Friday Fox Follies – The Politics of Political Correctness

Last updated on September 25th, 2023 at 02:48 pm

BREAKING IRONY ALERT!!! Fox “News” and Trumpeters are NOW calling for Political Correctness, after the least politically correct candidate since people were allowed to vote won the election. Following the surprising results, the so-called news channel has spent a lot of time hitting the #NeverTrump protesters; making fun of those who have offered Agent Orange an olive branch; and insisting that Donald Trump has a mandate, despite the fact that he lost the popular vote.

Which reminds Friday Fox Follies of this wonderful rap by Gil Scott-Heron in which he discussed Ronald Reagan’s supposed mandate. Listen while you read:

To get more stories like this, subscribe to our newsletter The Daily.

As they now treat Trump’s election like The Second Coming, let’s not forget that, for its part, Fox “News” did everything in its power to delegitimize President Obama with phony stories and sheer propaganda over the last 8 years.

That’s why it’s more important now than ever to remind people how the right treated the election of Barack Obama. Rush Limbaugh famously said of the president-elect, “I hope he fails.” The GOP leadership met on the eve of Obama’s inauguration and vowed to block everything President Obama would ever propose.

On the night of Barack Obama’s inauguration, a group of top GOP luminaries quietly gathered in a Washington steakhouse to lick their wounds and ultimately create the outline of a plan for how to deal with the incoming administration.
 
“The room was filled. It was a who’s who of ranking members who had at one point been committee chairmen, or in the majority, who now wondered out loud whether they were in the permanent minority,†Frank Luntz, who organized the event, told FRONTLINE.
 
Among them were Senate power brokers Jim DeMint, Jon Kyl and Tom Coburn, and conservative congressmen Eric Cantor, Kevin McCarthy and Paul Ryan.
 
After three hours of strategizing, they decided they needed to fight Obama on everything. The new president had no idea what the Republicans were planning.

And, block him at every turn they did, with the help of GOP TV — I mean Fox.

Yet, even Political Correctness is suspect at Fox. After Senator Elizabeth Warren tweeted out that she’ll work with the new president, Fox & Friends attacked her for “backpedaling.” It just goes to show ya: You can’t win for losing.

A round-up of other election headlines:

Hate Is Rapidly Spreading Across The Country After Donald Trump’s Election Win • David Frum Predicts the Dark Course of Trump’s Impending Authoritarianism • Fox’s Charles Krauthammer: Post-Election, “I See The [Republican] Party … Splitting In Two” • Even Fox’s Chris Wallace Calls On Republicans To Stop “Threatening New [Email] Investigations” If Clinton Is Elected • Fox ‘News Anchor’ Celebrates Trump Election Win On Twitter • White Fox Host Lashes Out At Black Co-Host For Calling Trump Racist • Fox Host Claims Trump “Never Said He Was Blocking Muslims From Coming To The Country” • Trump Reportedly Considering Ex-Breitbart Head Bannon for Chief of Staff • What a Trump administration means for Fox News and other cable news networks • Every TV at Trump Victory HQ Is Playing Fox News and Only Fox News • Fox News Trump Supporter: ‘President Obama, Himself Was A Racist’ • Trump Booed While Voting, But Did Fox News Cover That? Nah… • Fox’s Final Election Hail Mary Is A Four Year Old Benghazi Claim Floated By Organization Of Conspiracy Theorists • Echoing Trump, Fox Casts Doubt On FBI’s Probe Into Clinton’s Emails • Trump’s Tax Returns Eclipse Coverage Of The Economy • Donald Trump Offers Last-Minute Campaign Conspiracy Theory on ‘Fox & Friends’ (Video) • Report: “Fox News Will Address False Report Trump Protester Was Engaged In Voter Fraudâ€


THE SILVER LINING: A President Trump will be too busy over the next 4 years (or until he’s impeached, whichever comes first) to start up TrumpTV, which Rupert Murdock never thought would be a reality in the first place.

Murdoch Family Asked by Shareholders to
Defend Fox News’ Role in Trump’s Ascension

At the 21st Century Fox annual meeting, one shareholder asked co-chairman Rupert Murdoch if he expected a “backlash” for FNC’s sometimes favorable coverage of Trump.
 
“All the media is given too much credit for influence. People can make up their own minds,” Murdoch told the shareholders assembled at Fox Studios in Los Angeles.
 
