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The End of Fox News?
With the news today that not only will 21st Century Fox be shelling out $20 million to Gretchen Carlson, but that Greta Van Susteren will be giving up her show immediately in favor of Brit Hume, one wonders how many days it will take for the whole of the network to implode.
What this portends for conservative media in the short- and long-term remains to be seen though it looks like this particular 20-year reign is over.
As the lurid and disgusting details come out, the question that needs to be asked: can the conservative movement, which makes all kinds of claims concerning morality and proper values, continue to support an organization that not only supported Ailes’ profligacy, but shunned those who sought to shine light on the problem.
Is this really something conservatives should remain in league with?
Published in Entertainment
Sounds like Gretchen Carlson had the goods on Roger Ailes – that’s what happens. Didn’t think there were guys still that stupid in positions of power.
The Greta Van Susteren news is intriguing. I was never a fan and though Brit Hume has alienated me on a host of issues lately, getting back to a ‘straight news’ format sounds like a welcome development. Give a show to Catherine Herridge or that other reporter (can’t recall her name, she’s bouncing back from cancer – top notch reporter as well).
They need a serious shake-up there. Hoping O’Reilly (let’s not forget, he had some type of scandal as well) & Hannity get it next. See if they can get Sheryl Atkinson to come over. I think they can (and should) recover but that starts with getting rid of the over-the-top “eye candy” and focus on information.
Get out of New York, open up in ‘fly-over’ country. Keep the DC Bureau
The Gretchen Carlson thing bothers me – Sexual harassment is wrong. But Ms Carlson only seemed to make an issue of it after her show was cancelled. She seemed to be going along/getting along while she was being given career opportunities.
We’re just angry at Fox for helping give us Trump instead of a conservative. But it’s the only non liberal cable or network out there. What it needs is competiton from a real conservative/libertarian outlet. That Ailes abused his power doesn’t distract from conservatism, it demonstrates why we’re conservative; people abuse power and do dumb things. At least in the private sector and when conservative, they get found out and are not forgiven. That’s good. Fox will survive, they may even have their own President, that’s not so good.
FoxNews is in need of a lineup change, IMHO. The only program I can bear to watch at the moment is Special Report. Hope that Hume is able to bring some of his old SR show and make his new show a regular news report, however focused it may be (and I hope it is focused).
Who gets their news from TV these days?
Clearly you get all the information you need from my newsletter (now a very fair $99.99 per ordinal.)
I thought the FNC bashing done in the media was ridiculous but so was the channel itself – not all that surprised that everything was true however; any media-savvy personality wouldn’t go public like that against a media person (who Roger Ailes certainly is) without the goods simply because it burns too many bridges when you air the dirty laundry.
Van Susteren was one of two FNC personalities to have clauses in their contract that allowed them to leave or renegotiate if Ailes left the building. (O’Reilly is the other.)
Brit Hume and his wife, Kim, built the news side of that network (up until 2006 she was the head of the Washington Bureau).
As Rob pointed out last week on the podcast, and I have talked about for years on these pages, FNC has always been over valued as being influential.
Jennifer Griffin. I think she’s terrific.
Jennifer Griffith was the name of that other reporter I was trying to recall. She’s done a lot of fine reporting from Middle East/Israel and as stated before, Catherine Herridge does very good reporting from the Pentagon.
I’d love to see three or four programs of Special Report’s caliber on – one focused on international news, another on Intelligence & defense (probably weekly), you could have others that give updates on the various agencies: Agriculture, Transportation, Education…
Throw some money at The Daily Wire and broadcast Klavan & Shapiro. Give Bill Whittle a larger platform – they’re terrific.
Integrity, I suppose, does have a price tag.
Van Susteren is no loss. She’s fundamentally rude, if not dishonest with her constant interrupting, talking over, shouting down her interviewees as soon as they start saying things of which she personally disapproves, as soon as they start saying things she doesn’t want the viewers to hear. She’s no different from O’Reilly, who I stopped watching long ago–and I was a Premier Member at one time.
Brit Hume is a step up. Regardless of what anyone might think of his politics, I look forward to interviews where the interviewee actually gets to speak.
