Report: MoveOn.org To Sue Fox News

[russian33]

I apologize if this is a dupe, I looked and didn't find anything:


http://www.imdb.com/news/sb/#1

Report: MoveOn.org To Sue Fox News


The liberal activist group MoveOn.org has announced that it will hold a news conference in New York on Monday at which it will reportedly announced that it will file a lawsuit challenging Fox News's tagline "Fair and Balnced." Common Cause Pesident Chellie Pingree is also scheduled to participate in the news conference as well as former employees of the news channel.

[TrustingDog]

1. moveon has no chance...

On February 14, a Florida Appeals court ruled there is absolutely nothing illegal about lying, concealing or distorting information by a major press organization. The court reversed the $425,000 jury verdict in favor of journalist Jane Akre who charged she was pressured by Fox Television management and lawyers to air what she knew and documented to be false information.

The ruling basically declares it is technically not against any law, rule, or regulation to deliberately lie or distort the news on a television broadcast.

http://www.hypocrites.com/article10829.html

direct link at site.

one of my favourite lovely tidbits, this one. :P

[drmom]

3. Yes, but anything that brings this to the public attention is good!

The more it's out there... the better!

[AirAmFan]

8. MoveOn.org will get FREE AIR TIME on FOX! They'll have to cover this.

If Fox ignores this story, they'll just make the story that much bigger on CNN, MSCNBC, CBS, and ABC. Soros is a genius!

[maggrwaggr]

21. yes, winning isn't the point, FIGHTING BACK Is the point!

and how better to fight a corporation than through a lawsuit?

If I had any money, I'd donate to moveon RIGHT NOW.

Unfortunately I'm going through a real cash flow crunch.

[morgan2]

4. thats one thing

but isn't it illegal to deliberately lie in a commercial? They do use the fair and balanced tag on commercials.

[Sporadicus]

12. Unfortunately, They Would Argue

that the terms 'fair' and 'balanced' are too ambiguous for forming the basis of a lawsuit.

[physioex]

5. It doesn't matter.....

Take Faux News on the offesive why sit there and constantly listen to their lies and distortions.

[Walt Starr]

7. Bet you're wrong

I bet they sue for false advertisement, not that they are lying on the news.

Fox advertises themselves as "Fair and Balanced" and I'll bet Moveon is going to present evidence to the contrary. The beauty of this tactic is that it will be based upon the preponderance of the evidence.

[dumpster_baby]

13. see, that is so WRONG--TV news has such a huge effect on America

There are ALL sorts of constitutional issues here that should be brought into play. But I am not sure that this case really got into that area.

I am headed for law school and I have been thinking about a class action based on how the TV news has slanted their coverage of many issues.

[Baltimoreboy]

38. Class action against the entire media?

You must be joking.

[Bandit]

14. Lying is not illegal but false advertising is. They advertise themselves

as "fair and balanced" False advertising has been a crime for quite sometime and it has been upheld in court as such.

[TXlib]

15. That law has its downside, but...

it is important that it not be illegal for a news organisation to lie, conceal or distort information.

Otherwise, you will have politically-motivated prosecutions of the media when they step on the wrong feet.

[rocktivity]

19. It may not be illegal for news organizations to lie

but it may be unconstitutional for them to do so on public airwaves. The American people own the TV, radio, and internet waves; they're rented for use through the FCC.

:headbang:
rocknation

[tritsofme]

22. The FCC does not regulate cable tv nt

[Toucano]

24. That's a common misconception.

The FCC regulates the cable industry. The standards for programming are different, though.

The Cable Services Bureau was created in 1992.

Instructions to complain are here:
http://www.fcc.gov/mb/facts/complain.html

It may have come to your house via cable, but it got to your cable company via satellite (radio waves - spectrum owned by the American people).

[merh]

27. Florida Appeals court sounds to me like a state court action...

The MoveOn's litigation might have a different outcome if it is filed in federal court. The Florida Appeals court (if it was a state court action) would have based its rulings on state statutes, state case law and the state court's interpretation of constitutional law.

MoveOn may have a shot. Different states and different federal districts and federal courts of appeal have different standards and precedents and varied interpretations of the law. If filed in a federal court, the chance of SCOTUS review is possible, if needed.

[mandyky]

2. Will it be class action or...?

Move On could definitely round up support for a class action suit against FOX, CNN, and MSNBC, and maybe even the networks...

[Manix]

6. yes...it's more about getting the issue exposure...no chance for suit.

[TrustingDog]

9. agreed, Manix. n/t

[KurtNYC]

10. How "fair and balanced" were they to Gary Condit?

He was a "murderer" for 6 months or more and, for many people, still considered a murderer.

[Maine-i-acs]

11. Chellie Pingree ROCKS! She's also going after -

Tom Delay on ethics charges ...

[Democat]

16. Move On has turned into the dream that liberals had about fighting back

And they were created as a reaction to the impeachment.

The Republicans started something that will hopefully play a big part in destroying them.

Thank you, Move On! :)

[tritsofme]

17. The term "fair and balanced" is subjective

This lawsuit will never get anywhere.

They would make better use of their funds trying to defeat Bush through higher levels of advertising in swing markets, rather than wasting it on silly lawsuits.

[Democat]

18. This is a multi-pronged attack on Fox, and probably some warning shots

Fox has gone after Move On in the past, and the recent documentary, plus this lawsuit, and whatever else they have planned are all probably part of the strategy to warn Fox that fucking with Move On will only cause them more trouble.

