Bill O’Reilly Says We Don’t Have A Free Press Because It’s Too Liberal

[JA]

http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/us_58abad56e4b0a855d1d91778?

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Perhaps Trump should propose a law that mandates all news sources that aren't neutral and objective like glorious FOX News should have to display a banner on their network or webpage that says "FAKE NEWS." /s

[Meclazine for Israel]

What I find strange about Bill O'Reilly is that he just reads what is written on the screen at the same time you can see it, and he does not even read it very well.

I find it strange that this guy is popular, but apparently, and surprisingly, he is.

[Middle-aged Europe]

http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/us_58abad56e4b0a855d1d91778?

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Yes, and these two sides are the conservative side and the reactionary side.

[EnglishPete]

http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/us_58abad56e4b0a855d1d91778?

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Yes, and these two sides are the conservative side and the reactionary side.

I'm sure that there are plenty of German news channels (as there are in the UK) who say that they present 'both sides' and that those are the liberal side and the socialist side.  I don't imagine that you complain about that.

[Middle-aged Europe]

http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/us_58abad56e4b0a855d1d91778?

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Yes, and these two sides are the conservative side and the reactionary side.

I'm sure that there are plenty of German news channels (as there are in the UK) who say that they present 'both sides' and that those are the liberal side and the socialist side.  I don't imagine that you complain about that.

That's two assumptions you put in there.

First assumption: "there are plenty of German news channels ... who say that they present 'both sides' and that those are the liberal side and the socialist side."

Second assumption: "I don't imagine that you complain about that."


1) Please name German news channels who fit that description.

2) If there are such channels, please put forward proof that I didn't complain about it.


Additional question: You seem to accuse me of hypocrisy. But you don't seem to be bothered at all by Bill O'Reilly's hypocrisy on that mattter (who says that his own channel is fair and balanced, while all others are slanted). Don't you think that this one-sided accusation makes you a hypocrite as well?

[7,052,770]

Who on Fox News is liberal other than that obnoxious fat guy who faces off against 4 conservatives on one of their fair and balanced talk shows?

[Torie]

I guess Bill doesn't consider Fox News as a part of the press, and he may have a point. It is more of a propaganda machine.

[HAnnA MArin County]

Sounds to me like ole Bill O'Reilly wants the media to report more on the #AlternativeFacts. Faux Noise really is living up to its slogan: We decide, you comply.

Yes, that is the country in which we live now: Democrats/liberal believe the reality and facts and conservatives/Republicans believe that any news that makes them look bad is fake news/left-wing liberal media bias, so therefore the "free press" is Fox News/Drudge/Breitbart/InfoWars.

This whole "fake news" trend is deeply disturbing to me. Trump knows that his cult members will support him no matter what he says, so naturally it's going to be easy for him to cry foul anytime the media investigates and says "bad things" about him. This really sounds similar to the brainwashing propaganda that is distributed throughout North Korea.

[Person Man]

We can always bring back the Fairness Doctrine.

[JA]

Sounds to me like ole Bill O'Reilly wants the media to report more on the #AlternativeFacts. Faux Noise really is living up to its slogan: We decide, you comply.

Yes, that is the country in which we live now: Democrats/liberal believe the reality and facts and conservatives/Republicans believe that any news that makes them look bad is fake news/left-wing liberal media bias, so therefore the "free press" is Fox News/Drudge/Breitbart/InfoWars.

This whole "fake news" trend is deeply disturbing to me. Trump knows that his cult members will support him no matter what he says, so naturally it's going to be easy for him to cry foul anytime the media investigates and says "bad things" about him. This really sounds similar to the brainwashing propaganda that is distributed throughout North Korea.

The Republican base has been primed for this for quite a while; for many years, in fact. These accusations of media bias, liberal media, and brainwashing by academic ideologies is nothing new. The groundwork had been laid for Trump and slowly cultivated year after year. Bush II would frequently accuse the media of bias whenever it reported critically about him. Under Obama they claimed the media were working on his behalf. The same thing occurred under Clinton, they made the same accusations about unsubstantiated media bias. As more and more evidence mounted to discredit the increasingly reactionary policies and ideas of the right wing, the more they'd scream "bias!"

