White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs conducts the daily briefing at the White House in Washington on Thursday.
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The Fox News war: What’s the upside for Obama?
Critics call the Obama administration's criticism of Fox News petty. But if it discredits the network in the eyes of moderates, the strategy might work.
By Linda Feldmann | Staff writer/ October 23, 2009 edition
Washington
The Obama administration has taken a fair amount of grief for its campaign to marginalize Fox News, saying the cable network is “not a news organization” but rather “the communications arm of the Republican Party.”
Washington Post columnist Ruth Marcus, not a fire-breathing conservative, calls it “dumb on multiple levels” – a distraction from policy messages, a boost to Fox ratings, and, she writes, “it deprives the White House, to the extent it refuses to provide administration officials to appear on the cable network, of access to an audience that is, in fact, broader than hardcore Obama-haters.”
Stephen Hess, a Brookings Institution scholar on White House press relations going back decades, says, “It makes them in the White House look terribly political, and political means petty in our lexicon.”
The White House has also opened itself up to charges that it is creating an “enemies list,” à la President Richard Nixon – a charge made on the Senate floor Wednesday by Sen. Lamar Alexander (R) of Tennessee, the No. 3 Republican in the Senate with a reputation for collegiality. He also cited recent administration criticism of the US Chamber of Commerce, the insurance industry, and the insurance company Humana, among others.
Obama’s strategy
Still, could the administration have planted seeds that could pay dividends down the road? Perhaps, says Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania.
“If the White House could persuade moderates that any story originating with Fox is politically motivated and hence suspect, it might reduce the initial impact of Fox-generated content,” she says. “What the White House appears to be trying to do is reduce the migration of stories from Fox to other cable, broadcast, and print.”
Fox has gotten mileage recently with stories about community organizers ACORN and green jobs “czar” Van Jones, who resigned his White House post after Fox and other conservative media pushed aggressively on his past associations.
“There are two audiences here,” says liberal columnist David Sirota. “There’s the Fox audience, then there’s the rest of the news-consuming public. You’re never going to delegitimize Fox with the hardest of the hardcore base. But if you can delegitimize it in the eyes of the rest of the media, that impacts the rest of the news-consuming audience.”
The anti-Fox campaign
The administration’s anti-Fox drumbeat has been building for weeks.
On Sept. 20, President Obama appeared on all the major Sunday morning news programs except Fox News. Last week, White House communications director Anita Dunn asserted that “Fox News often operates almost as either the research arm or the communications arm of the Republican Party.”
But perhaps the starkest moment came last Sunday, when Obama’s top two political aides unleashed attacks.
Fox News “is not really news,” said David Axelrod on ABC. “It’s pushing a point of view.”
Rahm Emanuel told CNN that Obama considers Fox News “not a news organization so much as it has a perspective.”
When reporters pressed White House spokesman Robert Gibbs later for specifics, he mentioned Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity – two personalities known for their fiery rhetoric (as distinct from briefing room regulars like Major Garrett and Wendell Goler).
Fox’s owner, Rupert Murdoch, says ratings have gone up since the Obama “campaign” began. Obama himself has not engaged in the discussion, but when asked about it on Wednesday in an interview with NBC, he said, “it’s not something I’m losing a lot of sleep over.”
“I think the American people are a lot more interested in what we’re doing to create jobs or how we’re handling the situation in Afghanistan,” Obama said.
Democrats cheer
Some Democratic media strategists say the White House is right to go after Fox – particularly the more incendiary personalities like Mr. Beck.
“I just find the antics of my buddy Glenn Beck absolutely out of control, and I think the problem now is that the rhetoric has been ratcheted up so high,” says Peter Fenn, president of Fenn Communications Group. “To capture an audience, they have to be more shrill and outrageous than the last time they were on.”
Fenn says he also wishes Keith Olbermann, a liberal talk show host on MSNBC prone to over-the-top rhetoric, would dial it back. “I wish he’d stop doing ‘The Worst Person in the World,’” says Fenn.
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Has Obama’s Fox News offensive worked?
Media analysts differ on whether the network has changed its behavior at all.
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Comments
2. Josh | 10.23.09
Could you imagine the nuclear backlash from left had the Bush Administration talked about CNN this way?
But I suppose that in order to develop a truly socialist/communist society freedom of speech and any opposition to the current administration are on the chopping block.
