Fox’s Chris Wallace Takes Fox And Friends ‘To Task’ For ‘Two Hours Of Obama Bashing’»

[babylonsister]

:wow: Will wonders never cease?!

http://thinkprogress.org/2008/03/21/wallace-obama-fox/

Fox’s Chris Wallace Takes Fox And Friends ‘To Task’ For ‘Two Hours Of Obama Bashing’»


On Fox and Friends this morning, hosts Steve Doocy, Brian Kilmeade, and Gretchen Carlson spent multiple segments sensationalizing a comment Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) made yesterday, in which he referred to his grandmother as “a typical white person” in some of her racial reactions. Obama made the comment while discussing his recent speech on race relations in America on a Philadelphia radio show.

When the trio welcomed Fox News Sunday host Chris Wallace onto the show, instead of previewing his show this weekend, Wallace announced that he was going to take his fellow Fox hosts “to task” for their “excessive” and “somewhat distorting” coverage of what Obama said:

Hey listen, I love you guys but I want to take you to task if I may, respectfully, for a moment. I have been watching the show since 6:00 this morning when I got up, and it seems to me that two hours of Obama bashing on this typical white person remark is somewhat excessive and frankly I think you’re somewhat distorting what Obama had to say.

Wallace — who said that the issue “was a little more complicated than we’ve been portraying” — went on to chastise his very uncomfortable-looking colleagues for the next five minutes.

Watch it at link~

Trying to defend their coverage, Carlson said they played up Obama’s comment because she “felt that maybe the attention was being taken away from what people really wanted to hear Barack Obama speak about, which was his association and what he thought about the comments by his minister Jeremiah Wright.”

Noting Obama’s speeches this week on the economy and the war in Iraq, Wallace replied that “maybe it’s the media doing” the deflecting:

Far be it for me to be a spokesman for the Obama campaign, and I will tell you that they would laugh at that characterization, but you know, the fact is that after giving a speech on race earlier this week, on Tuesday, he gave a major speech on Iraq on Wednesday and a major speech on the economy yesterday. And so, I think they would say that in terms of deflecting attention away from the issues people really want to hear about, maybe it’s the media doing it, not Barack Obama.

“I appreciate you respecting us enough to say it on camera as opposed to writing an email,” said Kilmeade sarcastically after hearing Wallace’s criticism.

[MethuenProgressive]

1. k + r!

Amazin'..

[Clear Blue Sky]

2. No kidding

With all the other pressing issues out there, the talking heads focus on nothing but the irrelevant...

[eissa]

3. I'm shocked

I despise that little weasle, so to hear a sane voice among the whack jobs on Faux, and have that be Wallace of all people, is surprising.

[supernova]

4. Yikes, maybe Fixed Snooze might finally be worth watching

not for the "news," but for the in air blow ups of a station that once thought of itself as "fair and balanced."

[lonestarnot]

40. The only way I would watch a blow up there is to tune in on another station for shots of the

fire crews putting it out.

[lpbk2713]

5. Come on Chris. They were only doing what OxyRush wanted them to do.

They were just following orders. Remember Nuremberg?

[ms liberty]

6. Wow. I think my head just exploded. n/t

[DefenseLawyer]

7. Anyone who could actually watch Fox and Friends for two straight hours

is obviously either bedridden with no remote or being held against their will.

[babylonsister]

8. LOL! Sadly, not true, but I get your point. nt

[Mike Daniels]

28. There are times I think Fox and Friends is a deliberate joke on the part of Rupert Murdoch

to see just how dumb the Fox audience really is.

How else can you explain the success of a show consisting of 3 hours of political discussion led by a weatherman, a sportscaster and a female w/ a skirt so short the production crew probably has to tape her legs shut in order to avoid her accidentally flashing the viewers.

By comparison, Morning Joe on MSNBC is actually pretty decent as they at least allow their guests enough air time to get some coherent ideas out vs. Fox and Friends' sound bite culture.

That said, there are times I'd like to see Mika shove a ball gag in Joe's mouth on camera after he cuts her off everytime she tries to interject her viewpoint.

[DefenseLawyer]

30. The few times I have seen of their show

reminds me of the old SNL skit with Will Ferrell and Sherri Oteri called "Morning Latte" where they played the completely moronic and utterly vapid hosts of a morning show. Fox & Friends is so bad it does almost seem like a put on.

[malik flavors]

9. Wow, good for him. Hat's off to...Chris Wallace? Yea, I guess so. Hmm. Cool.

[Marnieworld]

10. So how long until he's fired?

Last time someone called Fox News out on their biased bullshitto their faces it was Montel Williams and they cancelled his show's contracts immediately afterwards.

[PetraPooh]

17. Perhaps we at DU should flood FOX with "Don't you dare" emails

and take time to praise CW for his fair and balanced approach in them.

[babylonsister]

20. The praise might work much better. nt

[PetraPooh]

23. I just did both in one email

I wrote that I was so please that Chris brought a breath of honesty and integrity to Fox & Friends and that even though he hadn't "properly" promoted his Sunday show, it would be the most important show I planned on watching Sunday morning. But if the castrated him of his set of balls, it would be the last Fox program I would ever watch, including House, and Bones, and (the list continued for quite some time, about the only Fox show I don't watch is AmIdol).

