One hour with Fox News

I had to watch Fox News today while waiting for my car to get an oil change and an inspection. I want my hour back.

Writing and reporting must be thorough, fair and balanced with no slanting of facts. Hard news, in contrast to editorials and feature stories where you have editorial freedom, are to be reported dry, unbiased and without manipulating the audience’s emotions.

My ignorance of the way Fox News operates is because normally I get my news by listening to NPR, watching PBS news, reading the AP wire or watching local network news. When National Public Radio and Public Broadcast Service report news they have multiple persons directly involved with the stories presenting different perspectives. If there are opposing views, NPR and PBS have persons from each side present their information. This umbiased type of reporting irritates some, but that is another story for another post. In contrast, Fox News has multiple Fox commentators and Fox reporters readings stories from Fox writers and often sprinkled with comments to exaggerate the facts. During my hour in the waiting lounge I cringed every time a Fox reporter or anchor tried to make a story more horrific, drastic or pathetic than it actually was. This was done with stories large and small.

There was a story of an engine blowing on a Spirit Airlines jet leaving DFW airport and returning to the airport. One of two engines blew, smoke came into the cabin and the plane returned and landed.

The anchor read her introduction “…The Airline exploded shortly after take-off…” which is an exaggeration to paint a picture of a disaster in the sky. Then, a reporter read a statement from the airline that they and the FAA are investigating the incident and planes are designed to fly with one engine if needed and …"the plane landed normally.” The Fox reporter followed that with an enthusiastic, “I tell you what! That was no normal landing!” Oh really? The plane did not land on foam or crash land, the passengers walked out through the exits and did not hop out on a slide and none were hurt, but the Fox reporter made it sound like something terrible happened.

There was a story of people who videoed a large shark beside their boat offshore. The people said it was exciting and I know I would have been awed to see the animal up close in the wild like that. However, the Fox anchor ended the story reading her script, “They saw the shark kill a seal before it tried to kill them.” Really? It tried to kill them? Shame on you, Fox News, for lying and sensationalizing.

These little things go right past some people, but to me they are like a car horn.

A major story today is the re-opening of the government after political blah that shut the government down. Unlike NPR and PBS news, who have been reporting the subject with multiple persons from both sides including congressmen, senators, Washington-based reporters, The Washington Post and The New York Times, Fox reported the stories with Fox commentators, Fox reporters and several video clips of senators from one of the parties. At no time in the hour did Fox News play a clip of someone from the other party, nor did they have an opposing commentary.

No matter what your views are, if you chose not to hear all sides of an issue you chose to be stupid. This is true with education, abortion, religion (all of them), gay rights, race, alternative languages in public schools, poverty, taxes, the wars, Obamacare, immigration, or anything. Have a strong conviction, but if you plug your ears every time you hear an opposing view, you are a puppet waiting someone to gather your strings.

I put Fox News in the same category of other shows that are distortions of reality for for the sake of entertainment, like Real Housewives, Keeping Up With the Kardashians and Honey Boo Boo.