In most places, a record like Bob Beckel would probably lead your employer to tell you to take your act elsewhere. But if you're running a right-wing propaganda network, he's a pretty valuable "leftist" to keep around.
Feb
19
2013
Friendly Oil–Not the Venezuelan Kind
By 22 Comments
With the Keystone climate protests in Washington bringing climate change back into the media, we're hearing a lot about how the Keystone pipeline will, at the very least, mean that we'll be getting our oil from a nice country.
Feb
08
2013
Bill O’Reilly and the 'Epidemic of Disrespect'
By 15 Comments
Bill O’Reilly– whose network is known on-air fantasies about murdering public figures, jokes about the assassination of the president, and is the only network named by more than one spree killer as having helped to inspire their murderous designs–is worried that the country is becoming too disrespectful.
Feb
07
2013
EXCLUSIVE: Bill O'Reilly Does Not Have Access to the Internet
By 16 Comments
On last night's O'Reilly Factor, the Fox News host wondered why NBC has failed to cover the new revelations about the White House drone program. The real question here is why Fox doesn't let O'Reilly have access to the Internet.
Jan
09
2013
George Washington on Guns…According to Sean Hannity
By 18 Comments
To make the case that gun ownership was not just a right, but something akin to a sacrament, Hannity quoted George Washington: "'Rifles and pistols are equally indispensable.' 'They deserve a place of honor with all that's good.'" The quote is a hoax, and a well-known one.
Jan
09
2013
Bill O'Reilly's Fact-Free War on Planned Parenthood
By 13 Comments
Bill O'Reilly wants Congress to investigate Planned Parenthood for being an "abortion mill." In the real world, very little of their work is related to abortion services. But why let facts get in the way?
Jan
04
2013
Will Americans Be Able to Watch Al Jazeera America?
By 33 Comments
The problem with liberal cable channel Current TV being sold to Al Jazeera isn't that American TV viewers might be subjected to news with a point of view. It's news with what many elites might consider the wrong point of view that is the problem.
Dec
12
2012
Bill O'Reilly Has Had It With the Name-Calling
By 25 Comments
Fox host Bill O'Reilly has had with the incivility in public life. He's ready to name names, calling the "haters" on the left and right. Funny, his list doesn't include many on the right. Of course, he could start with himself….
Nov
20
2012
Roger Ailes' Fantasy World
By 17 Comments
Fox News CEO Roger Ailes recently renewed his contract, and he gave an interview to explain why. As one might expect, given the we-only-look-biased-because-the-other-guys-are-so-biased philosophy at Fox, he's motivated by what he sees as the outrageously partisan media everywhere else (MediaBistro, 11/16/12): Ailes was also sparked by what he experienced at a Washington journalists' dinner. "When I saw the president say, 'I know you all voted for me,' and a thousand people stood up and cheered and applauded and then when the applause died down, he said, 'Oh probably except you guys at the Fox table.' I thought, 'Am I [...]
Nov
14
2012
Fox's 'Best Journalistic Instincts' Are Nothing to Write Home About
By 14 Comments
New York Times media reporter David Carr (11/12/12) had some kind words for Fox News Channel's Election Night coverage: On Tuesday night, the people in charge of Fox News were confronted with a stark choice after it became clear that Mr. Romney had fallen short: was Fox, first and foremost, a place for advocacy or a place for news? In this moment, at least, Fox chose news. After relating the story of Karl Rove's contrarian insistence that Obama had not won Ohio and thus the election–including the oddest part of the story, which is that one of Fox News' featured [...]
Nov
06
2012
It's Awkward for NBC When MSNBC Tells the Truth
By 23 Comments
The New York Times has a news piece today (11/6/12) reporting that MSNBC is just like Fox News, and isn't that awful. Now, MSNBC, for all its flaws, is not really anything like Fox News. And most of Times reporter Jeremy Peters' evidence for their similarity comes from a Pew study of "positive" and "negative" news coverage–the kind of study that will only be meaningful after someone comes up with an objective scale for measuring how positive or negative reality is. But I was struck by this anecdotal example of the Fox-like "partisan bitterness" supposedly on display on MSNBC: In [...]
Sep
27
2012
Don't Tell O'Reilly, but His Iran Blockade Idea Already Worked
By 17 Comments
Crooks & Liars (9/26/12) notes Bill O'Reilly is proposing a naval blockade of Iraq: Says O'Reilly: We're going to block it, nothing in, nothing out. OK? That's what we're going to do. And if you challenge the blockade, we'll do what we have to do like the Cuban missile crisis, same thing–not gonna do it, not gonna let your nukes in Cuba. Kennedy did that. Not gonna let your nukes in Iran. BANG! That's what we're gonna do. So you've either got to stop now and not force us to do it, because if you force us to do it, [...]
