MoveOn: Obama Got Outfoxed

It’s no secret that MoveOn.org members have been very supportive of Barack Obama’s candidacy – endorsing him with a 70% vote, raising lots of small dollar donations for him, sending hundreds of thousands of personal endorsement emails to friends and family before key primaries and caucuses, and making over 1,000 30-second ads on his behalf (one of which will soon air on national TV). We’re excited about his candidacy, and we think he’ll make a great president. But Obama did himself, the Democratic Party, and the progressive movement a disservice this weekend.

It was a mistake for Obama to go on FOX’s Sunday show and treat the experience as if it was a real news interview. Democratic politicians need to understand that FOX is a Republican mouthpiece masquerading as a news outlet. When dealing with FOX, you either burn them or they will burn you.

It's well documented that FOX executives send morning memos to anchors and reporters dictating Republican talking points. In 2006, one said, “Be on the lookout for any statements from the Iraqi insurgents...thrilled at the prospect of a Dem controlled Congress.” Robert Greenwald's videos have shown FOX's consistent pattern of smearing Barack Obama, smearing Hillary Clinton, smearing African Americans, and denying global warming.

FOX's power lies not in its audience size – which is puny and consists mostly of unpersuadable voters. Instead, FOX's power comes from tricking politicians and real journalists into treating their “breaking stories” like real news, thereby propelling smears like the Swift Boats and Rev. Wright into the mainstream political dialogue. That's why progressives fought (successfully) last year to deprive FOX of the legitimacy that comes with hosting a Democratic presidential debate. And that's why Democratic politicians should never treat FOX like a real news outlet - including FOX's Sunday show.

Barack Obama's campaign made a promise before this weekend's appearance. They said he would "take Fox on" – inspiring hope among those who watched Bill Clinton in 2006, Chris Dodd in 2007, and progressive activist Lee Camp in 2008 delegitimize FOX on the air. But Obama didn't do that, and he suffered as a result.

Excerpts from Obama's FOX interview:

The interview began with a question about Obama's race – implying that white people won’t vote for him. Instead of “taking FOX on” and saying FOX’s questions are premised on Republican talking points, Obama simply answered. So, Wallace kept going – asking more than 10 straight race-related questions, all skewed against Obama. (One laughably began with, "I wasn’t sure whether I was even going to ask you about your former pastor, Jeremiah Wright, but...") One of these rigged questions got Obama to say, "The fact that he is my former pastor I think makes it a legitimate political issue" – resulting in John McCain quoting Obama hours later, hinting to right-wing allies that Rev. Wright is fair game.

FOX also asked a bunch of questions aimed at getting Obama to distance himself from Democrats and progressives. Because Obama didn't "take on" the Republican framing of these questions, Obama was cornered into saying things like, "I think there are a whole host of areas where Republicans in some cases may have a better idea [than Democrats]" and parroting the right-wing caricature of "Chablis-drinking limousine liberals" and boasting about being "fiercely attacked" by bloggers at Daily Kos.

Enough. Democratic politicians, for your own benefit: stop legitimizing FOX.

Comments

[S1m0n]

You aren't going to win too many elections by campaigning whee the voters *aren't*; you have to campaign where they are.

And Fox News has an audience that doesn't tend to tune in to other news & information sources. Most probably won't vote democrat, but some might. Come the general, the democratic nominee needs to have reached those people.

And that means showing up on Fox.

[ann1]

I was against Sen O going on FOX I even sent a letter to his campaign. Doing an interview with Wallace--not so bad but Bill O'Reily......auh, NO! I still support Sen O 100% and I trust his reasoning. If he wants to be President for all then that includes the hood wearing hounds at FOX.

[MartinEdwinAndersen]

This Sunday, the chattering class will carry out a post-mortem of the Wright controversy, and might find it profitable to ponder an example from American history.

"[He] had no spontaneity--no emotional nature ... He was never a man of gushing feelings.

