Media Fight in the Spotlight: The White House vs Fox News
I guess it was inevitable that this media-savvy administration would have a media-based feud. However, the current tension between the Obama Administration and Fox News is a complicated and fraught feud to have. It’s completely understandable to want to take action against a person or organization that is as vocally opposed to you as Fox News is to Obama, but fighting back opens up a real can of mediated worms.
First of all, there’s the possibility that fighting the hyperbolic statements of Fox News will just end up validating them. There are a lot of nasty things being said about Obama and his administration, but choosing not to respond to them is the way to be the bigger and more reasonable person. In taking action against those who make wild accusations, you’re showing that they’re valid enough to fight for, as well as stooping down to the accuser’s level.
What complicates this further is that the president is taking on an entire media outlet. The whole purpose of freedom of speech is to create a space where opposition can be voiced, even if those in power don’t find it favorable. Once a media outlet is singled out for its opposing views, we’re getting into a bad area (never mind that the channel is supposed to be “fair and balanced”). The White House is legitimizing its feud by saying that Fox News is an extension of the Republican Party, and thus not a legitimate news organization. While I would not say that Fox News is politically neutral or objective, I wouldn’t actually consider them an extension of the Republican Party. I think it’s dangerous for the Obama Administration to make such claims and assess Fox News’ validity as a media outlet based on their opposition.
However, I also don’t think Fox News should be able to get away with the things they have said about the Obama Administration. Clearly hyperbolic labels like racist don’t come from reporting, but from opinion and editorial. I think comments like Glenn Beck’s should be considered slander. These comments don’t come from a tabloid, but from a news organization. Without solid proof of such claims, a news organization should not be disseminating them. I do think that Fox News should be held accountable for conflating opinion and reporting, and should face consequences for libel. Free speech does not mean freedom to publicly defame someone without anything to back up your claims.
Clearly this is a tricky situation. Overall I think it would be better if the Obama Administration addressed specific statements of Fox News and provided logical reasoning why these claims cross a line. Starting a feud with an entire news organization risks undermining the legitimate opposition that is overshadowed by he hyperbolic. It will be interesting to watch this tension about the media unfold within it.
2 years ago