Chris Wallace Regrets Speaking Out On Obama Bashing: "I'm Not Sure I'd Do It Again"

Last Friday, "Fox News Sunday" host Chris Wallace appeared on "Fox & Friends" and railed against the show for what he called "two hours of Obama-bashing." Almost immediately, he knew his position was unpopular, calling into host Brian Kilmeade's radio show to discuss how mad the other hosts — and Fox executives — were towards him.

In an interview with the New York Observer's Felix Gillette, Wallace goes further, admitting,

"I didn't have any second thoughts about the substance because I still believe what I said was right," said Mr. Wallace. "But after the fact, you do think to yourself--on a professional level with colleagues I very much like and respect--should I have done that off camera?"

"It's a close call," said Mr. Wallace. "I'm not sure I'd do it again."

"I know a lot of liberal critics like to snicker at the slogan 'fair and balanced,' but, in fact, we take it very seriously," he added. "My feeling is that a lot of time 'fair and balanced' means giving the conservative point of view because that doesn't get reflected in the mainstream media. In this particular case, I thought 'fair and balanced' meant giving more of an explanation of Obama's point of view."

Wallace also admitted that an unnamed Fox News executive sent him an email after the "Fox & Friends" appearance to say, "isn't this the kind of thing we should be talking about off camera, not on camera?"

Friday's episode of "Fox & Friends" was a chaotic one, with co-host Brian Kilmeade also walking off set after a frustrating conversation with his fellow hosts over Obama's grandmother's "typical white person" remarks. The hosts later claimed the walk-off stunt was a joke.

Comments

[vandegrasse]

An evil man always regrets an off-handed decent remark!

[Duros62]

"My feeling is that a lot of time 'fair and balanced' means giving the conservative point of view because that doesn't get reflected in the mainstream media.

Did he just admit that Fox News is not a mainstream media outlet?

[Witchitalineman]

His comments were true. Wallace shouldn't apologize. In actuality he's only helping his career by speaking out.

[Denni]

Where do they keep the cattle prods at Fox Noise!?!? Are all acts of courage so short-lived on that network? .

[kroses98]

If they want to get paid, they are!!! For just a minute, I thought "Chrissie-Boy," was trying to imitate his father! But, that minute ended quickly!

[zizyphus]

Fox is just the most obvious example of the way our broadcast and print media have been corrupted by the intelligence and military/industrial interests. We will not know how many of them are actually working for one of the many intelligence agencies to spread propaganda and disinfo. The success of the disinfo/propaganda campaign can be measured in things like comments by trolls, who willingly, and unknowingly, are parroting the propaganda. So successful has the propaganda been, that a portion of our populace still believes Iraq had something to do with 911.

[Saxton]

Mike Wallace was a true journalist, who in my opinion, was objective and went for the facts. Chris Wallace is nothing but a talking head pretending to be something he is not - a journalist. Would any of these talking heads play the Fox game if they weren't getting paid big salaries, hardly. If "liberal" media news organization offered them a huge salary to be a talking head on their news show they up and change colors real fast.
Perhaps I'm just getting older and becoming increasingly more concerned with what is happeining to our country as well as the world, but what I have seen across the board on all the media outlets is nothing but lazy reporting on all the candidates. Thank God for NPR, PBS and the BBC as well as outside the corporate owned news journals; at least here the tougher questions are being addressed and issues being raised.

[coolmaiden]

Doesn't everyone realize that genius skips a generation?

[VivaZapata]

just when i stared to think that he was motivated by journalistic integrity.... LOL:)

[texastrixie]

Once again, this "intervention" was all for show.

Wallace wants Obama on his Sunday show. So far, Obama has been smart enough to stay away. Nobody who watches Fox News (and believes it) is going to vote for Obama. Its a no win situation for Obama. The more openly "unbalanced" Fox News is, the easier it is for Obama to resist the network's taunting that he make himself available to be drawn and quartered.

Just as Fox News bears only a resemblance to a real news network, Chris Wallace no longer bears anything but a resemblance to a real reporter.

[BlackWidowPilot]

Wallace was never a real journalist, and Fake News is anything but news.

Leland R. Erickson

Citizen

[JennyG3]

FOX news is such a joke! Those anchors are NOT reporters, NOT journalists, but ARE scary enough to cause nightmares. After the Democrats take back the White house, I'm going to enjoy Faux News demise.

[Exit]

They take "Fair and Balanced" seriously? What a joke.

[realpolitic]

Well, I guess to work at Fox News one can not have even a thread of integrity. One surely can not think for oneself at an Orwellian outfit such as Fox. Big Brother considers independent thinking a thought crime. It may lead to room 101!

[truthyguy]

What happened Chrissy, did big daddy Murdoch spank you for having the nerve to voice your own opinion?

[SignedSealedDelivered]

there we go..that's the FOX news response i'm used to, not that fair take on things. give me the old fashioned scared to speak out FOX anchor...great!

[Vergadoce]

What he originally said was his true self. His gut feeling. That's almost always right. Trust your instincts. But after he got dressed down in private, and probably was told he had to say this to keep his job, he changed his perspective out of self-preservation. I can't respect it but I can understand it.

[PioneerKing]

For a moment one could imagine that Wallace had cojones. What a wimp