Fox News controversies
Fox News is an American basic cable and satellite television channel currently owned by Fox Corporation. Since its inception by Rupert Murdoch's original News Corporation in 1996, it has been the subject of several controversies and allegations.
Fox News has been described by academics, media figures, political figures, and watchdog groups as being biased in favor of the Republican Party in its news coverage,[1][2][3][4] as perpetuating conservative bias,[5] and as misleading their audience in relation to science, notably climate change[6][7][8][9] and the COVID-19 pandemic.[10][11][12][13]
Fox News was sued for defamation in 2021 by two voting machine companies alleging the network's hosts and guests knowingly promoted falsehoods that voting machines were rigged to deny Donald Trump's reelection in the 2020 presidential election. The companies sought a total of $4.3 billion in damages. Fox News agreed to pay $787.5 million to resolve the defamation suit filed by Dominion Voting Systems over the network's promotion of misinformation about the 2020 election.
Ownership and management[edit]
Australian-born media mogul Rupert Murdoch is the chairman of Fox Corporation, the News Corp subsidiary which owns Fox News. He has been a subject of controversy and criticism as a result of his extensive interests in print and broadcast media. In the United States, he is the publisher of the New York Post newspaper and the magazine The Weekly Standard. Accusations against him include the "dumbing down" of news and introducing "mindless vulgarity" in place of genuine journalism, and having his own outlets produce news that serves his own political and financial agendas. According to the BBC News website: "To some, he is little less than the devil incarnate, to others, the most progressive mover-and-shaker in the media business."[29]
Then-presidential candidate George W. Bush's cousin, John Prescott Ellis, was Fox News' projection team manager during the 2000 presidential election. After speaking numerous times on election night with his cousins George and Jeb,[30] Ellis, at 2:16 AM, reversed Fox News' call for Florida as a state won by Al Gore. Critics allege this was a premature decision, given the impossibly razor-thin margin (officially 537 of 5.9 million votes),[31] which created the "lasting impression that Bush 'won' the White House – and all the legal wrangling down in Florida is just a case of Democratic 'snippiness'."[32] Others, such as researcher John Lott, have responded that, by this reasoning, Fox News and the other networks were even more premature in initially calling the state for Al Gore, a call made while polls were still open, and which may have depressed voter turnout for Bush[33] and actually affected the election, whereas the call for Bush later could not have, as the polls were closed by then.
On January 9, 2010, the son-in-law of Rupert Murdoch and the husband of Murdoch's daughter Elisabeth, Matthew Freud, stated he and other members of the media mogul's family are "ashamed and sickened" by the right-leaning tendencies of Fox News in the opening salvo in a bid to displace Roger Ailes, the founder, and CEO of Fox News.[34] In a New York Times profile on Ailes, Freud was quoted saying "I am by no means alone within the family or the company in being ashamed and sickened by Roger Ailes' horrendous and sustained disregard of the journalist standards that News Corporation, its founder and every other global media business aspires to. What you heard was a declaration of war. There are, practically speaking, now two factions inside of News Corp: Ailes and Fox News, and the Murdoch children – with Rupert caught between them." Although Murdoch did not respond to the remark directly, a spokesperson for News Corporation put a statement after a Financial Times inquiry claiming "Matthew Freud's opinions are his own and in no way reflect the views of Rupert Murdoch, who is proud of Roger Ailes and Fox News."[35] Tim Arango also claims in Murdoch's 2008 biography that he voiced concerns privately to Ailes about his conduct, claiming he was purportedly "embarrassed" by Fox News. Murdoch denied that claim.[36]
In June 2010, News Corporation donated $1 million to the Republican Governors Association.[37][38][39] News Corporation's political action committee had previously split their contributions to Democrats and Republicans by a margin of 54% to 46%, respectively.[40]
On March 20, 2018, Fox News contributor Lt. Col. Ralph Peters left the network. Referencing the Trump administration, Peters stated that Fox News had become a "propaganda machine for a destructive and ethically ruinous administration" and objected to the network helping "Putin's agenda by making light of Russian penetration of our elections and the Trump campaign".[41] On March 22, 2019, Vox interviewed media critic Tom Rosenstiel, who argued Fox News had shifted from a partisan network to a propaganda network in support of President Donald Trump.[42]
Internal memos and e-mail[edit]
Daily memos[edit]
