WH vs. FNC: Still Going Strong…
The Swamp’s Mark Silva has the latest back and forth between the White House and FNC…
Robert Gibbs, the White House press secretary, faced a question today from ABC News’ Jake Tapper about the characterization of FOX as not a news network in the sense that, say, CNN is — that’s what White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel has said, on CNN over the weekend, and what Communications Director Anita Dunn has said, on CNN over the past weekend.
“That’s a pretty sweeping declaration that they are “not a news organization.” How are they any different from, say…” Tapper asked Gibbs.
“ABC…” Gibbs said.
Tapper: “ABC. MSNBC. Univision. I mean how are they any different?”
Gibbs: “You and I should watch sometime around 9 o’clock tonight. Or 5 o’clock this afternoon.”
Tapper: “I’m not talking about their opinion programming or issues you have with certain reports. I’m talking about saying thousands of individuals who work for a media organization, do not work for a “news organization” — why is that appropriate for the White House to say?”
Gibbs: “That’s our opinion.”
October 20, 2009 at 11:49 am
I don’t see how, in any way, this ends up well for the White House.
Even though they compete, it looks like most of the other news outlets are getting behind Fox on this. The staff in the W.H. needs to remember that they have a lot of power now and should be seen as bullying news outlets. They should either take the criticism from Fox head-on and debunk it or just ignore it.
October 20, 2009 at 12:10 pm
Gibbs: “That’s our opinion.”
No, it’s your policy.
The folks sent to Washington to run the executive branch of the Federal Government are now in the business of deciding which news organizations are really news entities and whether they’ll treat them accordingly. Please, you’re running the federal government not the country.
This really shouldn’t be a political left vs. right debate (yeah, who am I kidding? but stay with me). One can condemn the sloppy and tendentious journalism of Fox News while also expressing disagreement with how the Administration is responding to it.
October 20, 2009 at 12:54 pm
The “we need to quarantine Fox” explanation makes the most sense (sort of).
I.e., The White House is working to prevent stories born on Fox from crossing over into more widely-viewed media.
Politico: WH vs. Fox
Message control like they accomplished during the campaign. It worked then, why not try it again?
October 20, 2009 at 1:53 pm
I’m not convinced it’s going to work out for them, but I can see why they’re trying. It certainly is entertaining!
October 20, 2009 at 1:59 pm
It certainly is entertaining!
I’d prefer we discuss what to do in Afghanistan but that’s just my feminine, League of Women Voters side of me talking.
October 20, 2009 at 2:17 pm
^
We can do both. Three cable news outlets, on all day. We’ve got time.
October 20, 2009 at 2:28 pm
Message control like they accomplished during the campaign. It worked then, why not try it again?
It worked then? What campaign were YOU watching?
October 20, 2009 at 2:44 pm
It worked then? What campaign were YOU watching?
Look, all of us who read your reactionary posts recognize that you’ve been sleepwalking through history for the past 30 years but you must have heard about the election of Barack Obama? It was in the papers.
Obama and his people ran a brilliant campaign. Defeating the Clinton machine and overcoming their advantages (money, organization, name recognition), coming out of nowhere, a first term, largely known Senator. Terrific campaign.
And then they duplicated that beating a war hero during the election.
It was smoothly and efficiently run. No leaks, no backbiting, on message. Almost perfect.
October 20, 2009 at 2:48 pm
It was smoothly and efficiently run. No leaks, no backbiting, on message. Almost perfect.
And of course they kept the press from covering anything they didn’t want covered. No news stories about Rev. Wright, for example.
October 20, 2009 at 3:04 pm
And of course they kept the press from covering anything they didn’t want covered.
Did you see Anita Dunn’s revelations on what they did?
Did you read any stories about campaign backbiting? Controversies? Disagreements?
No. They stayed on message, focused and rewarded those reporters and organizations that gave favorable coverage and punished those they didn’t toe the line.
No, they weren’t the first to do this; but they were about as good as anyone who has done it.
Unfortunately, they’re still campaiging when they should be governing.
The reactionary types, i.e., liberals = good, conservatives = bad, love it of course; my guess is the country doesn’t.
October 20, 2009 at 3:09 pm
Steve, the POINT of all the rightwing ranting is that the WH is ‘controlling’ what news gets covered. My point is, Bullsh!t.
October 20, 2009 at 3:27 pm
Art, try for once to not be disingenuous and answer honestly.
If not for FOX News, would Bill Ayers, Rev. Wright, Van Jones or ACORN have become big stories?
No, they wouldn’t have.
The Chicago Thugs in the White House are pissed because they can’t control FOX, so they’re trying to intimidate the rest of the media into not covering what FOX covers.
Read the Politico article. They’re pissed that ACORN helping people with child prostitution and tax evasion became a mainstream story.
It’s thug style politics & totally the opposite of what Obama promised.
October 20, 2009 at 4:55 pm
So if ABC,CBS,CNN or unlikely MSNBC were to start doing critical stories on Obama dose that mean the White House will brand them no longer news networks and will cut off access to them?
October 20, 2009 at 5:22 pm
What gets me in this whole thing is for the WH to call into question Fox’s credentials as a News Network because of 3 or maybe 4 opinion shows on Fox, which Fox acknowledges they are opinion and then have nothing to say about MSNBC with practically all-day opinion coverage includng Shuster, Matthews, Olbermann, Shultz, Maddow etc. etc. Then there is CNN with Sanchez, that old guy on Blitzer’s show who frowns all the time, Larry King, Anderson Cooper, et al who do nothing but worship Obama. How stupid do these people think we are that we don’t recognize what they are saying is completely wrong. It is in the process of backfiring I think.
October 20, 2009 at 5:51 pm
Prediction – Jake Tapper to FNC one of these days!
(I hope.)
He seems like a good guy, willing to ask difficult questions. I’m surprised ABC has kept him around this long.