A questioner also wondered whether FNC might have to face competition from a Trump TV, which was rumored to be in the works should Trump have lost the election, and some observers predict it is still a possibility.
 
“There was never any risk of a Trump TV. It would have taken a big investment,” Murdoch said.


BOOK CORNER: Next Tuesday Megyn Kelly’s book “Settle For More” will be released by HarperCollins Publishing, an imprint owned by News Corp., the same company that owns the Fox “News” Channel. Stories have begun to leak on what’s between the covers.

NYT Review Of Megyn Kelly’s New Book
Details Shady Trump And Ailes Behavior

Review: Megyn Kelly Tells Tales Out of
Fox News in Her Memoir, ‘Settle for More’

Megyn Kelly: By the Book

Megyn Kelly’s Debate Question
Was Leaked To Donald Trump

That last headline was quickly denied:

Meanwhile, the morning after the election the Golden Girl appeared on Live:

FFF predicts that Fox “News” will be forced to cough up the Big Bucks if it wants to keep her at the station. Her profile increases by the day.


LAST CARLSON STANDING: After Gretchen Carlson accused Roget Ailes of sexual harassment, and he was allowed to resign with a $40 million parachute, there were several realignments of on-air personalities the station, which continues. Last week we learned that Tucker Carlson would be getting the 7PM slot after Greta Van Susteren took a hike. For the past several weeks Brit Hume has held the slot, but he was just a placeholder.

But now, Fox News Announces Name, Reveals Details of Tucker Carlson’s New Show [emphasis mine]:

Spirited Debate. Powerful Reporting. And it all happens LIVE. Tucker hears YOUR voice and is tackling the issues YOU care about. Following this historic Presidential election, Tucker is taking you to every corner of America, while utilizing the nationwide and global resources of the Fox News Channel. Tucker takes no prisoners as he calls out the status quo. You can count on Tucker’s signature style as he tackles political correctness in Campus Craziness. And ridiculous overblown outrage gets put in its place when Tucker’s TwitterStorm comes along.
 
Tucker Carlson Tonight will take you to the heart of issues largely uncovered by the media. And @TuckerCarlson will interact with viewers LIVE, each and every weeknight using #Tucker.

Tackles Political Correctness? Really? Tucker Carlson Tonight? Why not Politically Incorrect? Oh. Wait!


VANILLA MILKSHAKES FOR EVERYBODY: The most myopic anchor at Fox “News” during the election campaign was, without debate, Bill O’Reilly, who was never able to see how his decades-long friendship with Donald Trump skewed everything he said about Agent Orange.

Bill O’Reilly: I Never Endorse Candidates (I Just
Suggest Hillary Clinton’s An Immoral Baby Killer)

Bill O’Reilly: “On What Level” Is Donald
Trump More Corrupt Than Hillary Clinton?

Bill O’Reilly Claims Anti-Trump Protests
Are A Sign There’s “A Civil War Brewing”

It will be interesting to see how The Falafel King covers for the President elect over the next four years (or until he’s impeached, whichever comes first).


A LITTLE NOSTALGIA FOR THE OLD FOLKS: It’s been several years since Glenn Beck quit was fired by the Fox “News” Channel and launched his own media empire. News about The Beckerhead always makes me nostalgic. I got my start writing Fox “News” criticism by covering him for NewsHounds. He started by calling President Obama a “racist†with a deep-seated hatred for white people or the white culture.â€

Now In surprising reversal, Glenn Beck tells New Yorker ‘Obama made me a better man’.

With The Blaze going down in flames Beck seems to be trying a new tactic:

Glenn Beck Tries Out Decency

Glenn Beck: A Changed Man?

Glenn Beck Says Trump Is A ‘Frightening’ Sociopath

The New, Reasonable Glenn Beck Asks
Everyone To ‘Go Just A Little Bit Crazy’ With Him

Glenn Beck: “It’s Difficult For Me To
Consider Myself A Conservative … If This
Is What A Conservative Or Republican Is”

No matter how he tries to WHITEwash his past, let’s not forget How Glenn Beck Gave Us Donald Trump. Now he says he’s now supporting President Trump. More flip flops than Miami Beach.


Headly Westerfield is a proud Canadian, relieved to say Donald Trump is #NotMyPresident.


Copyright PoliticusUSA LLC 2008-2023