MSNBC not an ‘instrument’ of Democratic Party, New Republic argues

I haven't read the article, but it looks like people are assuming the New Republic is saying that MSNBC isn't biased and Fox is. Maybe they are saying that. It wouldn't be surprising if they were. It's nonsense, but a lot of liberals say just exactly that.

But from what I can gather the buzz about the article is that it claims that Fox's head is ideologically committed to the GOP or conservatism, and MSNBC's head is more interested in the bottom line and would have taken the channel in a different direction if he could have made a buck out of it. That's a different argument. I don't know if it's true either, but it's beside the point.

I'm pretty sure Roger Ailes keeps an eye on the ratings. If O'Reilly or Hannity didn't do well, they'd be gone. I'm also pretty sure that whoever manages MSNBC doesn't have complete autonomy. At this point, he has to function within the existing "left-liberal channel" template or paradigm, and he probably doesn't get to dictate political views to his talking heads.

In a way, it's a very typical New Republic article -- flashy and designed to produce controversy and buzz but without much real substance.

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