Should Rupert Murdoch and FOX News organization be considered an enemy of America?

[kentuck]

As America was debating what to do about the violent insurrection against our Capitol, Murdoch and FOX News, decided to play the other side and to lie and minimize the entire tragedy on his network.

I saw a report, perhaps it was on CNN's show with Brian Stelter, that reported something very similar to that fact. Although FOX and OAN are considered a part of our free media, they decided to oppose the facts of the attack upon our Capitol, as if they were working for an enemy agent? CNN reported that many Republican Senators may have been influenced by their reports?

It is dangerous ground to talk of censoring anybody, but they acted as an enemy of America. They were no different from Russia propaganda from Russian agents. Rupert Murdoch is no friend of America. He acts as if he hates this country?

[Hermit-The-Prog]

1. Of course they are, but other than civil suits and facts, there's not much to do about 'em.

[Roisin Ni Fiachra]

2. Yes, Murdoch, et al, are more of an an enemy of our country right now than fascist propagandists

Tokyo Rose, Axis Sally, Robert Henry Best, Martin Monti, and Herbert Burgman were during WWII.

Murdoch, Fox, OAN, etc, are fascist propaganda purveyors dedicated to destroying the democratic systems of the US, and replacing them with authoritarian fascist systems that would end free and fair voting as a means of electing representatives of the people in government.

Murdoch and these various fascist propaganda outlets knowingly employ lies, and half truths, in order to brainwash gullible people into supporting politicians and policies dedicated to destroying democracy in the US.

[Lonestarblue]

5. Don't leave out Newsmax.

I know some Fox addicts who have switched, and they are now believing even more extreme nonsense. I can’t even talk to them anymore. Unfortunately they’re family.

[OldBaldy1701E]

12. That hasn't stopped me

from ignoring members of my family. They had their chance to be respectful and open minded, and they decided to become dangerous idiots. Screw them and the horse they rode away on. (I wouldn't do either actually. I would not disrespect the horse and I follow the wise adage about where not to stick certain body parts...)

[bucolic_frolic]

3. Free speech and lies are on a collision course

If you're a public menace for shouting "Fire!" in a crowded theater, why do other lies that undermine public civility and foment chaos remain legal?

Those FCC airwaves are leased and granted, on condition. Those conditions include decency, limited violence, censored foul language, and restricted hours, and lease duration.

We are not powerless. We just haven't found a way to exercise the rules.

[Boomerproud]

7. The question is why haven't we used our "power"?

It isn't as if this is a new problem.

[bucolic_frolic]

9. Because

Republicans wrap themselves in 1A and 2A when it suits their agenda and we're just powerless in the courts of law and public opinion?

[Hortensis]

13. This. No shouting fire in a crowded nation.

As for why we haven't used our power, the biggest single reason by far is that the Republican Party and Fox viewers have power too.

Kinda like asking why the KS Chiefs didn't just run the ball to their goal each quarter; the whole thing needn't have taken more than 15 minutes.

[OldBaldy1701E]

14. Cable changed all that

very few people don't have some form of it these days. And, you cannot regulate cable, you can just 'rate' it for consumption. I do not feel that this is the way to stop them. I am thinking more things like 'The Daily Show' and other left leaning shows need to really go on he offensive. Not just funny jokes, but needle-sharp funny jokes... the kind where people laugh and then go "Hang on a minute!" And, they should not stop for any reason. Let's play Fox's game back at them. Now, I know that people will complain about this tactic and the desire to be 'better' than they are. I would say that concern is moot after the past four years. I doubt anything we could do would be as bad as those rethug worshippers and their misdirection, especially when our desire is to make things better for all of us, not just those who already have the majority of the wealth in the nation.

[judesedit]

18. I agree with you. We have to create short, catchy memes that stick with you, too.

And have them spouted loudly and continually by an activist person with a comedic lean. You know, like Stephen Colbert, Stephanie Miller, Al Franken, John Stewart, Jimmy Kimmel. And commercials and advertisements like the TLP made. And, of course, go after the advertisers and people who donate to rw bs media. We are sorely behind when it comes to strong media presence.

