FOX uses Reuters 11/24 error(corrected 11/30) to lie about God banned in

[papau]

school in newscasts Hannity, Hannity & Colmes, December 3
Host Chris Wallace, FOX Broadcasting Company's FOX News Sunday, December 5 Host Bill O'Reilly and guest and former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, The O'Reilly Factor, December 6 Hannity, Hannity & Colmes, December 6 Hannity, Hannity & Colmes, December 7


http://mediamatters.org/items/200412090002

FOX peddles false report that California school "banned Declaration of Independence because it mentions God"
Over the last two weeks, FOX News Channel has repeatedly -- and falsely -- reported that an elementary school in Cupertino, California, banned the Declaration of Independence because it mentioned God.

Between November 24 and December 7, the Cupertino case has been falsely reported on seven occasions on FOX News primetime programs, numerous times during FOX News daytime programming, as well as on FOX Broadcasting Network's FOX News Sunday. Hannity & Colmes planned a December 8 live broadcast from Cupertino; a promo for that show asserted that the Constitution and Declaration of Independence had been "banned" by a California school that is "erasing God." The November 29 edition of MSNBC's Scarborough Country falsely reported the story; CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC, and CNBC have not covered the story.

In fact, Stevens Creek Elementary School in Cupertino did not ban the Declaration of Independence. As the Cupertino Union School District stated in a November 30 news release, the Declaration is featured in the school's textbooks and is displayed in some school buildings. A December 8 editorial in the San Francisco Chronicle noted, "The Declaration of Independence is not banned from Stevens Creek Elementary School, or any classroom in Cupertino. Copies of the Declaration -- including the passages about the inalienable rights of all men 'endowed by their Creator' and the founders' 'reliance on the protection of divine providence' -- hang in classrooms. It appears in textbooks distributed throughout the district." <snip>

[sakabatou]

1. Faux is not objective

All the what is the "shock and awe" factor.

[E-Z-B]

2. Why isn't Faux getting the same treatment as CBS did?

Why are there no firings going on over there?

Oh yeah, because Faux isn't a real news channel.:dunce:

[outrage]

10. RE: "Why isn't Faux getting the same treatment as CBS did?"

Because DU'ers have to raise hell like the Creeps at FascistRepublik did. We should inundate those fools at Faux with e-mails telling them what liars they are.

[The Backlash Cometh]

3. If they are falsely reporting information, shouldn't someone be fired?

[LWolf]

4. Ya think?

How about this: in the happy right-wing tradition written into NCLB, since Fox has "failed" to report truthfully, we can take them over, kick everybody out, and "reconstitute" them with actual journalists?

[inslee08]

5. What actually happened?

I know I read something about it, but I forget what it was that really went down. If anyone could get me up to speed, that would be great.

[papau]

6. The background of the Nov 24 media report is below

(One should note that CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC, and CNBC have not covered the story.)

In fact, Stevens Creek Elementary School in Cupertino did not ban the Declaration of Independence. As the Cupertino Union School District stated in a November 30 news release, the Declaration is featured in the school's textbooks and is displayed in some school buildings. A December 8 editorial in the San Francisco Chronicle noted, "The Declaration of Independence is not banned from Stevens Creek Elementary School, or any classroom in Cupertino. Copies of the Declaration -- including the passages about the inalienable rights of all men 'endowed by their Creator' and the founders' 'reliance on the protection of divine providence' -- hang in classrooms. It appears in textbooks distributed throughout the district."

Even the lawsuit, which was brought forth on behalf of teacher Stephen Williams by the right-wing Alliance Defense Fund challenging the school's decision to prohibit the handouts, acknowledged that the school has not imposed an outright prohibition on the mention of God or the discussion of religious beliefs in the classroom. The lawsuit recognized that "other teachers are permitted to show films and distribute handouts containing references to God," and that Williams had been permitted to teach "lessons on the origins of religious holidays" during that school year and had provided handouts relating to religion in the past "without any problems." Despite that acknowledgement, an Alliance Defense Fund press release about the lawsuit was headlined "Declaration of Independence Banned from Classroom."

