this post was submitted on 13 Jul 2023
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[–] [email protected] 114 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Isn't that exactly what said executives wanted? Wasn't fox news created to prevent a second Nixon not by making sure no crimes were committed by future republican presidents, but by making sure they could mislead the public into thinking they weren't crimes in the first place? I'm sorry but now that it's clear to the entire world what you built and why you built it you don't get to sit here and go "oh my how could we ever have known it would turn into this!" Like bitch you wanted this.

[–] Zombiepirate 49 points 1 year ago (10 children)
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[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 year ago

They can do that, and they will. Why wouldn't they? You even said yourself that the network exists to lie to its viewers. So it makes sense that they'd lie to their viewers about this too.

[–] Asafum 89 points 1 year ago (4 children)

Propagandists say propaganda network creates propaganda!

Next up: Water did you know it makes you wet?

Stay tuned after for our coverage of the sun! It went down this evening, what will happen tomorrow morning?

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[–] [email protected] 40 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Hold on, this whole operation was your idea

[–] [email protected] 18 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Either this is their way of saying "mission accomplished" or they're trying to play innocent.

[–] TurboDiesel 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)
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[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago

The time they refer to with "become" is back when they designed it.

[–] Octavio 36 points 1 year ago (2 children)

That seems disingenuous because according to multiple accounts I’ve read about the founding of Fox News, it was specifically designed as a disinformation machine.

[–] [email protected] 17 points 1 year ago

The author of the blog post is being sincere; he speaks on behalf of three key executives that helped found the Fox Broadcast Network, in the early 1990s, not the spinoff channel Fox News. They are repentant about how the actions they took to breathe life into Fox eventually led to the creation of a disinformation machine that’s been at the jugular of American Democracy for the better part of the past decade.

I will say, it’s easy to excoriate these guys for having their lame mea culpa this late in the game. Their original motivations for creating the Fox network are unclear at best, and they were all almost certainly more concerned with making money over anything else moralistic. But if you think about it, in the early 90s it was kinda easy to underestimate Rupert Murdoch’s amorality and tenacity when it came to pursuing a right-wing audience. Yes he had a bias in his media empire at that point, but Fox News very quickly became a platform for petty name calling, denialism, and outright hate beyond anything we’d seen before in a television network with significant reach.

[–] laskoune 6 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

🌍🔫👩‍🚀

[–] [email protected] 32 points 1 year ago (1 children)

This is what they wanted. They pushed false information, especially during the Trump years. Can't take it back now.

[–] CynicRaven 15 points 1 year ago

They pushed false, sensational and dubious information immediately upon launch during the Clinton years.

[–] Clbull 22 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (4 children)

I predict that the moment Rupert Murdoch passes away, his media empire is going to crumble along with it. Really don't think James Murdoch, Lachlan Murdoch or Rebekah Brooks are going to be competent enough to keep the Evil Empire running. It won't be an immediate collapse, but would probably take 5 years to a decade.

We're already seeing the cracks with phone hacking scandals, the decline of British Sky Broadcasting, the flop of GB News and now Fox News being hammered with electoral fraud disinformation.

Rupert got away with so much crap because of his ruthlessness as a businessman and due to all the connections he had in high places. His children and senior associates lack this ruthlessness.

[–] jmanjones 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

I hope so when that happens but idk, with how things are. a bigger, more evil, more powerful boss may take his place. Bill OReilly was replaced by Tucker Carlson. Tucker Carlson has caused a lot of dishevel. United States, Russians, Australia, Canada and I'm sure others.

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[–] [email protected] 22 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

They wanted to profit off this business as long as they could, now that they're out they want in to the center-left crowd.

[–] cedarmesa 22 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 year ago

Yeah its crazy how far the overton window has shifted over there. I honestly don't know if I could live long-term in a place with that kind of environment.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago

Oh God I hope you're right.

[–] SCB 21 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Idk how people don't remember this, but there was a time when Fox News was basically the same thing as CNN, just with more (educated) Conservatives providing commentary.