[OldBaldy1701E]

42. The outdated ida that the internet was a 'fad'

seems to be the prevailing thought in the Democratic party, and we need to realize that the rethugs were smarter about its uses than the stodgy leaders of the Dem party. Time to correct this.

[judesedit]

49. Well, I agree, and they'd better get with the program asap

[Jedi Guy]

41. To answer your question about shouting "Fire!" in a crowded theater...

The simple answer is that that's no longer the constitutional test for prohibited speech. The current test for prohibited speech is whether the speech is "directed to inciting or producing imminent lawless action and is likely to incite or produce such action." As long as Fox, or any other news outlet, isn't advocating for their viewers to do something illegal/violent, there's nothing the government can really do about it.

The answer to bad speech is good speech, not less speech.

[mezame]

4. Resurrect The Fairness Doctrine...

...and give it teeth. Money is the only thing RM et. al. care about. The voting machine companies have already targeted FauxNuz mouthpieces, and if those settlements don't come from their own pockets, I'm sure they'll come out of Ruperts'. Hit 'em where it hurts. The Murdoch empire can't collapse soon enough.

[TomVilmer]

6. 👍

[summer_in_TX]

46. The American Enterprise Institution and the GOP did a very careful campaign to

undermine the Fairness Doctrine. The GOP-controlled Senate held hearings and took testimony, they revealed abuses where the license renewal process wan misused politically to punish enemies of the President (Nixon) and cost stations $50,000. They also took their campaign to schools of journalism and got them to believe that the Fairness Doctrine harmed First Amendment rights.

It's a steep climb, especially since FOX has been touting its evils frequently ever since the began.

But if we could require all media to serve the public interest, that might give us a way to have tools to stop the lying on cable and RW hate-talk radio. Also over social media companies. I'd like to require changes in their algorithms so hate is not served up to them, nor are conspiracy theories.

[CentralMass]

8. Yes.

[Joinfortmill]

10. We should kick Murdoch out of the country.

[c-rational]

31. Agreed. I believe New Zealand did and they are mcuh better for it.

[Escurumbele]

11. Yes

Lying cannot be permitted, even if they try to masquerade themselves as "Entertainment Show" like Tucker Carlson does. Lies must be punished, everyone knows how it can change a population for the worst, and Fox News, Limbaugh, etc. have been champions of misinformation, it must stop.

[Cobalt Violet]

15. A law restricting what can be called "news"?

Kind of like what they tried with milk. Probably not doable but just thought of it while I'm having my coffee and almond milk.

[c-rational]

32. Fox is registered as an infotainment company, not a new organization. This should always be

be stated by all news organizations every time fo lc on purpose) is mentioned.

[OldBaldy1701E]

50. More like a return to what news programs were before corporate takeover

Back before greed had fully taken over television, the news was a separate entity. It was there due to federal law and was not accountable to sponsors or ratings. They just delivered the news. Once this 'immunity' was removed, the news had to compete with all other television shows to exist. That is when they became little more than another flashy TV show to get the same kind of sponsorship that the other shows were getting. Return things to where the news was exempt from the piranha pool that is modern television, and the 'sensationalistic' elements, not to mention the lying to get ratings, will stop.

[ancianita]

16. Yes, they should be. And here's the thing. Knowing that compels us to not be their echo chamber.

Because this isn't about censorship.
This isn't even about the character of Republican friends or media.

This is about our response when they try their "reasoning" around us. They use reasoning to confound. They OTOH everything.

It's easy to recognize their cult bullies who gaslight and obstruct when in majority power, as they strip the country of tax money and do "socialism" for the rich and nothing for the People.

It's a little harder to see that, when Dems gain power, these same culters suddenly need to slow down, play the sagacious moderates who "discuss" things and "debate" things -- so that they can use all Dems as their "radical left" foils, while they delay cleanup of the damage they've inflicted for as long as possible. At this point we are no longer the "Democrat Party" but the "Radical Left."
Later they campaign on how well they "conserved" money from the radical left's "socialist controllers."

