Open War Breaks Out at Fox News

American Thinker.com ^ | March 19, 2018 | Peter Barry Chowka

[Kaslin]

Prominent on-air news and opinion hosts at Fox News are going at it tooth and nail, as ailing 86-year-old Rupert Murdoch moves to hand the reins of the network to his liberal son Lachlan. In early February, I got wind of an internal war bubbling below the surface at Fox News. The combatants included several prominent on-air personalities, and there were growing signs that they were gearing up to engage in a serious battle with one another. The conflict pitted representatives of the daytime hard news department against several stars who are faces of the channel during prime time, when opinion-themed shows dominate. Like many Americans in the workplace, beliefs in different opposing ideologies were pushing these people apart. Adding fuel to the fire in the highly competitive hothouse environment of cable television news were jealousy and resentment.

Finally, this past week, the battle went public. It involved three top Fox News personalities: Shepard Smith, Sean Hannity, and Laura Ingraham.

Opening skirmishes in this long simmering conflict began last year, when veteran left-of-center Fox News hosts Shepard Smith and Chris Wallace were the first on-air talent to publicly throw down the gauntlet. Both of them are highly valued and well paid linchpins of the hard news side of the Fox News Channel. Last year, Shepard Smith, 54, the channel's lead news anchor and host of the 3 P.M. E.T. hour-long news show Shepard Smith Reporting, outed himself as a critic of President Donald Trump. Also in his sights were other prominent Fox News personnel who had defended Trump, including the channel's senior judicial analyst, former judge Andrew Napolitano.

[WayneS]

In his telling, before he signed his new contract, he was nervous about what would come on Fox's air after he left. "To stop doing it would be bad because I think that there is a need for it and I know the degree to which we care about it and focus on it and we want it to be as perfect as it can be. And I wonder, if I stopped delivering the facts, what would go in its place in this place that is most watched, most listened, most viewed, most trusted? I don't know."

I think this is what is known as a Missiah complex...

[SmokingJoe]

Shepherd Smith doesn’t present “hard news”. She is the biggest purveyor of fake news on the planet, even worse than CNN and MSNBC.

[SERKIT]

How can Sonny Boy get Chris Wallace to turn further to the left?

[rlmorel]

My feelings exactly. Lachlan Murdoch looks like a weasel.

[Aquamarine]

By having Shep on in the afternoon it's like FOX is telling us they don't want an audience in the afternoon, too bad for their sponsors during Shep's show.

[Iron Munro]

Because the nation doesn’t already have enough leftist and ultra-leftist TV news channels.

[TheCipher]

My guess is that Sheepturd Smith hits like a girl.

And pees like one also.

[Cecily]

I’m hoping for a Chuck E. Cheese-style brawl.

[Kaslin]

My cable company doesn’t get it and I refuse to get Dish or Direct TV

[bigbob]

I’m not aware of how much direct control Rupert exerts, but I have the feeling that the Murdock spawn will totally wreck Fox News once they get full control of it.

Oddly, the editorial balance has shifted strongly to the right whilst the editorial slant of the “straight (sic) news” programming has move to the left. I don’t understand ho they think that makes sense, but my suspicion is that it will be the opinion programming (Hannity, Ingraham, Judge Jeanine, and now Levin) will be the ones to feel the heat.

Tucker Carlson straddles the fence pretty well and isn’t as offensive as BOR so he’s probably good. Jesse Watters may be the question mark as his support comes from the right yet that may not be the right combination to keep and grow his job, yet if he moves left he will certainly lose most of it.

[Iron Munro]

Shep got in a slap fight with someone did he?

No matter how it ended, a girl won.

[Kharis13]

He punches with his thumb inside his fist.

[rlmorel]

I read the comment by Mike Wallace:

"...I don't like them bashing the media, because oftentimes what they're bashing is stuff that we on the news side are doing," he added. "I don't think they recognize that they have a role at Fox News and we have a role at Fox News. I don't know what's in their head. I just think it's bad form..."

I swear. They really do believe their own crap.

Just because the news media are generally whores who have to figure out a way to get people to watch, doesn't mean the people on the opinion side shouldn't bash them for it.

Leftists, of which he is one, are morally and intellectually corrupt.

[1L]

>>Tucker Carlson just doesn’t have it.

He brings on the lib nutbags but usually seems unprepared and instead of showing them up with backup information he gets whiny.

Sounds like you’ve only watched like 1 or 2 of his shows. Tucker hits back hard. I agree he brings on too many nutjobs (they all do), but he has embarrassed plenty of them.

[gunnyg]

OAN?
It was great while I has satellite!

Got cable now....no OAN...my cable won’t handle it...nor talk about it....that tells the tale!
GunnyG@PlanetWTF?
*****************************

[Howie66]

Have you checked out ONE AMERICA NEWS network?

[bk1000]

Smith may be protected by being a fag, but I think the evening opinion crew holds more sway. Particularly Hannity. I can’t change the channel fast enough when that sissy Smith comes on.

[varon]

My guess is that Sheepturd Smith hits like a girl.

And pees sitting down......

[Governor Dinwiddie]

Since when is Chris Wallace considered "hard news"? Chris only got his job based on his family name, sort of like Chelsea Clinton gets her "jobs".

Chris Wallace may or may not be verifiable Deep State, but he surely is a fellow traveler, and a certifiable part of the establishment elites.
 

[knarf]

His voice is unfortunately too girly.

Just like Alan Keyes' eyes are unfortunately too buggy.

We ARE a superficial (in many ways) and visual people.