United Liberty
Fox News Ratings Up Since Obama Administration Picked A Fight
Mon, 10/26/2009 - 1:26pm | posted by Doug Mataconis
Yet another sign that the Obama Administration’s war on Fox News isn’t working:
Reporting from New York - It’s been a long time since Fox News, which avidly cultivates its outsider status, got to play the underdog. But after White House aides recently labeled the top-rated cable news channel “a wing of the Republican Party” and argued that it is not a news network, Fox News found itself back in a spot it relishes: firing back at a more powerful adversary.
The salvos by administration officials have rallied liberals who complain that the channel has a conservative agenda. The activist group MoveOn instantly jumped in the fray, urging Democrats to stay off Fox News programs.
But the White House’s stance also gave extra lift to the network at a time when it is on track to record its best ratings year ever. This year, Fox News has averaged nearly 1.2 million viewers across all its programming, a 16% increase over the same period last year, according to Nielsen. In the two weeks since aides to President Obama took after the coverage, the audience has been 8% larger than the previous two weeks.
If anything, the Obama administration has succeeded in reinforcing Fox News’ identity as a thorn in the side of the establishment — a role the network loves to play.
As Bill Clinton himself once said:
“Never pick a fight with people who buy ink by the barrel.”
Or, who have access to basically free bandwidth.
Sorry, but Fox picked this fight. Obama is pushing back. This, by the way, pales in comparison to the Bush Administration’s treatment of the NYT and NBC, just to name two. Obama’s treatment of Fox isn’t even in that league. Fox needs to stop bitching.
Maties - I am British and by no means biased towards any of your news networks, but the treatment by mainstream media towards a host of American people is without a doubt the most biased news I’ve heard in my life.
The British media are biased, but they have never shown it like they do today. They are meant to be neutral investigators for both sides. They are meant to report news, not personal opinion or what they’ve been told.
Comments like “protesters don’t believe in reasonable debate!” or a reporter verbally showing her bias for government. Protesters are there because they have not been allowed personal debate and since when did they ever get anywhere without a titanic struggle.
I have been totally shocked by the way a perfectly legitimate organisation has been systematically turned into domestic terrorists whilst the real terrorists, lawbreakers and social idealists have been bumped up like angels.
Obama picked a fight by doing what all politicians do; lied his arse off to get elected then followed through with none of his policies. Pulling troops out of Iraq immediately should have followed with: “Then we’ll put them in the next country we feel like changing to our way of life.” Hold on a minute; isn’t our way of life blowing up squarely in our faces because of these morons.
Young children could come up with a better way to shape society and I mean that seriously. They are all a bunch of self-loving freaks who hide their mistakes through biased media and plain old common denial!
Pres. Obama is the best thing that ever happened to Fox news. If they were smart they would secretly attempt to get him elected again in 2012—just for ratings and the amazing amount of vitriolic rhetoric he appears to induce in the talking heads.
We have serious issues, but the myopic media continues to turn this into an individual problem—rather than a systemic one. William Demmings, quality control guru of the past made it clear that systemic change is needed, scapegoats will continue to present themselves—be they Political parties or Presidents, but the system keeps on producing the same results with minimal variance. This is why the US was founded to NOT be an empire, and to have a minimal federal government, instead we have a bloated government that perpetuates itself and reduces liberty be it via “protection” loss of liberties via the Republicans, or “fairness/save the world crap” from the Democrats.
Most of politics for the average person isn’t about arguing about policy but rather just a projection of their anger, denial of reality, and a wide range of cognitive distortions that tell you more about the individual psychology of the person and their ego qualities, rather than issues of true change—that clearly don’t happen via government, beyond more control, less freedom, and more Nanny state FOR OUR OWN GOOD, yeah right.
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