Republican-now-independent voters don't want to see that pattern that has cyclicaIly inflicted damage to the point of no return for this country. They stand by and watch as red states get to work to shore up their voter suppression ground game.

To call the autocratic playbook tired, old school and played out isn't enough.

They can try their reasonability playbook, right now.
But right now is so dire, that no, it is not the time for us to allow any pundit criticism of our party in the name of reasonability. We learn and know our flaws better than anyone.

A dire time calls for us to bust out and smash the cynical playbook when they pose as reasonable critics. There's already enough confusion among the population that gets them exposed to all kinds of "OTOH everything" while they're being robbed.

There's no nuance about this country's situation or media 'judgment calls.' Fuck that.

This is a 'right side of history' point for everyone.

Demand media information (not OTOH opinion making or 's/he said' news), media focus.
Stay vigilant and support Democratic action.

Cuz ain't nobody got time to play around.
We got no fucks to give Murdochs, Mercers, Putin's minions or their sidelined 'independents.'

[sciencescience]

17. Enemy of American democracy. Enemy of unbiased truth.

It's hard to call them enemies of America when they are a large part of the American populace themselves.

As a political message calling FOX news the enemy of America, similar to Trump's enemy of the people is dicey. But after the insurrection, independents might even call them that.

[kentuck]

19. You make a good point. "Enemies of America" might be families and neighbors?

Also, I think we need to ask, "What role FOX played in the "Capitol Insurrection"?

I can't think of many that pushed the "Big Lie" moreso than FOX News? So, they should bear some responsibility. Can it be excused as nothing more than "free speech"? Is there no price to pay for such reckless statements?

At the very least, they should be exposed as nothing more than right-wing propagandists.

[summer_in_TX]

45. My hope is the Insurrection Commission Nancy announced (or whatever its called)

will not stop at the people who were involved in the insurrection but also point to the root causes and take it back to RW hate-talk radio and FOX/OAN/Newsmax etc.

Or point to the need for a full-scale commission to examine the media's role in the run up to the attack on our country.

[Clearly fogged in]

47. And there's the ETTD

If forced to account for himself, was it Fox that made him do it? Then the question would be whose bus is first on the scene.

[ananda]

20. Well, since they've been an enemy for four decades now..

....

[brooklynite]

21. This was a lazy label when Trump used it and it's a lazy label now.

[onenote]

37. +1

[NCcoast]

23. We do need some way of dealing with the Fox News cancer

I have long felt that Fox News/Murdoch/Talk Radio and all the clones that have now propagated from that spawn are perhaps the biggest problem this country has.

Right wing media has created an alternative universe of misinformation designed to keep low information voters from supporting their own self interest. So those voters are tricked into supporting the interests of the oligarchy. The strategy is to vilify all things liberal. Turning liberals, the very people who make it their business to further the interests of the average citizens, into something repugnant no decent person would want to be identified with. The right can't win support for policies that only favor the wealthy with honesty and open debate, so they caricature liberals as weak, petty, enablers of sloth looking for a handouts while burning down the Wendy's. You don't want to be one of those awful people, right?

But in the creating that alternative reality they have also created fertile soil for other alterative realities to take root, like Q anon.

I'm no lawyer but I believe, like in the case of libel, it should be possible to hold broadcasters/entertainers (read propagandists) responsible for knowingly misleading the public. It's one thing to make a mistake, it's another to knowingly, systematically, repeatedly misinform the public to further a political objective. There was a time when we could suspend their broadcast license, no longer. There would have to monetary penalties or maybe a criminal penalty in extreme cases, like say promoting the violent overthrow of the government.

[Roy Rolling]

24. Some people are saying that

That’s what I’ve heard many people say.

[samsingh]

25. I believe so -enemy of many things that have resulted in hundreds of thousands of unnecessary deaths

they have spread lies and misinformation. People probably did not wear masks because of their talking heads who i believe themselves did wear them.

fox is evil and probably the favorite network for white supremists and terrorists around the world.

[RVN VET71]

26. Should Rupert Murdoch and FOX News organization be considered an enemy of America?

‘Twould be certifying a self-evident fact.

