Fox's Republican Candidate Protection Racket

[JHB]

Now isn't this a convenient arrangment?

And remember, this doesn't just shield these people from access they aren't in control of, they get paid for this "work".

Pat Buchanan's old gig is now Standard Operating Procedure.

Naturally, it's more sinister than that
Posted by Michael Tomasky Friday 8 October 2010 20.11 BST
guardian.co.uk

In my http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/michaeltomasky/2010/oct/08/christine-o-donnell-us-midterm-elections-2010">last post, I mentioned how Murdoch "gives every right-wing reject who develops a following a Fox welfare check."

It was a throwaway line, and I didn't think much of the practice. Just the usual degree of cynicism. But after posting I read http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2010/10/ta100710.html">this column by Eric Alterman that put the pieces together in a rather brilliant way that I have to confess hadn't occurred to me. He is referring here to Sarah Palin, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum and Mike Huckabee, all of whom have Fox contracts:

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Politico quotes C-SPAN Political Editor Steve Scully explaining that when C-SPAN tried to interview Sarah Palin, "he was told he had to first get Fox's permission—which the network, citing her contract, ultimately denied. Producers at NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN, and MSNBC all report similar experiences." "We have tried to book many of them, but they have always refused, saying they are exclusive to Fox," explained another rival network staffer. The Politico reporters note that when these candidates appear on the network, like most Republicans, they simply "offer their views on issues of the day." Rarely if ever are they expected to defend their views or answer to any potential inconsistencies.

Think about it. Fox is paying the people they are alleging to cover, and this makes them off limits to any actual coverage save straightforward propaganda. "We're acutely aware of this" explained a "Fox insider" in the Politico story. And yet, "The cold reality is, nobody at the reporter level has any say on this," added someone Politico described as "another source familiar with the inner workings of Fox." Nobody will talk about it on the record, outside of C-SPAN, apparently for fear of retribution.

That is really quite astonishing. These people are all potential future presidential candidates. But because Roger Ailes gave them a press card and made them sign exclusivity agreements, they cannot go on other news air and submit to questions. The Orwellian beauty part is that such agreements are of course standard for high-profile television personalities - Tom Brokaw could not have appeared on a CBS News show back in his day, for example - so on one level Fox isn't doing anything unusual!
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Full blog entry: http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/michaeltomasky/2010/oct/08/fox-news-big-brother-time
Quoted Alterman article: http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2010/10/ta100710.html