Fair point *smiles*


@ classic: thanks. yes, i was specifically referring to the programme they run which looks at media matters of the day. It is a glaring omission.

Duped by Fox? Maybe not.

Misinformed by Fox on a regular basis. Absolutely.

What side of the line is NBC on? I find US politics a tad confusing often, because even some of your liberal stuff would be seen as on the Right over here.

I quite like MSNBC (did I get that right?) news. It seems quite level headed without the shouting and showboating. I can't bear Sky news over here either, not because of the politics (it's pretty balanced in that regard) but just because of the infotainment approach. I like my news quiet and thoughtful :p

With Merc, it is more likely that FOX agrees with his preconceived views that he gets from other locations therefore is less likely to consider it as biased as opposed to you, F&B, where FOX disagrees with your preconceived views therefore you are more likely to consider it biased.

I really doubt FOX gives Merc his views, as opposed to many other FOX viewers.

MSNBC would be characterized as leaning left, but with several conservative commentators having prominent network roles for fairness, like Joe Scarborough (former Republican Congressman) and Pat Buchanon (former Republican presidential candidate) and the network gives as much time to Republican guests as Democrats.

FOX had four potential Republican candidates on their payroll at one time as commentators- Sarah Palin, Mike Huckabee (both of whom are still with FOX), Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum (both of whom were temporarily suspended as they are now "official" candidates.

I think that's probably a fair point about Merc actually. His was just the name that came to mind as a vocal defender of Fox.

I don't think it's fair to say it's just about whether a programme/show, or newspaper fits your views as to whether it seems biased though. The Times is absolutely on the other side of the political fence from me, but it is a good paper with quality journalism (most of the time). The Mirror is a left wing tabloid, supportive of unions, anti-Iraq war, pro Labour Party til they moved to the Right and very much in line with my opinions: but it's a fucking rag of a paper and I can't remember the last time it engaged in any real journalism.

The problem with Fox isn't just the bias (though that does seem absoutely blatant), it's the way it presents news.

In Britain, TV news is usually pretty balanced. There are some mild biases but they are very heavily regulated. The newspapers however have been left almost to their own devices and the result is the tabloid press. Fox news is like our tabloid press. Unaccountable, peddles lies and innuendo, engages in media vendettas against individuals and organisations, sells itself for political influence.

Oh, I like Joe Scarborough! He seems a thoughtful and intelligent man.

I like him as well because he does bring a right of center perspective to the network in a fair and even-toned manner.

But you wont see FOX with a show comparable to Morning Joe, with a former Democratic congressman offering a left of center perspective.

Of course, that is why I made a relative not an absolute statement, but it does have a large influence. Most people in the US are aware that FOX has a conservative slant while MSNBC has a liberal slant but will usually only apply the biased label to the ones they disagree with. Its just an emotional reaction since we generally don't like to admit that we personally are wrong or biased.

I agree with this 100%.

I tend to watch specific shows versus the channel they are on.
The nighttime lineup at MSNBC is one lecture after another. Very biased and VERY Liberal in terms of American politics. Morning Joe is great except for that dinosaur Pat Buchanon whom I cannot stand. The rest of the panel are pretty good, but sometimes Mika gets out of hand with the texts from people inside the administration. She's lost a lot of credibility with me.

Fox I pretty much can't/won't watch. I do like Stossel but I get that on the Fox biz channel without having to accidentally see Hannity or some of the other idiots.
CNN in the am i rather bland, but I do like Anderson Cooper who is on 10pm-12am)

Local news is murder/rape/fire/death/destruction .... Can't tell you the last time I watched any of it.
That's a perfect description of media matters with their latest target being Fox and the people who work there.

At least it IS blatant and right there versus misrepresenting itself as unbiased which the others do.


Their morning show presentation is pitiful & their hosts are frighteningly pathetic.
All three of them smarmy looking ...just ewwwwww...

"Real Journalism" and "Fair and Balanced" isn't misrepresenting its skew?????

Wow.

My bad. I don't really care about UK politics, only our international relations.

Can you recall the current slogan of any other cable news channel?

Precisely.

And brilliant. Congratulatory to the viewers, incendiary to the non-viewers. They got the non-viewers to promote the channel. You can think of that as using your powers for evil instead of good, if you prefer, but here we are, talking about the channel.