Fox News Donates Free Air Time To The GOP

[babylonsister]

http://www.newscorpse.com/ncWP/?p=2737

Fox News Donates Free Air Time To The GOP

Posted by Mark on September 17, 2010 at 1:29 pm.


In a bit of creative synergy, Fox News has figured out a way to give Republican candidates a platform without appearing overtly political. This tactic permits the candidate to get national media exposure without having to spend any money or to engage in any kind of informative debate that impacts their campaign.

Here’s how it works: This morning Megyn Kelly aired a segment on a parent who was arrested after he blew a verbal gasket on a school bus. He was upset because his daughter was being bullied by other students and the school allegedly failed to do anything about it.

That’s an issue that tugs at the heart but really has little significance to anyone but the people involved and the tabloid set who watch Fox News for gossip and melodrama. What makes this segment unique is that Kelly brought in two lawyers to debate the matter. One of the lawyers just happened to be Pam Biondi, the Republican candidate for Attorney General in Florida. While Kelly did mention that Biondi is a candidate in her introduction, throughout the segment the on-screen graphic identified her only as a “former Florida prosecutor.”

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To put this in perspective, try to imagine Fox News inviting Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate for Attorney General in California, into the studio for six minutes of expensive airtime to discuss a local school matter. At the very least Kelly could give equal time to Dan Gelber, Biondi’s Democratic opponent. She could have him on to weigh in on the school’s cafeteria menu.

This sort of booking policy is a not-so-thinly disguised method of making an in-kind contribution to Republican office-seekers. Television is the most expensive form of political advertising, and having a network that doles out campaign welfare in the form of free airtime is a distinct advantage. Fox should have to report these bookings as campaign donations.

[skepticscott]

1. I thought that's what they've basically been doing

every day for years.

[msongs]

2. fox is cable, it does not have to follow over the air rules. dems have no counterbalanace network nt

[Kalyke]

6. They still have to follow the FCC's rules on donations in kind.

Hmmmm...... do we have a good attorney in the house?

[spanone]

3. they have done this 24/7 since their inception

[HopeHoops]

4. They call it "Our regularly scheduled programming"

What the fuck ELSE is on FOX?

[Overseas]

5. K&R. //nt

[BrklynLiberal]

7. Gosh..isn't that what they have ALWAYS been doing?

[COLGATE4]

8. This is a headline why? We've been seeing it for years, now.

Faux has tested the waters and found no Federal agency that has jurisdiction has any interest in holding them accountable for giving contributions in-kind to Republican candidates, so they've now come out in the open about it. The real headline (which will never happen) should be the lack of action by Federal Authorities, particularly the FEC against Faux.

[Ron Green]

9. The more remarkable thing is the amount of C-SPAN and PBS time given to the GOP.