3. jimson | 10.23.09
Fox News and AM Radio (among others) have for years been spreading the theory that most of the media has a liberal bias, thus loyal Fox viewers have come to trust Fox as the ONLY “true” source for information. Even Charles Krauthammer, a Fox contributor, noted that Fox had succeeded in creating more than just an alternate opinion, but “an alternate reality.” The Obama administration is correct to call out Fox as an “opinion” network and not a real news network– how much time and money did Fox spend promoting the Tea Parties? Did any other network actually set up stages and organize performances for those protests? Did MSNBC or CNN organize or promote any of the anti-war protests during the Bush administration? No. Fox is NOT news, but biased opinion over-hyped by ranting demagogues like Glenn Beck.
4. Restore_American_Values | 10.23.09
This administration are a bunch of double standard cry babies. Fox/Beck are only reflecting the subversive downright Unamerican antics of our current Washington. Fox is not doing anything other than showing the facts. Obama and his “gang” are so smug, arrogant and blatant in thier actions. They seem so full of power that they are not even concerned with even attemping to appear to be on the up and up. Their own shortcomings with their delusion of power will be their own demise. Personally, I see their foundations already beginning to crumble piece by small piece. While we Americans have manytimes historically been slow to react, our collective conscious is honest and good. We will not allow Obama to corrupt and transform this country into a socialist open society. AMERICANS BEWARE OF GEORGE SOROS…read up and study this mans divisive idealogy.
5. jrorge | 10.23.09
It looks a bit like Chavez and Putin, when they don’t like the critics, they shut them down, welcome to socialism!
6. Robert | 10.23.09
To open, I do watch Fox news. I also watch or read CNN and half a dozen others so I get the whole story from multiple points of view and then I can make my own decision about what I beleive is true and accurate.
The base issue that Obama has with Fox is that they are digging around in the closet and the back room and they are putting front and center all the skeletons that he wants to keep buried. The fact that he’s indecisive on the war. The fact that many around him hold radical views and are aligned with communist and or socialist beleifs. The fact that the new health care reform that is being rammed down America’s throat is going to cost big money and most of that money is going to come from the pockets of middle class America directly or indirectly.
In the end, the “War On Fox” amounts to nothing more than a temper tantrum thrown by a five year old. It’s time for the president to grow up and get over it.
7. carrie | 10.23.09
As much as Fox News belittles the administration, why is it so uncalled for if the WH strikes back? The network isn’t being shut down. The Democrats are saying people like Beck and Hannity are not unbiased news reporters, but commentators. Can’t the WH comment, too?
Beck and Hannity have lied, more than once. When Michael Moore lies, you can be sure the conservatives are right there pointing fingers.
And why do the very right wing conservatives keep calling Obama and his administration unamerican? America is never going to be socialist, or communist, etc. There are too many citzens,some,believe it or not,in the Senate and House,who will not let that happen.
8. Jack | 10.23.09
Josh Comment 2. Please list proposed socialist/communist programs advocated by the Obama administration/Democratic congress.
9. NC MAGNOLIA | 10.23.09
The more socialism the better. If one is unhappy with the current social programs in our country-then stop driving on Ike’s interstate hi-ways, give up your medicaire and ss cks. And let more bridges fall ala Minn.
10. Nov Shmoz Ka Pop | 10.23.09
@Josh: “Could you imagine the nuclear backlash from left had the Bush Administration talked about CNN this way?
But I suppose that in order to develop a truly socialist/communist society freedom of speech and any opposition to the current administration are on the chopping block.”
The Bush administration DID talk about MSNBC that way, and froze them out in revenge for perceived bias. A little research before hasty posting goes a long way.
11. Nov Shmoz Ka Pop | 10.23.09
@jrorge: “It looks a bit like Chavez and Putin, when they don’t like the critics, they shut them down, welcome to socialism!”
Please explain: who is being shut down? Oh, that’s right: no one.
12. Roland Olsen | 10.23.09
The more that Obama attacks Fox News, the more their ratings skyrocket. Interestingly as well that this is all happening as more light is being cast upon Obama’s college thesis (which he continues to prevent full release) and a radio interview that he gave as state senator that clearly show his socialist bent and his goal of redistributing the wealth even if he has to trash the constitution to do it. He is a lil’ Chavez in the making in regards to both topics - media and the constitution.
13. WhatIsSocialismAgain? | 10.23.09
Socialism is an economic system. It has nothing to do with how authoritarian a government is, or how totalitarian. People sound so ignorant when they equate things like shutting down news outlets to socialism. That’s like saying the same thing about capitalism. Squashing differing views is something happily done by governments since such things have existed, regardless of the economic systems they espouse (or enforce).