I don't deny that there is bias in much of the media, but how can the media represent both sides when one peddles easily disprovable falsehoods and lies? Are they supposed to report on nonexistent terrorist attacks in Sweden? Or make fake videos of Muslims cheering on 9/11? Or maybe pretend like a 97% consensus in the scientific community about global warming means the 3% should be given equal representation? Then, add in constant bating and scapegoating of their entire occupation, and the right wing wonders why reputable journalists would find any association with them unacceptable.

My point is simply that the more reactionary and unsubstantiated their lies become, the more they scream "media bias" and "fake news" when professionals refuse to embrace their distorted view of reality. This didn't happen for no reason, the right wing has been cultivating it for decades because it's the only way they can get away with the horrible policies, ridiculous wars, and total ownership by special interests and the rich that have defined their party since Reagan. Trump doesn't exist outside of the history of the modern conservative movement or Republican Party; he ran a campaign reminiscent of Bush in 2000, who also talked like a populist and isolationist. Then, also like Bush II, Trump stuffed his cabinet full of the super rich and well connected as soon as he got in office. To cover that up, he goes on rampages against the media and throws red meat to the base with bigoted EOs. Trump is merely a more vulgar version of Bush II and will be as successful as Bush II with many people at the end of Trump's Presidency wondering how they got suckered into the same bs.

[Koharu]

The Republican base has been primed for this for quite a while; for many years, in fact. These accusations of media bias, liberal media, and brainwashing by academic ideologies is nothing new. The groundwork had been laid for Trump and slowly cultivated year after year. Bush II would frequently accuse the media of bias whenever it reported critically about him. Under Obama they claimed the media were working on his behalf. The same thing occurred under Clinton, they made the same accusations about unsubstantiated media bias. As more and more evidence mounted to discredit the increasingly reactionary policies and ideas of the right wing, the more they'd scream "bias!"

This is one of the really difficult parts of all of this for me. A lot of people seem to be forgetting that this has been building up for quite a while. As someone who is liberal but used to be conservative and still hung out on some conservative places online because of friendships, I constantly saw complaints about the "liberal" "main-stream media." This has been coming for a while, and the blame is not entirely on Trump. He's taken it to a level that is absolutely terrifying, but folks have been trying to discredit "the media" for decades.

That said, a lot of media organizations do have a liberal bias. However, most still try as best they can to be objective, and in a lot of cases, end up going overboard in what they allow to compensate for their bias, in my opinion. That's how Trump managed to get away without being questioned on his lies for so long, and why now that the media is actually calling them out, they're being accused of being biased. They should have been calling out those lies all along, but because they were trying to seem neutral, they let them stand.

[EnglishPete]

http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/us_58abad56e4b0a855d1d91778?

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Yes, and these two sides are the conservative side and the reactionary side.

I'm sure that there are plenty of German news channels (as there are in the UK) who say that they present 'both sides' and that those are the liberal side and the socialist side.  I don't imagine that you complain about that.

That's two assumptions you put in there.

First assumption: "there are plenty of German news channels ... who say that they present 'both sides' and that those are the liberal side and the socialist side."

Second assumption: "I don't imagine that you complain about that."


1) Please name German news channels who fit that description.

Well in the UK the BBC, Channel 4, Sky News etc are all biased to the left and all fit that description. I'd be very surprised if any major German broadcast media channels were more right wing than UK ones but do mention if there are any

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Its a reasonable supposition based on your posts, not a libelous accusation. Feel free to correct me if you have complained about such bias, which would surprise me if you had.

[Absentee Voting Ghost of Ruin]

More Trump-cult whining about how "the liberals" refuse to treat science, facts, and truth exactly the same as lies, fraud, and BS.

/yawn

When the the GOP all agree to be drowned if sea level goes up by three inches, I'll give them credit for at least believing their own spew. Until then, they're just a bunch of stupid, ignorant villains.

[Santander]

Who on Fox News is liberal other than that obnoxious fat guy who faces off against 4 conservatives on one of their fair and balanced talk shows?

Dennis Kucinich, Alan Colmes (on radio), Shep Smith, Chris Wallace and Juan Williams, among others.

[100% pro-life no matter what]

Who on Fox News is liberal other than that obnoxious fat guy who faces off against 4 conservatives on one of their fair and balanced talk shows?

