Faux News...
"Blare and ballast"
Fox News is neither fair or balanced, but frequently inaccurate. Here are the latest misrepresentations:
Fox & Friends off on proposed bank tax by a factor of 100
On January 15, Fox & Friends
falsely reported that President Obama promoted "a 15 percent tax on the
banks" for the purpose of recouping taxpayer losses resulting from
Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) investments. In fact, the fee
Obama proposed would be "assessed at approximately 15 basis points
(0.15 percent) of covered liabilities per year" for financial companies
with more than $50 billion in assets.
Fox Nation, Hoft falsely claim Coakley said "Catholics" shouldn't work "in emergency rooms"
Fox Nation and Gateway Pundit blogger Jim Hoft have seized on comments
made by Democratic Massachusetts Senate candidate Martha Coakley during
a January 14 radio interview to falsely claim that Coakley said "devout
Catholics" should not "work in emergency rooms." In fact, as the
context of Coakley's remarks makes clear, she was discussing
individuals who would refuse to provide certain emergency medical
procedures and treatments -- including emergency contraception -- to
patients on the grounds of their religious beliefs, not all "devout Catholics."
Fox Nation equates temporary protections for Haitians in the U.S. with "Amnesty" for "Illegal Aliens"
A January 15 Fox Nation headline asserted, "Obama Moves to Grant
Amnesty to Haitian Illegal Aliens." However, the article to which Fox
Nation linked reported on the temporary suspension of deportations of
undocumented Haitian immigrants and on widespread calls for the
administration to grant temporary protected status to such individuals,
making no mention of "amnesty to Haitian illegal aliens."
"Invasion U.S.A."! Tracking the Interpol conspiracy theory through right-wing media
Right-wing media figures including Newt Gingrich, Glenn Beck, Rush
Limbaugh, and Chuck Norris have been running with debunked conspiracy
theories that President Obama has ceded U.S. sovereignty and given
Interpol the right to circumvent the U.S. Constitution and even to
arrest U.S. citizens. In fact, as even some conservative commentators
have noted in debunking the conspiracy theory, Interpol first received
immunity under President Ronald Reagan, that Obama's action does not
cede sovereignty, that Interpol has been given the same immunity as the
International Committee of the Red Cross and the International Pacific
Halibut Commission, and that Interpol has not gained the right to
arrest U.S. citizens.
Using false claim, Fox & Friends attacks health care deal as "bribe" to unions
On January 15, Fox & Friends misrepresented
the details of the recent health care negotiation relating to proposals
to taxing high-cost "Cadillac" health care plans by falsely claiming
that the proposal to "eliminate from any taxing dental and vision"
policies applied only to union members, and Fox & Friends repeatedly
claimed that the concessions won during the negotations were "a bribe"
to unions. In fact, most of the negotiations, including the dental and
vision exemptions, apply to all workers -- not just union workers --
and the extension given to union members regarding the implementation
of the excise tax was reportedly made in order to allow unions time to
negotiate less expensive plans for their workers.
FOLLOW-UP REPORT: Beck and Hannity again devoted little coverage to earthquake in Haiti
After receiving criticism for giving little coverage to the devastating
earthquake in Haiti, Fox News' three top-rated programs for 2009
devoted scant coverage to the disaster for a second night -- a combined
total of 20 minutes and 40 seconds on January 14 -- while MSNBC's three
top-rated shows devoted more than an hour and 45 minutes to discussing
Haiti. The vast majority of the coverage on Fox's top-rated shows aired
on The O'Reilly Factor; Beck's and Hannity's shows each aired less than four minutes of coverage of the disaster.
Quick Fact: Fox News again allows Donatelli to attack health care bill without disclosing his conflict of interest
Fox News' Special Report with Bret Baier aired
a comment from Frank Donatelli attacking health care reform. He was
identified only as a "GOP operative" and "GOPAC chairman," not as
executive vice president of McGuireWoods Consulting, a public affairs
consulting firm whose clients include firms in the health insurance,
health care provider, and pharmaceutical industries. Read More