Oh, do you mean command-and-control economy? Well, I guess you don’t much like the United States, then. We’ve had a mixed system for quite a while now, with about 30% of our economy being command-and-control (controlled by the government).
Ok, so, are Obama’s policies socialism? No, no more than we already are. We have Medicare, Medicaid, a standing, volunteer army (oh, you thought that the entire country paying together for a common defense mechanism was capitalist?), Social Security, etc.
And another thing, like the previous poster mentions, can you name a news outlet, or anybody at all, shut down by the government, ever? No? Well, then shut the **** up.
We have it so good in this country that we have nothing better to do than fight each other over stupid things.
Greedy conservatives can’t stand paying taxes for social safety nets. They should share more.
Christian conservatives can’t stand that people don’t live by their rules. They should emulate their Savior and forgive those who trespass against them. They should also love their enemies (which few do, mostly they are a hate group as far as I can tell).
Poor liberals think they should get financial help because they are poor (a handout). They should work harder to educate themselves.
Rich liberals feel guilty about being so rich and want to ‘give back’ to the poor. These guys should just send me a check. 
Libertarians are right on about not having any social laws of any kind, as far as I’m concerned, but they are way off in their goal of eliminating all social programs and safety nets.
We are animals, all of whom are finite, fallible beings. None of us follow 100% the ideals we espouse. People should just be nicer.
Fat chance.
14. Scott Mounger | 10.23.09
@Roland Olsen
I did a simple google search about the college thesis thing you mentioned and was quite surprised. Apparently, some blogger released some fake news about how Obama basically wrote this thesis about how the country should be communist or socialist or something. Supposedly it was written in 1983, and when a few journalists called the University, they said that they didn’t have a paper from Obama in their archives.
Apparently a lot of conservatives kicked up a fuss about how he was hiding it or something and didn’t care to do any proper research. Columbia never had an option to right any thesis until the 1990’s, so no thesis exists because he never wrote one.
@everyone
As far as fox news goes, the white house isn’t completely wrong in it’s statement that just about every view expressed on the station happen to be a more conservative view and even some really far right wing views. The problem is that most of their bigger names overshadow everything else and those big names ARE mostly opinion shows and not news. The WH’s statement isn’t that they need to be shutdown, it’s just that they are putting out stories that they see as biased. Apparently Bush did something similar to MSNBC before him, and I would be really surprised if previous presidents didn’t have something similar as well.
I think too many people are too hung up on the “conservative” and “liberal” titles. That’s one of the reasons it’s hard to do anything in Washington. All the politicians have to do is read a bill and ask, “Is this good for the country?”. Unfortunately most seem to just go with whatever the majority of their group wants. I think a good example of this is the bill to allow a woman to sue Haliburton because she was gang raped by the employees and then pretty much held prisoner. I mean.. 30 republicans voted against it? Was there some sort of tax exemption for peanut farmers hidden in the bill or did no one actually read it? This is a good example of one side putting out a bill and the other side shooting it down because it’s the other side’s bill.
We should abolish the titles democrat and republican and just call everyone “people”. I think that would solve a lot of problems, but I doubt we’ll ever make it to that.
Scott
15. DontListenToObamasLies | 10.23.09
@WhatIsSocialismAgain?
Wow. thats the worst view i have ever seen. I am a christian,over half my friends are christians,and we are not a “hate group.” and i will probably be called a “hater” for saying this,but i am not hating,in fact,im saying it because i care for people: We are not a hate group. No one is perfect. we may sometimes get angry. becoming a christian does not make you perfect,by far. Even as a christian,i’ve been tempted with lust,drugs,alchohol. But the bible says: being tempted is NOT a sin,its when you give in. i just want to calrify the warped view that christians hate. NO ONE IS PERFECT!!
16. Terry | 10.24.09
I tend to agree with the late Walter Cronkite that real journalism in America is dead or dying. Too many media outlets no longer just report news, they have become part of the news. The days of objective reporting and journalism is a lost art as network news outlets vie for media share and constituencies. FOX is a right wing rag whose dedication to fact finding is secondary to ideogical agendas and demogogic pandering to the right wing loonies and their bizarre fantasy of pending socialism. But at the same time MSNBC has made a conscious decision to become a “fair and balanced” alternative on the left and though my occasional human need for ‘hooray for our side’ draws me to that-I too deplore so much editorial comment instead of objective news reporting.
17. Jake | 10.24.09
Before you start saying we are becoming a socialist country you should research what socialism really is.