This was back when like, Hardball was the big political talk show, before the whole doom-spiral.

These are the executives bemoaning what Fox has become. That shit mostly started in the aftermath of 9/11.

[–] Zombiepirate 51 points 1 year ago (1 children)

It was designed to be a mouthpiece for the GOP.

Propaganda wasn't an afterthought; it's the reason for the network's existence.

[–] SCB 20 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Yes and the GOP at the time was considerably more "normal," which, again, is the entire reason for the disconnect these former execs feel. People you and I don't like also have preferences.

I've been arguing against Fox News takes since like '98 man, I'm well aware of what Fox News was and what it turned into.

It's night and day.

[–] Zombiepirate 16 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Oh, they have certainly accelerated the crazy train. The feedback loop between viewers and hosts was put on full display when the Dominion case emails were released.

My only point is that this isn't some anomaly; this is the original vision playing out to its logical end.

[–] SCB 17 points 1 year ago

It's the Talk Radio problem all over again. The more extreme the voice, the more it clamors for attendance, leading to such a doom spiral.

I am certain there are many "Shep Smith" like people at Fox back in the day who are pretty horrified at what they've become, and I also agree they were complicit in Fox walking down this path.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Crossfire played a huge part in popularizing the dogmatic Fox Anchor personality.

[–] FlyingSquid 5 points 1 year ago

Crossfire was a CNN show.

[–] [email protected] 19 points 1 year ago

The morons I know that watch it are looking for that.

[–] Acronymesis 18 points 1 year ago (1 children)

“​​We never envisioned, and would not knowingly have enabled, the disinformation machine that, in our opinion, Fox has become,” the [group of men who helped establish Fox News] wrote.

What in the wild blue FUCK did you think was going to happen, then? Did it really seem like an honest effort back when it was launched?

[–] Nightwingdragon 5 points 1 year ago

What in the wild blue FUCK did you think was going to happen, then? Did it really seem like an honest effort back when it was launched?

Back when it was launched, they didn't have Tucker Carlson, Laura Ingram, and the rest of that group of ultra-morons that clearly have no clue what the hell they're talking about and only engage in conspiracy theories, open racism, and performative outrage.

The original group were a bunch of people who were trying to spread a legitimate conservative message, but were willing to quietly engage in shady tactics to do it.

The ones who are there now are a bunch of people trying to spread racism and conspiracy theories, and openly admit to engaging in shady tactics to do it.

I'm not saying either group is good. But there is a difference, and one is exponentially worse than the other.

[–] [email protected] 16 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

did someone just open a time capsule from 1998 and find this message inside, along with a miniDisc player and an AOL CD?

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 year ago (2 children)

I had a mini disc player that shit was amazing

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[–] AFKBRBChocolate 6 points 1 year ago

Exactly. It became a misinformation machine decades ago, that's nothing new. And anyone saying (especially recently) that they're stunned by that is being disingenuous.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 year ago

Frankenstein shocked his monster turned out to be a monster.

[–] AdamSmasher 11 points 1 year ago

Lol no shit

[–] Gingerlegs 10 points 1 year ago
[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago

It has been one for a long time.

[–] ricecooker 6 points 1 year ago

I don't understand the timing on this message and what they hope to accomplish by saying this.

I can understand the idea of a more Right-leaning network to counter CNN but Fox News ain't it. Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity have been involved since the beginning. Don't know when, but at some point it just became straight up lies and they themselves have admitted as much in court. In court defending Tucker Carlson show "We are entertainment, and not news therefore you can't blame us for misinformation."

[–] veganpizza69 5 points 1 year ago

Misinfotainment

[–] moosh 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Oh my lanta, say it ain’t so!

[–] Etterra 4 points 1 year ago

It was always a propaganda machine of the right. It's literally part of their stated purpose. This is the equivalent of an alcoholic abruptly announcing that bars facilitate the consumption and popularity of alcohol.

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