[babylonsister]

27. Good for you!

:thumbsup:

[PetraPooh]

31. Here's my exact text. I have to say I think I did handle it well.

I would like to personally thank Chris Wallace and by default Fox
News for his full blown display of fair and balanced commentary this
morning on Fox & Friends. I am concerned that since he was supposed
to be promoting his Sunday show and was instead chastising the
moronic misbehavior of the team; you may be less than happy with
him. Please don't be, he was an absolutely welcome breath of honesty
and integrity to the show. I for one will be tuning in Sunday
morning to Chris Wallace to see if he can hang on to those balls he
has or whether you'all are going to attempt to castrate him in some
way. Don't do the latter, or it will be the last time Fox anything,
including but not limited to House, Bones, PrisonBreak, 5thGrader,
New Amsterdam, and Lyrics will be seen in this household.

Chris Wallace ROCKS! Give the man a raise!

[progressoid]

11. Chris finally had a little epiphany about his own network.

Wow :wow: Wow

[rndmprsn]

12. K&R

[grannylib]

13. Holy cats - that, along with Peggy Noonan's praise of the speech,

is making me wonder what the hell is up. I bet that attitude will drop pretty quickly if he becomes the nominee and is running against McCain...

[Lorien]

19. Well, yeah-then it'll be a nonstop bash Barack fest. It's all they'll have

to talk about since there really isn't anything positive anyone can say about their own party.

[grannylib]

21. You got that right...fear-mongering, lies, smear tactics - it's all they've

got.

[soleft]

14. Maybe some of his father's influence finally shown thru

[kid a]

15. i'd like to see that clip get 1,000,000 views by tonight.

To watch those idiots stuttering after their lashing is priceless!!

[Squatch]

16. Dammit.

I just fell out of my chair.

[Peace Teacher]

18. Good for Wallace.

[DCKit]

22. I heard that on the news this morning...

and I was just hoping he'd clam up and stop defending himself against these stupid attacks. I knew exactly what he meant (my own Nana was a real piece of work), but he said it awkwardly and the jackals jumped on it. If he simply refuses to play along, how far can they run with it?

I would suggest Mr. Obama take a step back and wait for THEM to say something really stupid and over the top, then jump back in and discredit them for lying, projection and fabrication and causing divisiveness where none should exist. As much as they would like to retaliate by freezing him out as they did with DK, JE and JB, they CAN'T. He's big news and even the Republic robots would begin asking "where's Obama?"

[Political Tiger]

24. Something tells me this is the last time Chris Wallace appears on Faux Nutnews and Friends!

The video is amazing and probably a first for Fix News! It's worth watching just to see the Fox Noise and Friends wimps squirm!

[Uncle Joe]

25. Well Chris Wallace looks a little bit taller to me, than he did yesterday.

:thumbsup:

Thanks for the thread, babylonsister.

[irish.lambchop]

26. Hell has frozen over; pigs have taken wing! n/t

[Elidor]

29. I'm not buying this

Wallace probably wants to land an interview with Obama. There is no way I'm going to assume that that smirking twerp's motives are sincere.

[pettypace]

32. a must watch clip

Every DUer needs to see that.

I don't believe I've ever seen an exchange between network colleagues that blunt and forthright.

Fox and Fiends got their comeuppance.

[AlCzervik]

33. Steve Doocy and the other guy that's not Steve Doocy.

Fox and Friends, like a parody of a satire of a fake morning show.

[kevinbgoode]

34. Carlson is a joke. . .

As if that woman had a clue about what Americans want to hear about . . .frankly, what I'd like to hear about is how Carlson is sent away to school to become a real journalist, then discovers there aren't any jobs.

[ProudToBeBlueInRhody]

35. Look at those three deers in the headlights

Fed every line they say, they can't ad lib.

[DainBramaged]

36. Brian KILLME and Steve DOUCHIE

Total assholes. I couldn't bring myself to even watch the clip.

[krkaufman]

37. Related video... of Kilmeade defending Obama, as well, during the same show

http://thinkprogress.org/2008/03/21/kilmeade-storms-off-fox-and-friends-set-over-co-hosts-obama-bashing

(I believe this clip came before Wallace's interview.)

[Stuart G]

38. My reaction is odd...This is Fox New's way of saying...........

that Obama has a real chance of winning the Presidency. Nothing more could have caused anyone there to act reasonable.
.. Fox must recognize that to have awful relations with someone who has a very good chance of becoming President, is to say the least, stupid. So, with Cris telling his buddies off, it may at least give Fox some, at least some access to Obama. That is my take of it.

[gulliver]

39. My take. I don't trust Chris Wallace.

Bill Clinton spanked Wallace that one time, so there is one reason for Wallace to side with Obama. Then, Fox News may either want Obama to be the Dem nominee or want to pick up some "fair and balanced cred" or both. I don't see Wallace doing this out of the goodness of his heart.

[GreenPartyVoter]

43. Maybe his dad mentioned it to him

[lonestarnot]

41. Fuck chris waldo and his minions. He is so disgusting he can tell it to the hand.

And I didn't read it either.

[TahitiNut]

42. The phrase "gag a maggot" comes to mind.

It seems to be a standard Faux has demonstrably met. :shrug:

[spanone]

44. boy, when the pigs start calling each other out.......

[autorank]

45. K*R !!!!!!!!!!!!!

[JI7]

46. edit

it looks like Kilmeade was angry about Doofus, i'm surprised.