Fox News has a long history of agitprop sensationalism and biased reporting that immediately stigmatizes anyone that watches is as an unrepetant member of right-wing political ideology. In fact, this has become such a foregone conclusion that most people dismiss the majority of what the news agency says unless it at least sounds like a legitimate headline, kind of like an alcoholic uncle with a penchant for shouting obscenities. However, a recent segment on Fox and Friends had pundits creating a facile argument that allegations against News Corps. (Fox News parent corporation) is not the real issue.

     According to Fox News, the real issue is the evils of hacking, and it's unfair of the media, both in the U.K. and U.S., to continue to harp on News Corps. I'm not even going to give Fox News the benefit of saying that they are manipulating the news cycle here, because that would require a maneuver more sophisticated than "hey, look over here!". However, such a bold-faced whitewash of this story by News Corps' own subsidiary is a glaring illustration of the unethical relationship between politics, money, and media beneath Rupert Murdoch's umbrella.

     Before I go on, take a moment to watch the clip.

     Fox and Friends host Steve Doocy invited an expert on the show to discuss the News Corps. and hacking. Robert Dilenschneider, of the Dilenschneider Group, came on to say that News of the World (the now defunct U.K. sister-news source) "is a hacking scandal, it can't be denied". He then goes on to ask why people are still "piling on"; why News of the World and News Corps. are still receiving such attention. "Shouldn't we get beyond it and really deal with the issue of hacking?" asks Dilenschneider. He then goes on to name corporations that have been victimized by hacking; Bank of America, Citibank, American Express.....did you catch that? News of the World was the hacker, not the hackee! That's right, Dilenschneider and Doocy attempt cast News of the World and News Corps as the victim of hacking, not the company that was hacking into celebrities, politicians, and murder victims accounts. Then they go on to blame the media for the intense scrutiny when other corporations, not guilty of hacking, haven't received the same attention. 

     This story is such an under-reported piece of propagandization by Fox News that Atlantic Monthly's James Fallow has actually done a bit of investigative reporting. It turns out that Bob Dilenschneider, the so-called expert, and founder of the Dilenschneider Group, is actually a corporate PR man, and his company is a corporate PR representation firm. Fallow goes on to excerpt a portion of their "Achievements" section on their website; a laundry list of media manipulations in favor of mostly political special interests. In other words, Fox and Friends hired a corporate ad man, dressed him up as an "expert", and had him run interference.

     As I wrote on US Objectors, the relationship between media and politics is its own complex and Rupert Murdoch is less like the unwitting victim and more like "the man behind the curtain". This latest episode from Fox News is a perfect example of why it is not an actual news agency, as much as it's dressed up like one. Fox News is agitprop (agitation/propaganda) and for it to claim that it is balance, fair, or even journalism.