Fox News executives exert a degree of editorial control over the content of the network's daily reporting. The channel's vice president of news, John Moody, controls content by writing memos to the news department staff. In the documentary Outfoxed, former Fox News employees talk about the inner workings of the channel. In memos from the documentary, Moody instructs employees on how to approach particular stories and on what stories to approach. Critics of Fox News claim that the instructions on many of the memos indicate a conservative bias. The Washington Post quoted Larry C. Johnson, a former Fox News contributor, describing the Moody memos as "talking points instructing us what the themes are supposed to be, and God help you if you stray."[86]
Photocopied memos from Moody instructed Fox News' on-air anchors and reporters to use positive language when discussing anti-abortion viewpoints, the Iraq War, and tax cuts, as well as requesting that the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal be put in context with the other violence in the area.[87] Such memos were reproduced for the film Outfoxed, which included Moody quotes such as, "The soldiers [seen on Fox News in Iraq] in the foreground should be identified as 'sharpshooters,' not 'snipers,' which carries a negative connotation."[88]
Two days after the 2006 midterm election, The Huffington Post reported that its news department had acquired a copy of a leaked internal memo from Moody that recommended the following: "... [L]et's be on the lookout for any statements from the Iraqi insurgents, who must be thrilled at the prospect of a Dem-controlled congress." Within hours of the memo's publication, Fox News anchor Martha McCallum went on-air on the program The Live Desk with reports of Iraqi insurgents cheering the firing of Donald Rumsfeld and the results of the election.[89][90]
Bill Sammon e-mail[edit]
In December 2010, Media Matters for America released a leaked October 2009 e-mail between Fox News Washington managing editor Bill Sammon and the network's senior producers, which seemed to issue directives slanting network's coverage of President Barack Obama's health care reform efforts. In the e-mail, Sammon instructed producers to not use the phrase "public option" when discussing a key measure of President Obama's reform bill, and instead use the terms "government option" or "government-run health insurance[,]" noting negative connotations; Sammon also suggested that the qualifier "so-called" be used before any proper mention of the public option. Another e-mail by Fox News senior vice president Michael Clemente accepted Sammon's conditions. Critics claimed that Sammon took advice from Republican pollster Frank Luntz, who appeared on Hannity shortly before the e-mail was written and made the same suggestions in identifying the public option. Critics also noticed that reporters and panelists on Special Report with Bret Baier used the term "public option" before the e-mail was sent, but used the term "government option" immediately afterward. Sammon, in an interview with Howard Kurtz for The Daily Beast, defended the directive and denied he was trying to skew Fox News' coverage.[91]
Later that month, Media Matters released an e-mail by Sammon from December 2009, in which he pressured Fox News reporters to assert that "theories are based upon data that critics have called into question" in light of the Climatic Research Unit email controversy.[92][93]
English Wikipedia edits[edit]
In August 2007, a new utility, WikiScanner, revealed that English Wikipedia articles relating to Fox News had been edited from IP addresses owned by Fox News,[94] though it was not possible to determine exactly who the editors were. The tool showed that the article for Shepard Smith was edited from Fox News computers, removing mention of an arrest.[95]
September 2009 newspaper ad[edit]
On September 18, 2009, Fox News took out full-page ads in The Washington Post, the New York Post, and The Wall Street Journal with a prominent caption reading, "How did ABC, CBS, NBC, MSNBC, and CNN miss this story?" with pictures of a Tea Party movement protest on the U.S. Capitol lawn from September 12. A still picture in the ad was in fact taken from a CNN broadcast covering the event. The veracity of the ad was called into question on the air by then-CNN commentator Rick Sanchez, along with others pointing to various coverage of the event.[104][105][106] It had been covered live by CNN, NBC News, CBS News, MSNBC, and ABC News Radio.[104][106][107][108]
Fox News' vice president of marketing, Michael Tammaro, attempted to explain the ad by stating: "Generally speaking, it's fair to say that from the tea party movement ... to ACORN ... to the march on 9/12, the networks either ignored the story, marginalized it or misrepresented the significance of it altogether."[109]
Obama administration conflict with Fox News[edit]
In September 2009, the Obama administration engaged in a verbal conflict with Fox News. On September 20, President Obama appeared on all the major news networks except Fox News, a snub partially in response to remarks about the president by commentators Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity and general coverage by Fox News with regard to Obama's health care proposal.[110][111] Fox News Sunday host Chris Wallace called White House administration officials "crybabies" in response. Following this, a senior Obama adviser told U.S. News that the White House would never get a fair shake from Fox News.[111]