Eric Hines
I didn’t mind Greta so much, but I like the idea of more Brit Hume. I wonder if this is the beginning of a FoxNews that is more Bret Baier than Bill O’Reilly, which for me would be a welcome change.
As for the “impact” of the chaos going on at FoxNews, this is no more affecting to me than seeing chaos at any other major corporation. A shakeup at Microsoft or Apple would probably have more impact, really. I’m a little suspicious of Trump starting a new competitor network, maybe aligned with Breitbart, or something like that.
As for the impact on conservatism … it’s like when the psalmist says: put not thy trust in princes.
Read an online article this weekend that mentioned Ailes was pathologically paranoid about just this kind of thing. Apparently Carlson managed to record him on her phone. I guess Fox decided it was worth $20M to buy that phone.
Clever girl. Frankly, good for her.
Greta seemed like she had one of the better shows, certainly more serious than Hannity or O’Reilly. Any move to having more informative shows is a good move. Less Hannity more Chris Wallace.
They don’t even have to go that far, to please me.
Could we just have less Hannity? I don’t care who, or what, they replace him with. The best thing might actually just be dead air.
Well, the disgruntled employee/former employee has always been a likely source for dirt and litigation.
I agree. And apparently this was a flagrant case, since the ‘settlement’ includes an apology from Fox. It’s not one of those “neither side admits fault” deals.
Wouldn’t it also be refreshing to see a woman who said, “Nuts to your $20 million, or whatever you’re offering. I’ll see the [redacted] in jail?”
Instead of which, she’ll be making the rounds and writing a book, and giving herself a hernia slapping herself on the back for everything she’s done for ‘working women.’
I loathe them all.
Perhaps I mean to say it this way:
and added: What if we tolerate it for ourselves, and don’t speak up because our career is going well, while other, less powerful people our company are also being subjected to it? From what I can tell, this seems to have been the case with Ms. Carlson, which I cannot respect.
I doubt this is the end. Putting Brit in Greta’s place is a major positive.
I like Bret Baier and, most of the time, Megan Kelly.
Greg Gutfield in a national treasure.
I’d hate to see Fox die, but I favor reform. Hannity is execrable. O’Reilly is a book store masquerading as a news program. Send them back to radio where they belong.
And if Ailes was doing what was alleged, then good riddance to him as well.
Fox has not been “conservative” in any sense of the meaning I can recognize.
What, an indifferently principled, rabidly ambitious person working for the top cable news outfit? Color me shocked. If she’s the only one, that is.
Anyway, a fish rots from the head down, doesn’t it?
$20 million? Where can I get a job at Fox so I can settle my sexual harassment case for such a paltry amount?
Bring in Tomi Lahren.
Of course its a human thing to do, but just don’t try to tell me she’s a super courageous wonderful example of womanhood.
$1,350 is my final offer, John. Take it or leave it.
Who’s doing that?
I will tell you where to send the check. I am not only easy but also cheap!!
Now you have to settle up with Jane. She is rather expensive being a womyn of color and all….. Got both racist and sexist charges there….
The distinction between Conservatives and the Left on issues of values and morality is when the Conservatives impropriety is brought to light then the perpetrator is usually fired/retired/voted out/etc. and when the Liberals impropriety is exposed then the rehabilitation begins so a sexual predator like Bill Clinton can have his wife become his proxy President.
There needs to be two news networks, one for conservatives and one for Trumpkins. I have stopped watching my 6 hours of FNC since the Trumpkins took over. I’d like my Fox News Channel back.
For that matter, there needs to be two Ricochets, one for conservatives and one for Trumpkins. I will subscribe to the former and ignore the latter.
Finally, Trumpkin lawmakers need to face primary races, as the Republican Party purges itself of the Orange Menace, just as WFB drove out the Birchers and racists. (I am already contributing to Arizona’s brave Senator Jeff Flake who has stood up to Trump.)
I have neither cable nor satellite. When these programs are broadcast, or availably via reasonably-priced stream, I might care. A big “meh” in the meantime.