Is Fox Losing its' magic?

[faithincowboys]

I love Fox news,don't get me wrong, but don't you think they are fumbling the ball lately. Shep Smith really sucks-- he has been anti-Bush lately. Shep quoted Howell Raines' boy Nicholas Krstoff the other day. Doesn't it look like Hannity wants to beat up Shep every afternoon when Shep says some anti-Bush BS? Also, O'reilly pissed me off a couple of weeks ago when he went after Lynne Cheney like she was Hillary. Funny how the liberal pundits treat the evil Hill like she walks on water, and the so-called conservative O'Reilly was a pit bull with Cheney's wife. Anybody else notice this?

[PhiKapMom]

I watch the Fox morning show as well!

You are right -- FR rocks for news!

[PhiKapMom]

Nice to have a partner in the fight! I know what you mean, I keep having to retype words! Talk to you later!

[bonfire]

Thanks to you and all the others that have answered this critical question!! Really was driving me nutz.

Ok...I can't wait til next week for the weather map thing. Spill it!

[boltCutter]

Don't sweat it. A paradigm shift is occurring in this country right now. Popular education (read government schools) and the popular press, the primary engines of Marxist propaganda, are slowly being shifted back to center where they belong. Most rational adults, in the absence of propaganda, will be conservatives. That's why liberals are so afraid of Fox and the ever growing trend of home-schooling; they know this and this movement towards neutrality totally evaporates any means they may have to proselytize the masses.
Fox is just being neutral by giving both sides a fair shake. Don't fear neutrality, it always favors conservatives by huge margins.

[PhiKapMom]

I will have to go back and check but I know he still owned it a few years ago.

[Mr Ducklips]

Thanks for explaining the G-Block thing. The Missus and I have been arguing about it for months. She was right, of course.

[foreverfree]

Next week's lesson: How they get video or weather maps to appear as if they're behind the person when it's really just a blue screen.

You're joking, I hope, arasina. If you are, allow me to recommend the otherwise forgettable NBC studio tour at 30 Rock. They'll show you.

Afterwards, head down Av of the Americas/6 Av to the News Corp. Building and watch FNC on the window monitor. And try peeking through the window on the set. But not too conspicuously. Also, check out the logos of the various Murdoch properties in the other first floor windows.

foreverfree

[Porterville]

What are you from CNN or what??? Ted Turner go home.

[nmh]

"... O'Reilly was tough just to shed his "conservative" tag. "

He's not a conservative. He's a humanistic utopian. He shuns capital punishment and wants to believe that life in prison is punishment enough ... never mind that VH1 likes to tape inmates bands with murderes in it. Doesn't he find it odd that inmates have access to musical equipment? Has he any clue just how nice it is in prison? It's a place for these folks to rest their feet at taxpayer expense. Not to mention the money wasted on numerous appeals, of course at your expense. And along the way they may boycott prisons for lousey food or not the latest greatest excercise equipment.

Truly O'Reilly needs to GROW UP and live in the real world.

[bethelgrad]

why does everyone think Oreily is conservative? He's no lib but definatly not conservative either.

[husky ed]

I started using this after FNC had an alert about a car fire.
And as much as they use their alerts I thought it was appropriate.

[timestax]

Nothing last forever.

[bethelgrad]

i just like the top and bottom of the hour babes--especially laurie duih (sp) and pattie-anne brown. i don't even hear what they say.

[RightOnline]

I've been a news junkie for decades...........and I'll take FNC, hands down, over any other channel, period......not just so-called "news" channels. It's no contest. Are they perfect? Shoot............if you're looking for perfection, go to your nearest New Testament. Otherwise, you get news put out by human beings, and FNC tries very, very hard to give exactly what they say: fair and balanced reporting.

[Capt_Hank]

It's auto channel change when Geraldo "The Fake" comes on for me. I can't stand to see or hear him. I'm the regular staff on FNC complained about him going every where. Did you notice that just about all of them have been in the Middle East now. Greta "Clutch Cargo", is also a pass for me. I find my blood pressure rising while trying to watch Hannity & Colmes. I find it hard to believe that Colmes is that stupid.

The weekend morning gang are the pits. Did you notice how fast they brought the "A Team" in to cover the Space Shuttle accident?