In late September 2009, Obama senior advisor David Axelrod and Fox News founder Roger Ailes met in secret to try to smooth out tensions between the two camps without much success. Two weeks later, White House officials referred to Fox as "not a news network". Communications director Anita Dunn claimed that, "Fox News often operates as either the research arm or the communications arm of the Republican Party."[112][113] President Obama followed with, "If media is operating basically as a talk radio format, then that's one thing, and if it's operating as a news outlet, then that's another,"[114] and then-White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel stated that it was important "to not have the CNNs and the others in the world basically be led in following FNC."[115]
Within days it was reported that Fox News had been excluded from an interview with administration official Ken Feinberg, with bureau chiefs from the White House press pool (ABC, CBS, NBC, and CNN) coming to the defense of Fox News.[116] One of the major bureau chiefs stated, "If any member had been excluded it would have been the same thing, it has nothing to do with Fox or the White House or the substance of the issues."[117] Shortly after this story broke the White House admitted to a low-level mistake, but said that Fox News had not made a specific request to interview Feinberg. Then-Fox News White House correspondent Major Garrett responded by stating that he had not made a specific request, but that he had a "standing request from me as senior White House correspondent on Fox to interview any newsmaker at the Treasury at any given time news is being made."[118]
On November 8, 2009, the Los Angeles Times reported that an unnamed Democratic consultant was warned by the White House not to appear on Fox News again. According to the article, Anita Dunn claimed in an e-mail to have checked with colleagues who "deal with TV issues" and had been told that nobody had been instructed to avoid Fox News (for 24-hour news) except for the Fox Broadcasting Company (for special report coverage). Patrick Caddell, a Fox News contributor and former pollster for Jimmy Carter, said he had spoken with other Democratic consultants who had received similar warnings from the White House.[119]
Video footage manipulation[edit]
Jon Stewart reported on his November 11, 2009, broadcast of The Daily Show that Fox News host Sean Hannity misrepresented video footage purportedly showing large crowds on a health care protest orchestrated by Rep. Michele Bachmann. Stewart showed inconsistencies in alternating shots according to the color of the sky and tree leaves, showing that footage from Glenn Beck's much larger 9/12 rally, which had occurred two months earlier, had been spliced in with the other shots. Hannity estimated 20,000 protesters were in attendance, the Washington Post estimated 10,000, and Luke Russert reported that three Capitol Hill police officers guessed "about 4,000".[120][121] Sean Hannity apologized to his viewers for the error during his November 11, 2009, broadcast.[122] Stewart periodically accused Fox News of playing video footage out of context, such as when Hannity played footage of Obama stating the DREAM Act could not be passed by executive order, to make the president seem hypocritical although when the footage is continued Obama goes on to clarify that he does have the authority to halt deportations.[123]
On November 18, 2009, Happening Now anchor Gregg Jarrett told viewers that a Sarah Palin book signing in Grand Rapids, Michigan, had a massive turnout while showing footage of Palin with a large crowd. Jarrett noted that the former Republican vice-presidential candidate is "continuing to draw huge crowds while she's promoting her brand-new book", adding that the images being shown were "some of the pictures just coming in to us ... The lines earlier had formed this morning."[124] The video was actually taken from a 2008 McCain-Palin campaign rally. Fox News senior vice-president of news Michael Clemente issued an initial statement saying, "This was a production error in which the copy editor changed a script and didn't alert the control room to update the video."[124] Fox offered an on-air apology the following day during the same Happening Now segment, citing regrets for what they described as a "video error" with no intent to mislead.[125]
On November 12, 2021, Fox News edited a video of President Joe Biden to remove context from remarks that some could judge as racially insensitive, which was shown on Fox & Friends. In his comments, Biden said he had "adopted the attitude of the great Negro, at the time pitcher in the Negro Leagues, went on to become a great pitcher in the pros in Major League baseball after Jackie Robinson, his name was Satchel Paige." The video was edited so Biden was heard saying he had "adopted the attitude of the great Negro at the time, pitcher, name was Satchel Paige."[126]
ISIL video[edit]