Democrats have sat back and taken the abuse of the right wing for too long - Move On is showing that we can give even better than we can take.

More power to them for exposing Fox and punching back when they are punched by right wing thugs.

[PATRICK]

26. The point that the term is ambiguous

and vague is ironically a funny cover indeed making cable news into a real oxymoron.

So they meekly will handle this quietly and obliquely like good little boys doing what their smart lawyers tell them to?

That would be the most balanced thing(in terms of legal sanity) that they could hope to do.

[Mike Niendorff]

33. Honestly, I hope Fox's lawyers make *exactly* that argument.

I can see it now:

"We took Fox News to court, and even they wouldn't defend their reporting! Instead, they sent in a team of lawyers to argue that their claims about being 'fair and balanced' are really just 'vague' and 'subjective', and that nobody should be able to actually hold them to their words!"


MDN

[maggrwaggr]

20. this is the best news I've heard in a while!!

A couple of months ago I wanted to start a lawsuit against CNN. Some people thought I was crazy, and maybe I am, but it seems the only way you can fight a corporation is through lawsuits.

In discussing it with the few liberal lawyers I could find, none of them would take it. Basically you need to be backed with quite a bit of money, because the judge might throw out the case and decide that you have to pay the other side's court costs.

moveon can raise the money to do this.

I didn't care if I lost, I just wanted to throw the lawsuit at them and make it a big PR ploy to get media attention on how distorted and Bush-backing they were (especially Wolf Blitzer).

I still want to sue CNN, hopefully moveon will go after them next.

[Cookie wookie]

23. Yeah, right on

"CNN, the most trusted news network". They justify that by stats that show that most people don't trust network news and of all the ones that they don't trust, they least don't trust CNN. I remember reading the stats on that poll they use, but sorry can't remember where.

[Cookie wookie]

25. MoveOn having a movie party on sunday night

for anyone who wants to see Robert Greenwald's film "Outfoxed" according to them "Outfoxed ...exposes Fox for what it is: partisan spin, not news."

Guess they are going at Fox from all sides.

Sometimes people in this country don't even realize that the airwaves still belong to the people. All this stuff on tv, all these big corporations that use the airwaves, they're only leased from us, we the people!

Where we fall short now is banging our heads against the brick wall of network news, trying to get these sociopaths who own run and deliver the news to do the right thing. They are "news stylists" (no aspirsions intended for hair stylists) not journalists. They have no interest in democracy, patriotism, the people, America. All they care about is money and power. It's useless to try to reason with them or get them to do the right thing.

We must take OUR airwaves back from them and demand that we really have fair and balanced real journalism or the networks don't get to use our airwaves!!

Check out the trailer for Outfoxed at the movie website here:

http://www.moveon.org/r?520

Moveon houseparty info: http://action.moveon.org/outfoxed/
Trailer for Outfoxed: http://www.moveon.org/r?520

[alarcojon]

39. Pew center put out a study last month

That found pathetic levels of confidence in all major media. As you point out, CNN "leads" the pack of news networks with 32% responding that they believe "all or most" of what they broadcast. The others were all around 24-25%. The print media, by the way, fares even worse.


http://people-press.org/reports/display.php3?PageID=838

[StandUpGuy]

28. How about a class action..

I can't sleep at night.
I'm a nervous wreck.
I'm on expensive anti-depressants and the Media lies are what caused it all.

[maggrwaggr]

29. well ....

to start with ....

(going into amateur shrink mode) ....

If you're serious, you've got to take responsibility for your own mental health. It's not the media's fault. It's not anyone's fault. It is what it is, and it's up to you to manage it.

If the media is making you that depressed, then quit watching it. You're not gonna change it anyway.

Help yourself first. Nobody else can but you.

[StandUpGuy]

32. but but but

When I go to work I'm surrounded by zombies that buy the lies.
When I go to the gym same thing.
I escape to the cottage hoping to get away and good golly they're there too.

I tried turning It off then everyone said I was crazy.

/sarcasm off.... just.

[maggrwaggr]

35. uh ... okay, I get it, you're a "stand up guy"

dopey me

[Tellurian]

30. Better to Blame the administration...

ya can't turn them off, now ken ya?

[Cookie wookie]

34. The zombies are everywhere

What's with that. Sometimes I find myself wondering if there is something in the food or water . . . How can that many people be that deluded and working against their own best interests? And waving the flag while they support an administration that is overthrowing and undermining the country it represents and democracy at every opportunity -- even creating opportunities?

How can it be?

[Cookie wookie]

31. Maybe the situation is so serious

that we aren't supposed to be able to deal with it, i.e., things are inhuman right now. Every death in Iraq weighs on humans, but not the sociopaths. They probably sleep like babies.

I'm with you StandUpGuy. Every day I have to work hard to go about my life and keep the outrage and the misery over what's happened and is happening to our country at bay. I was working with a group to get a bill through our state assembly for voter verified paper ballots to go with our Diebold paperless touchscreen systems and as long as I worked on it I was okay because I was doing something. since the bill died, and all our options seemed to come to an end for this election, it's been much harder but I need a rest from activism so haven't gotten going on anything else yet. That was the key, though. Real work to try to change things.

[Zinfandel]

36. Well, send MoveOn.org a few bucks, they'll (we'll) need it...

The best money one can spend, anywhere in this campaign against the true fascist.

www.moveon.org

[maggrwaggr]

37. kick

:kick: