young turks thing, it made you stupid.

Damian

October 23, 2009 at 10:01 AM
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It is impossible to remain 100% neutral in News coverage. The whole fiasco about fox news displays the intolerable attitudes of the left and their messiah Barack Obama. Whatever happened to “dissent is patriotic”. Now its, “dissent is racist”. What a pathetic president to attempt to silence and marginalize those that disagree with him. Just wait for the next step, total control, tyranny and totalitarianism. All the Obama sheep will blindly follow.

Kevin

October 23, 2009 at 10:31 AM
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Ethics and credibility in journalism died with Walter Cronkite. And I stopped watching the “news” long before that. I make my own decisions. I don’t let others make it for me.

Ethel C. Fenig

October 23, 2009 at 10:37 AM
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Faint though it is, the heartbeat of media integrity still flutters weakly, perhaps realizing this is necessary to save itself.

Barack Obama, (D) the first African-American president in the history of the US, added a dubious first to his presidency—for the first time in the history of the US the president banned an entire network from the White House press pool. Which network? Why the one the administration is futilely trying to delegitimize but is only helping—Fox, of course.

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Doug Ross explains the significance of the White House’s shameful—and increasingly desperate—act.

“Today the White House stepped up its attack on Fox News, announcing that the network would no longer be able to conduct interviews with officials as a member of the Press Pool. The Pool is a five-member group consisting of ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox News and NBC organized by the White House Correspondents Association. Its membership is not subject to oversight by the government.Before an interview with “Pay Czar” Kenneth Feinberg, the administration announced that Fox News would be banned from the press pool.”

This dictat meant that no administration figure would consent to be interviewed by Fox News; Fox had a glimpse of that last week when officials made the rounds of all the Sunday interview shows on all the networks except…Fox’s.

Perhaps realizing the implications for their own networks, all the White House officially approved networks refused to go along.

“They told the White House that if Fox were banned, none of the other networks would participate. The White House relented, but in an apparent act of petulant retaliation, it restricted each network to a two-minute interview instead of the standard five.”

As Ross noted

“Perhaps the White House will next try to pull Fox News’ press pass.
That would be entirely consistent with the Hugo Chavez-style of government that President Axelrod and his advisers are trying to install.”

He also wonders if the ACLU will defend Fox’s first amendment freedom of the press, freedom of speech rights. Yeah, wonder away.

The administration has some exceedingly dirty tricks planned; this is only the beginning.

In the meantime, thanks to this administration’s willful ignorance of the first amendment Fox’s ratings have increased, other networks are compelled to mention their competitor and all media organizations are becoming increasingly uneasy about the increasingly shrill demands that the media parrot the administration line or be banned.

After all, they might be next.

Phillip Howell

October 23, 2009 at 11:54 AM
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Did Chris Cueller demonstrate his own nastiness when he put quote marks around his made up title of Dick Morris’s book? By doing so, Chris accused Morris of saying something that he did not say. In university polite speak this is a falsehood. Is that your best shot Chris?

Mateo, you are on target. JD, you may want to watch Glenn Beck for education; he is on at 3PM. Like O’Reilly or not, his time keepers ensure that left and right get equal time. Many of those conversations have significant depth. His lineup includes many well know people of the left including the founder of Code Pink.

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None of the criticism of FOX lists specific instances of misstatements or errors of fact. Rather it is the non-specific that is repeated by Chris. Be aware, any snippet out of context is a manipulation; believing it is reason to ask why would you unless you want to be manipulated. I watched CNN do the snippet with announcer added words as they destroyed Mrs. Marge Shott. I watched the unedited version when she was asked a question and her response; then I watched CNN remove 3 words and have the announcer tell us what happened to present that old lady as homophobic. It was vicious, it was deliberate, it was a lie intended to harm her. It told me —NO screamed at me– to not believe them. CNN has not changed in 10 years.

I do not believe every word anyone utters, but I know some people have not been proven to distort or lie.

JD

October 23, 2009 at 12:04 PM
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WATCH GLENN BECK FOR EDUCATION?!!!! LOL!!!!

That’s a good one, Phil.

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Thanks anyway.

Steve Chavez

October 23, 2009 at 12:18 PM
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Fox and D. Lobo are the complete opposite. Our Daily Lobo is a great example of fair and balanced. If, for example, we look back at the archives for thirty years and take a look at articles and letters, poll of Lobo workers, writers and editors, you will surely find an equal number of Dems and Repubs!

Maybe the Daily Lobo can ask all their workers of their registered Party affiliation to prove my point.

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We can also look at just the past few years to show that they reported on Conservative speakers equally to Left-wing speakers and equally put a mixture of Letters to the Editor without bias.

The Daily Lobo can also reveal the Party affiliation of all of its past editors say for thirty years.

Fox needs to learn what real Fair and Balanced from the Daily Lobo since it is a publically/government funded operation unlike any news, or gossip, privately funded organization!

Phillip Howell

October 23, 2009 at 12:23 PM
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JD, educate us. What has Beck said that is not true. Tell me so I am as knowledgeable as you.

Doc John

October 23, 2009 at 12:32 PM
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The Obama campaign against Fox News is merely an attempt to distract the public from the fact that this is the most inept and indecisive administration since Carter. He is indecisive about virtually everything. And unemployment is skyrocketing because of that indecision. Fox News has got it right in every detail. But the even bigger question is the failure of the so-called mainstream media to recognize the failures of this administration.

JD

October 23, 2009 at 12:43 PM
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No, Phil, I’m not gonna educate anyone, clearly – nor is that my intent.

I will just say that I prefer to formulate my own opinions based on all the information available to me, okay?

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I don’t need anyone to tell me what to think. I don’t care who they are. I guess that makes me a communist or a terrorist sympathizer or something.

Whatever.

We’ve been down this road before…

Damian

October 23, 2009 at 1:29 PM
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I guess that we don’t need to take JD seriously since the man just makes things up on the spot.

Please, go lie somewhere else buddy, you are wasting space.

Damian

October 23, 2009 at 1:39 PM
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And for the record—I have never had an issue with being censored by the Daily LObo. They have always printed my articles even though I am considered radical by many.

University campuses are the pinnacles to free speech which the Lobo rightfully exemplifies.

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I would not call it “opposite” of Fox though. Thats not comparing apples to apples.

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