18. Zak | 10.24.09
Don’t fool yourself… this is not socialism.
“Capitalism made it this way, old fashioned fascism will take it away!”
~Marilyn Manson
What you are witnessing is the blatant public display of a dictatorial regime bent on creating an empire right on front of your eyes. And they are so damn arrogant about it these days that it is being televised - in living color. The Obama puppet show is a ruse and insult to the American legacy. If you can’t see that all mainstream media has an “agenda” and is controlled by global banking influence, then you have a lot to learn. No matter the network, the ability to “silence” the press in any form is a precursor to fascism and will only set precedence of further tyranny and the trampling of citizens rights, the Constitution and the long standing freedoms that have kept America a sovereign nation.
Any respectable citizen owes it to themselves to study the words of our forefathers and the founding members of this great nation. They spoke clearly of, and warned us, exactly of the despicable behavior of today’s governing body. Or you can simply lean back in your easy chair stuffing your fat *** with twinkies and eat up any story they feed you…. It’s THEIR News Tonight.
19. zenguyrva | 10.24.09
Wow…We really have stepped through the looking glass!! After 8 years of imprisonment of “terrorist” without charges and the denial of basic legal rights under the Patriot Act, 8 years of wiretapping and prying into the lives of american citizens, after lying about WMDs and manufacturing a case to drag us into a war that has killed and crippled tens of thousands of men and women, and wasted hundreds of Billions of dollar. We need to realize that the threat to our liberty ended when Obama took office.
Obama’s administration is telling the truth: Fox is editorial which pretends to be news. This is not a move toward totalitarianism, it’s freedom of speech.
As for all fear mongering about socialism, it’s simply a tool of the wealthy and their media arm Fox propaganda to stir up the base.
We are not going to become a Socialist nation any more than we are going to become a capitalist nation. We are, and will continue to be, a plutocracy, a nation controlled by the wealthy. Capitalism, as Adam Smith envisioned it doesn’t exist today. Capitalism presupposes an informed consumer. How can you have an informed consumer, when corporate America spends Billions of dollars misleading consumers and investors.
Does anyone understand the microscopic print we have to agree to to get a credit card or the novel of documents we have to sign to get a mortgage? How can we be informed when the whole process is so mystified and “legalized” that it’s beyond the capacity of the average attorney to get it.
We have been had!
We live in a society in which wall street and big corporations call the shots. “Real” capitalism would require breaking up these international monopolies and entities that are “too big to fail” (maybe if a company is too big to fail maybe it is too dangerous to exist)
Socialism is not communism or Marxism, or totalitarianism, it is a economic organization advocating public or direct worker ownership and administration of the means of production and allocation of resources, and a society characterized by equal access to resources for all individuals with a method of compensation based on the amount of labor expended. If you work you get rewarded, that doesn’t sound too scary, it’s like a co op.
I don’t think we are in danger of going in that direction, any more than we are headed for “real” capitalism. Because it would mean the top .1% would have to share power, and that ain’t gonna happen.
Glenn Beck is an actor who plays a crazy character. Yes I have listened to him, and it it simply hysterical theater, preaching to the chrior and trying to fire up the base. He is getting paid, and serving his cause. If he actually is sincere, he needs to be medicated. Enjoy the show,if you can, but don’t mistake it for truth or fair and balanced news.
What passes for news these days is a joke. Case in point, balloon boy. PLEASE!!! What became of the concept of real news. The only place you can get news is NPR, or McNeil Lehrer, or C span today.
Impassioned editorials are not news they are opinion. Apparently we have to scream and make absurd comments to get rating, because the attention span of the audience is shorter than a dalmatian’s.
20. Bruce from Oak Harbor | 10.25.09
In the contest between the media wing of the democratic party and the media wing of the republican party, there are no winners.
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1. Robert | 10.23.09
Olberman is the MSNBC equivalent of Fox’s Hannity. Glen Beck is way out there on the lunatic fringe in anybody’s book. Still, it is much easier to differentiate on MSNBC what is News and what is partisan commentary than it is on Fox. Every commentator and news person on Fox disparages and attacks the President! Even still….CNN is the best unbiased news out there. The President and WH are right to defend themselves against out and out slander from Fox whether is comes from “news people” or “partisan commentator people”. Fox has called The President “racist” “socialist” “marxist” and all sorts of out and out lies. Even in Keith Olberman’s case, he bases his commentary in reseachable facts and tells the truth. It’s biased Truth for sure…but at least Olberman is not outright lying like Beck, Hannity, et al.