Juan Williams, Shepard Smith, Greta van Susteren (she has left, I understand), Geraldo Rivera (even if he says he is a Republican).  Plus, Tucker Carlson brings on a bunch of left-wing guests to debate them.

[ApatheticAustrian]

regarding the german channel sub-debate...political television reporting is dead outside of the public broadcasting channels cause it's too expensive. the public channels are without competition.

and....sky Uk is..."left"-wing?

[EnglishPete]

and....sky Uk is..."left"-wing?

Yes, it is.

[Beet]

The highest rated host on the highest rated channel says no free press. Fascinating.

[Chief Justice Keef]

We can always bring back the Fairness Doctrine.

Yeah, but then oafs like Bill O'Reilly would s--t their pants when the oppressive government is shutting down their freedom of speech.

[JA]

regarding the german channel sub-debate...political television reporting is dead outside of the public broadcasting channels cause it's too expensive. the public channels are without competition.

and....sky Uk is..."left"-wing?

Imagine being so right wing that you honestly believe the UK's version of FOX News is leftwing.

[Santander]

regarding the german channel sub-debate...political television reporting is dead outside of the public broadcasting channels cause it's too expensive. the public channels are without competition.

and....sky Uk is..."left"-wing?

Imagine being so right wing that you honestly believe the UK's version of FOX News is leftwing.

Fox is center-right at best in the post-Ailes era.

[bilaps]

He is right about liberal media. He is wrong on FOX news, they're not objective.

[Middle-aged Europe]

http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/us_58abad56e4b0a855d1d91778?

You must be logged in to read this quote.

Yes, and these two sides are the conservative side and the reactionary side.

I'm sure that there are plenty of German news channels (as there are in the UK) who say that they present 'both sides' and that those are the liberal side and the socialist side.  I don't imagine that you complain about that.

That's two assumptions you put in there.

First assumption: "there are plenty of German news channels ... who say that they present 'both sides' and that those are the liberal side and the socialist side."

Second assumption: "I don't imagine that you complain about that."


1) Please name German news channels who fit that description.

Well in the UK the BBC, Channel 4, Sky News etc are all biased to the left and all fit that description. I'd be very surprised if any major German broadcast media channels were more right wing than UK ones but do mention if there are any

You must be logged in to read this quote.

Its a reasonable supposition based on your posts, not a libelous accusation. Feel free to correct me if you have complained about such bias, which would surprise me if you had.

Germany has only two fully-fledged 24-hour news channels in the mold of CNN etc. Those two channels are n-tv and N24.

N24 has in fact a right-wing slant, since its a subsidiary of Axel Springer. n-tv is fairly "centrist", certainly not left-wing.

I can't remember having ever criticized N24 for being right-wing. Then again, right-wing in N24's case doesn't mean that it constantly airs unrestrained propaganda like Fox News does. Neither does N24 claim to be "fair and balanced" in its slogan.

I would criticize both channels for being fairly low-brow though. This is marked by their excessive use of more or less trashy pseudo-documentary infotainment to fill up their programming.

For instance, both are often mocked for being "the Hitler channels" due their frequent re-runs of documentaries about Hitler's mental state, Hitler's sex life, Hitler's childhood, and Hitler's pets.


So, in essence I still can't see any basis whatsoever for your assumptions.

[ApatheticAustrian]

regarding the german channel sub-debate...political television reporting is dead outside of the public broadcasting channels cause it's too expensive. the public channels are without competition.

and....sky Uk is..."left"-wing?

Imagine being so right wing that you honestly believe the UK's version of FOX News is leftwing.

Fox is center-right at best in the post-Ailes era.

if you say, praising trump is praising the center, then fox news is HARDCORE CENTER.

[Santander]

regarding the german channel sub-debate...political television reporting is dead outside of the public broadcasting channels cause it's too expensive. the public channels are without competition.

and....sky Uk is..."left"-wing?

Imagine being so right wing that you honestly believe the UK's version of FOX News is leftwing.

Fox is center-right at best in the post-Ailes era.

if you say, praising trump is praising the center, then fox news is HARDCORE CENTER.

Trump himself is center-right at best.