Fox Loses More than Money and Pillow Guy Loses $5 Million and His Mind
3 Insane Shootings, Cops Want to Lynch Blacks, GOP Pol Okays 12-Year-Olds to Marry, Bob Lee Stabbing Propaganda, Ahmad Jamal Plays
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The Rise of the Planet of the Trump
When Trump was rejected by voters in 2020, I thought we’d seen the last of him as a political entity. My innate respect for the American voters’ belief that the United States stands for much more than the opportunity to exploit others to amass personal wealth told me that even Republican die-hards would not be charmed/hoodwinked/bullied into backing him again. Surely, they had enough integrity to openly denounce a man whose policies created a gaping sinkhole of sludge that dropped the country into huge deficits and a health crisis while shoving our relationship with friendly countries off a cliff. Even today, after Fox admitted to lying to their viewers, he encouraged them to continue lying about the election on-air because it benefits his campaign. That’s always been his political platform: Tell people what they want to hear, and they’ll be so grateful they’ll ignore the facts.
Yet, a FiveThirtyEight national poll of a Republican primary shows Trump with 49.3% of the votes versus DeSantis’s 26.2%. Today, several politicians who were allies of DeSantis announced they're supporting Trump. Since Trump became a candidate, we’ve learned how he’s cheated people he’s done business with, how many of his businesses have failed due to incompetence and shady business practices, how he’s been proven to be a sexual predator, a criminal, a bully, a liar, a Putin puppet, and a man who lacks even the barest ability to think logically. This is who they want to be president, even after he failed at it so spectacularly the first time.
My reaction to anyone supporting Trump after knowing all this is straight from The Princess Bride:
The first time around, Trump’s appeal was the same as a Snow Day, when kids are giddy at having their schedules disrupted and there’s nothing adults can do about it. A break from the routine of expectations. Everyone who supported him felt wickedly rebellious. But as adults, we recognize that Trump isn’t a whimsical respite from responsibility; he’s more like Michael Myers in Halloween. No matter how many times you think you’ve gotten rid of him, he keeps popping back up to wreak more destruction. The sequels never end as long as there’s money to be made.
Is the Republican bench so shallow that they can only support an alleged rapist, a criminal, and an incompetent businessman?
Fox Settlement Is a Victory for Dominion. But the Misinformation War Continues (The New York Times)
SUMMARY: “There are 787 million reasons to consider Fox News’s settlement of the defamation lawsuit a stunning victory for Dominion Voting Systems. Whether the millions of dollars that Fox is paying to Dominion will put to rest false claims about the 2020 presidential election or help deter misinformation more broadly remains far less clear.
“…And Dominion is only one part of a broader conspiracy theory that the American electoral system is corrupt. That view, despite all the proof to the contrary, is still cheered on by former President Donald J. Trump, who remains the front-runner for the Republican nomination in 2024.
“…Fox was spared extended and potentially damaging testimony. The network did not have to issue an apology on air. Instead, in a carefully crafted statement, Fox acknowledged ‘the court’s rulings finding certain claims about Dominion to be false’ and touted its ‘continued commitment to the highest journalistic standards.’
“While the major news networks pivoted to cover the trial’s abrupt end on Tuesday, Fox devoted just six minutes and 22 seconds to the topic across three segments. None of its prime time hosts, including Tucker Carlson, who had once bolstered the voter fraud myths and was named as a defendant in Dominion’s lawsuit, mentioned the case.
“Instead, Mr. Carlson began his show with a segment about violence in Chicago, airing video clips largely showing Black Chicagoans during a weekend of violence. ‘This is why we used to shoot looters,’ he said. That was followed with an interview with Elon Musk, the entrepreneur and new owner of Twitter.”
MY TAKE: The case was simple. Fox deliberately spread lies in a desperate attempt to win back viewers who fled after Fox told one truth: that Biden had won Arizona. They were eager to be lied to elsewhere, so Fox wooed them back with election lies. It demonstrated Fox’s commitment to having no integrity when it came to journalistic ethics, business ethics, or protecting democracy. No one disputes the facts.
Yes, I’m disappointed that there wasn’t a trial because then the facts might have eventually reached Fox loyalists who otherwise won’t hear the full story on Fox News. I’m especially disappointed that Dominion didn’t at least hold out for a public apology and admission of guilt on Fox. Instead, Carlson and Hannity can continue being outraged about everyone but themselves.
It’s worth taking a closer look at Fox’s statement after the settlement (with my notes in brackets and bolded):
“We are pleased to have reached a settlement of our dispute with Dominion Voting Systems. [I’m sure they’re pleased that they didn’t have to go to trial.] We acknowledge the Court’s rulings finding certain claims [“certain claims” makes it sound like something small and incidental instead of a barrage of lies that were designed to damage the democratic process and create an atmosphere that encouraged an insurrection at the Capitol.] about Dominion to be false. This settlement reflects FOX’s continued commitment to the highest journalistic standards. [It was hard to read that sentence without throwing up a little in my mouth. Fact checks of Fox have proven year after year that they have the lowest journalistic standards. And this conspiracy to lie that included Murdoch at the top and pretty much everyone else down the line, establishes their commitment to profit over truth.] We are hopeful that our decision to resolve this dispute with Dominion amicably, instead of the acrimony of a divisive trial, allows the country to move forward from these issues.” [They borrowed a page from the Gerald Ford excuse book when he pardoned Richard Nixon to prevent divisiveness. First, divisiveness in itself is not always a bad thing. For example, when the country was divided about slavery, attempts to placate slaveholders never worked. We are divided about abortion, education, voting rights, and more. When there is a legitimate disagreement, we should be divided. It’s how we resolve the division that matters. Paying a fine and then ignoring it does not heal or prevent divisiveness, it encourages it. The “acrimony of a trial” is part of the process of healing because it tells the country and the world that we prize the process of establishing truth above all else, even money. How are we “moving forward from these issues” when Fox goes right back to muddling the news and misinforming its audience? Fox’s statement proves they haven’t moved forward.]