[colsohlibgal]

27. Oh Yes

News no longer is news when it is filled with outright lying.

We need a return to the Fairness Doctrine but in lieu of that the lawsuits that are being filed are helpful.

[msfiddlestix]

28. I've thought that to be the case since the 90's

And I have never wavered from that opinion.

[KS Toronado]

29. Correct way to spell them.....FQX

Remember your Ps & Qs when writing about the ReQugs.

[c-rational]

30. Yes kentuck, as they are. The New Zealand Prime Minister if memory serves correct responded

they have avoided this march to the right by getting rid of Murdoch and cronies. We should do the same. Also, they should never be referred to a a news organization. They are registered as infotainment, and that is how they get away with their BS. It should be stated every time the word fox (lower case intentional) is used (no disparagement to actual foxes). fox, the infotainment co. that pretends to be a news organization. Here to spread falsehoods and propaganda to hurt real Americans. Rant over.

[muntrv]

33. Yes, like Pravda or Die Sturmer.

[3825-87867]

34. Not only that, but

sooner or later someone from the left is going to do something stupid because they are so fed up with what's being reported as "fact."
Then Fox and Onan and other Right wing shit-slingers are going to lose their minds which will spill over to our less-than-honorable media which will give them a false permission to push it further inciting more violence and allowing more of the RWNJs to spout their BS on MSM. The end result will be that the Left is the problem and the Stupid American Public (SAPs) will buy it challenge free!

[world wide wally]

35. I was in my car last week listening to satellite radio and turned to the RW station during a

commercial. They were on the phone singing the praises of MTG and talking about how they had to get rid of Kizinger(?) from Illinois because she is a patriot and he is a traitor.
These assholes are sanity challenged even more than I imagined.

[4Q2u2]

36. Defintely not a Friend

Who would have thought that it was not the Russian propaganda machine but a so called ally.
Who's only real allegiance was to the all mighty dollar. Would bring American down.

[dlk]

38. We have what it takes to address this threat

For decades, Americans have been under attack from fascist propaganda that is only increasing in the number of outlets and in intensity. However, we are not helpless. We have, however, allowed our lawmakers to abdicate their responsibility to protect us. Licensing laws need to be expanded and modernized, and must include cable networks, social media companies and the like. Enforcement has to be adequately funded. Even with First Amendment concerns, there is no shortage of brilliant minds with the ability to write legislation that protects the First Amendment, and also protects us from this flood of propaganda. When there’s a will, there’s a way.

[uponit7771]

39. A real time Fact Check Group made of and funded by the US Media would help but it would cut MSM

... "sources" by half.

[Ford_Prefect]

40. FOX and the other RW outlets were created as a Propaganda machine for

The Conservative GOP to provide a pipeline of ideas and information supporting their view of what American voters needed to believe. This came about from a response to how the news media of the 1960's and 1970's shaped public perception of Civil Rights, the Vietnam war, Women's Rights, and the Environment.

In particular they were concerned that the media very nearly exposed the hidden money network which had supported Nixon, patronized their issues in the Senate and House, and other halls of government.

There is no native purpose other than propaganda for FOX news or any of Murdoch's tools. Murdoch exploits people in the same way Big Tobacco has. We should treat Murdoch and his family as dangerous parasites, as they did in New Zealand. Further we should examine the finances of FOX and Murdoch to expose their links to the current Dark Money stream.

And while we are at it we need to dig into Sinclair Broadcasting over the same issues.

[KY_EnviroGuy]

43. FOX should be considered corporate media because....

they only promote interests of corporations and the ultra-wealthy but concealed as news and entertainment.

I would bet 99% of Fox viewers don't even know who Murdoch is or anything about his sordid history in British and Australian media.

And yes, Fox and most all right-wing media outlets are the enemy of the people because they do not promote everyday people's interests. A prime example is their war on reasonable, rational gun control measures.

KY

[czarjak]

44. Rupert is Fake News. Period.

[roamer65]

48. They should be shut down.

Permanently.