After Royal Jordanian Air Force pilot Muath al-Kasasbeh was burned to death by ISIL in February 2015, Fox News included the full ISIL video on its website. The network said it had chosen to do so, after careful consideration, in order that readers of their website could "see for themselves the barbarity of ISIS." Malcolm Nance, executive director of the think tank Terror Asymmetrics Project on Strategy, Tactics and Radical Ideology (TAPSTRI), said that Fox News was "literally — literally — working for al-Qaida and ISIS's media arm ... They might as well start sending them royalty checks."[127][128]
Sean Hannity and Michael Cohen[edit]
On April 9, 2018, federal agents from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York (SDNY) served a search warrant on the office and residence of Michael Cohen, President Trump's personal attorney.[154] On the air, Hannity defended Cohen and criticized the federal action, calling it "highly questionable" and "an unprecedented abuse of power".[155]
On April 16, Cohen's lawyers told a federal judge that Cohen had ten clients in 2017–2018 but did "traditional legal tasks" for only three: Trump, Elliott Broidy, and a "prominent person" who did not wish to be named for fear of being "embarrassed".[156][157][158] The federal judge ordered the revelation of the third client, whom Cohen's lawyers named as Hannity.[156] Although Hannity has covered Cohen on his show, he did not disclose that he had consulted with Cohen.[159]
Fox News released a statement on April 16, 2018, attributed to Hannity: "Michael Cohen has never represented me in any matter. I never retained him, received an invoice, or paid legal fees. I have occasionally had brief discussions with him about legal questions about which I wanted his input and perspective. I assumed those conversations were confidential, but to be absolutely clear they never involved any matter between me and a third party."[160] NBC News quoted Hannity as saying: "We definitely had attorney–client privilege because I asked him for that",[161] while Hannity said on his radio show that he "might have handed him ten bucks" for the attorney–client privilege.[156][160] Lastly, Hannity tweeted that his discussions with Cohen were "almost exclusively" about real estate.[162]
The following day, news reports revealed that Hannity had shared another lawyer with Trump: Jay Sekulow. Sekulow had written a cease-and-desist letter to KFAQ on Hannity's behalf in May 2017, and later represented Trump in connection with the Mueller investigation.[163][164]
Human rights violations[edit]
In mid-2021, Fox News agreed to pay a $1 million settlement to New York City after its Commission on Human Rights cited "a pattern of violating the NYC Human Rights Law". A Fox News spokesperson claimed that "FOX News Media has already been in full compliance across the board, but [settled] to continue enacting extensive preventive measures against all forms of discrimination and harassment."[237]
Fox News Channel responses to criticism[edit]
In June 2004, CEO Roger Ailes responded to some of the criticism with a rebuttal in an online Wall Street Journal editorial,[337] saying that Fox News' critics intentionally confuse opinion shows such as The O'Reilly Factor with regular news coverage. Ailes stated that Fox News has broken stories harmful to Republicans, offering, "Fox News is the network that broke George W. Bush's DUI four days before the election" as an example, referring to Bush's DUI charge in 1976 that had not yet been made public. The DUI story was broken by then-Fox affiliate WPXT in Portland, Maine, although Fox News correspondent Carl Cameron also contributed to the report and, in the words of National Public Radio ombudsman Alicia Shepard, Fox News "sent the story ping-ponging around the nation" by broadcasting WPXT's coverage.[338] WPXT News Director Kevin Kelly said that he "called Fox News in New York City to see if we were flogging a dead horse" before running the story, and that Fox News confirmed the arrest with the campaign and ran the story shortly after 6 p.m.[338]
Upon the release of Outfoxed, Fox News issued a statement[286] denouncing MoveOn.org, Greenwald and The New York Times for copyright infringement. Fox News dismissed their judgments of former employees featured in the documentary as the partisan views of disgruntled workers who never vocalized concern over any alleged bias while they were employed at the network. Ailes also shrugged off criticisms of the former Fox News employees by noting that they worked in Fox affiliates and not at the actual channel itself. Fox News also challenged any news organization that sought to portray Fox News as a "problem" with the following proposition: "If they put out 100 percent of their editorial directions and internal memos, Fox News Channel will publish 100 percent of our editorial directions and internal memos, and let the public decide who is fair. This includes any legitimate cable news network, broadcast network, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and The Washington Post."[286]
Former Fox News personality Eric Burns has suggested in an interview that Fox News "probably gives voice to more conservatives than the other networks. But not at the expense of liberals." Burns justifies a higher exposure of conservatives by saying that other media often ignore conservatives.[339]
Fox News personalities have also taken part in back and forth disagreements with media personalities such as Jon Stewart[340] and Stephen Colbert.[341]