[kesg]

I used to remember the days when we had only CBS, NBC, ABC, and CNN for news -- meaning that you saw and heard only the left wing spin on things. When Fox News arrived on the scene, it was a breath of very fresh air. To borrow a line from The Sopranos, the people who are complaning about Fox News are like the woman who has a Virginia ham in her arm and is complaining because she has no bread.

Having said that, I do have some criticisms of Fox. O'Reilly is essentially unwatchable most of the time, there are way too many stories about celebrities, there are too many "local" stories, and of course there are way too many Fox News Alerts. On the other hand, nothing beats the Bret Hume/Tony Snow hours, Hannity and Colmes is often interesting, the weekend news shows are often interesting, and their reporters and guests are generally outstanding. Perhaps the very best reason to watch Fox News is Kiran Chetry. :)

[mdw278]

I agree with some of the sentiments previous posters have stated. Others things I'd like to add:

O' Reilly: I started watching him in 2000 and initially liked his no-nonsense style (I even bought both of his books), but his constant interrupting and occasional shouting got grating and hardly constitutes intelligent, rational discussion. Far too often, his "talking points" turns into a pissing contest against anybody who criticizes him, and while I'm no fan of George Clooney, Bill Moyers, or Michael Kinsley, O' Reilly constantly harping on them and others isn't entertaining. The interrupting has rubbed off on other anchors, especially David Asman, who can't go three seconds with interrupting a guest.

The "Fox News Alerts": There must be about 10,000 per day, some of which are for stupid car chases or stupid comments from the Canadian cabinet. I don't mind them reporting on this kind of stuff, but is a "Fox News Alert" with the accompanying sound and graphics necessary?

Fox News' Ratings: Maybe it's just me, but the "We're the #1 rated channel in all of cable news" mantra that Fox peddles endlessly is highly annoying. Just let your programs speak for themselves and not gloat, because you'll look bad if CNN ever retakes the ratings lead.

That said, I prefer Fox over the other news channels, and while Fox IMO does have a conservative bias, they're more fair and balanced than CNN. Tony Snow and Brit Hume are consummate professionals, I enjoy Cavuto's show, and most of their females anchors do a very good job.

[jagrmeister]

Nothing bothers me more than seeing us:

1) Get Greedy- you don't think Fox is conservative enough? In other words, it occasionally rubs you the wrong way so you're going to turn your back on the best thing that's happened to conservatives in terms of fairness in the media? This is a very serious mistake. We can only win elections by winning over moderates and independents. They will not flock to unabashedly conservative outlets like National Review of the Wall Street Journal's editorial page. Nor will they turn to Limbaugh- talk radio attracts partisans. The mainstream will watch television. It's important for FoxNews to maintain the semblance of balance to have the greatest effects on the moderate/independent. Too partisan and it will drive them away. We need FoxNews so our side can occasionally make our case to the mainstream. So I'm pleading with you not to ditch Fox based on some small offense. Just remember that offense is 10x more frequent on virtually all other news sources. It's important to keep their ratings up and give them our support. FoxNews may only attract a few million people but it is growing and more importantly, influencing other cable news stations and having its reports find their way into print media. Most importantly, we should petition News Corp. to broadcast aspects of FoxNews onto the main Fox station which reaches ten times as many viewers.

2) Become Curmudgeons- I'm addressing the type that complain "FoxNews has conservative bias so I'm not going to watch.". First, FoxNews does a better job of balance than other cable news. Second, FoxNews is an excellent counterbalance to the predominantly liberal media. So, you don't like it, fine. But keep your mouth shut because you're just giving ammunition to the enemy by mouthing off about its bias whie ignoring the context that it is one center-right outlet in a sea of liberalism. Many of us are fighting this political battle to change hearts and minds, which ultimately determines political outcomes. The media is a large part of this. So aiding the enemy by bashing these efforts is stabbing your own team in the back.

[FreedomPoster]

>>Also, I have no idea what the hell a g-block is.

The seventh segment of the show. Count on your fingers as you say your A-B-C's.

[Int]

I also hate its screen graphics, music, format, and many of its anchors/analysts.

Absolutely!! I'm sick of constant flashes of white light before each headline (er... why is this needed?), the mutilatedjazzstyle music, and constant and predictable baiting of guests so that they end up screaming at one another so that the feature is over and the discussion of the topic hasn't even started - as well as some of the uninformed hosts (Brit Hume: "uh, Canadian President Jean Chretien.....")!