The notion that the school banned that document originated in an erroneous November 24 Reuters article headlined "Declaration of Independence Banned at Calif. School." But the school prohibited only supplemental handouts distributed by Williams to his students that selectively chose excerpts from the Declaration of Independence making reference to God -- along with other handouts that appeared to proselytize Christianity. A December 8 article in the San Francisco Chronicle noted that parents had complained to the school about Williams, stating that his teaching "crossed the line into evangelizing." In response, Stevens Creek Principal Patricia Vidmar began reviewing Wiiliams's lesson plans and supplemental handouts in advance.

The excerpts of the Declaration of Independence that Williams used as a supplemental handout (Exhibit C in the lawsuit ) all made reference to God. Among the other supplemental handouts, all of which related to the importance of Christian faith in U.S. history, was a proclamation by President George Bush for the National Day of Prayer (Exhibit A), coupled with a description of the event copied from the National Day of Prayer website: "The National Day of Prayer has great significance for us as a nation. It enables us to recall the way in which our founding fathers sought the wisdom of God when faced with critical decisions." Another handout entitled "What Great Leaders Have Said About the Bible" (Exhibit E) quoted only former American presidents' praise for the Bible, except for a final quote attributed to Jesus Christ. Williams also passed out several excerpts from the diary of former President John Adams (Exhibit H), one entry of which states: "The Christian religion is above all the religions that ever prevailed or existed in ancient or modern times, the religion of wisdom, virtue, equity and humanity."

[zbdent]

7. So much for the "end of frivolous lawsuits" idea

"Even the lawsuit, which was brought forth on behalf of teacher Stephen Williams by the right-wing Alliance Defense Fund challenging the school's decision to prohibit the handouts, acknowledged that the school has not imposed an outright prohibition on the mention of God or the discussion of religious beliefs in the classroom."

Gee, the lawsuit admits that they have no case. I wonder how this will be covered . . .

[procopia]

8. Firsthand report from Cupertino Courier

A little misinformation can stir a lynch mob

By Sandy Sims

"When I heard that a teacher was suing the principal at Stevens Creek Elementary School for not allowing him to use the Declaration of Independence in class because it contained references to God, I laughed. This is so silly, I thought. "It's ridiculous," I said. "It's taking political correctness way too far."
Our reporter planned to follow up the story for the next week's issue of the Cupertino Courier.

When I rolled into work the next Monday, however, the story was taking on a whole new dimension, one that is hardly funny and has given me a lot of pause about what a small bit of uninvestigated information and certain buzz words in today's world can do."


http://www.svcn.com/archives/cupertinocourier/20041208/cu-op-sandy.shtml

[jmcon007]

9. Fox spinning "news"....

And your point would be?

[Anakin Skywalker]

11. Typical Religious Wingnuts!

Getting hysterical over every little thing. The rightwing seems to be having a persecution complex these days.

[The Doctor.]

12. I'm amused by that too...

They talk of being 'persecuted' all while advocating the detention of Muslim-Americans, calling all liberals 'America haters', and launching a crusade to cram 'Christianity' down America's throat.

Astounding Hypocrisy.

[sallyseven]

14. They plan to take over the US without a shot.

[The Doctor.]

16. So you've seen this:

http://www.yuricareport.com/Dominionism/TheDespoilingOfAmerica.htm

I keep the link in 'favorites' in a folder named 'creepy'.

[Spiffarino]

13. Don't take this lightly. Not for a minute.

These people will do anything to further their agenda. They are now stirring up hatred among the masses.

The extreme right may seem crazy beyond belief, but there is a method to what they are doing. It must be understood in the context of history.

The blackshirts in Italy and the Nazis in Germany began their ascent with a show of extreme patriotism. Then they turned to propaganda. From there, they moved on to outright lies and deceptions. Over time, slowly, their bizarre ideas crept into the people's collective psyche and became the norm.

The Fundies and hate-filled right-wingers aren't breaking shop windows or burning books...yet. This is, however, the first step on a long trip to Hell. If we don't do whatever we can to stop it right now, we're in for a worse nightmare that will make the current one seem petty by comparison.

[strauss_sucks]

15. Holding them Responsible

Holding FOX News responsible for accuracy in reporting is as pointless as holding members of this Administration responsible for their actions. And since FOX News is essentially an extension of the WH Communications Dept, we should never expect Fair and Balanced journalism. But, that doesn't mean we stop trying. KICK!