"[He] shrank from controversy as a general rule--hated quarrels, hated to say hard & sharp thing of any man ...

"He was slow to form his opinions. He was deliberate, cool & demanded the light of all the facts surrounding the case. When he formed his opinions he was firm, especially about questions of justice [and] principle ... [He] had unsurpassed reasoning powers. His logical faculties were great ...

"[His] statesmanship [lay in his] adherence to principle. He studied where the truth of a thing layand he acted on his conviction. He looked far into the future and was philosophical, true, scientific, in his inductions."

The opinion expressed above was held by Supreme Court Justice David Davis and the Illinois politican he was talking about was the same one for whom he had organized a successful presidential campaign in 1860--Abraham Lincoln.

Only time will tell if, once in office, Barack Obama will show the same wisdom that his fellow prairie lawyer Abraham Lincoln did.

Obama's promise is that, like Lincoln, he is cerebral, eschews petty politics, is "slow to form his opinions" and demands "the light of all the facts."

Obama, like Lincoln, possesses great "logical faculties", and has shown he is firm on questions of justice and principle.

[jah2008]

I completely disagree with Adam Green. Obama handled that Fox interview incredibly well. Wallace may not have intended it, but he actually gave Obama the opportunity to speak and have an honest dialog about divisive issues, unlike a lot of so-called "liberal" media who now completely resembles Fox by continuously talking about Rev. Wright. Have you watched Hardball lately? I can't tell if I'm watching Hannity or O'Reilly. They all sound the same. I put Chris Matthews up there with Hannity & O'Reilly.

[RoboA2008]

I am a Move On member an African American and a Obama supporter. I hate Fox. I watch very little Fox (passively while at the gym) But I think a lot of their viewers need to see the candidates speak in their own words. I know that a lot of left leaning folks go on Fox and duke it out with Hannity and O'Reily. I thought the Chris Wallace interview and the panel discussion afterwards did Obama no harm. I like Keith Oberman a great deal and watch him. I think his show does an outstanding job of taking on the Fox idiots. When we win the White House Fox will become the fish neck and doughnut hole.

[VivaZapata]

I agree with the article. Fox should be treated as the contemptuously biased outlet it is, that is with silence. Notice how important it was for O'Wrongly to insist that Hillary say that she was treated more objectively by Fox than by MSNBC which, in all fairness, has been particularly harsh with her. Lately, of course, MSNBC won't let the Wright-Obama story go to the point that they are boring everyone to death. Mainstream media is almost unabashedly pro-McCain, but that doesn't mean that Fox should be given any credibility for anything other than what it is: the TV equivalent of Murdoch's fascist print rag, The New York Post. Working people, if I may paraphrase from McBeth: Sometimes in order to ourselves harm, they'll tell us bits of truth.

Beware the evil Murdoch. He is not unlike the three weird sisters in Shakespeare's play.

[politicojunkie]

Obama needed to make an appearance on Faux. He handled himself quite well. Now he can put this behind him and Faux can stop their running clock. Good move Obama! No need to make another appearance with these right wing nuts.

[Dan1967]

Why are the major news channels trying to tear down Barack Obama? What is their true motivation?

It makes me sad to see Hillary Clinton brown-nosing the Republican hate machine. Barack Obama is the only candidate who can take our country away from the politics of fear and hate, and in to a new era of hope and change.

BARACK OBAMA ONLY NEEDS 295 DELEGATES TO WIN THE NOMINATION!

The voters in North Carolina and Indiana, with a win for Obama in their primary's, can put this marathon Democratic primary to an end by voting for Barack Obama.

Barack has 1,730 delegates as of today. He needs 2,025 to win the nomination. I want every Democrat and Independant in Indiana and North Carolina to get to the polls and vote for Barack Obama. Don't let the media spin and the right wing conservative media conglomorates win this election.

Barack Obama is by far the strongest candidate against McCain. Go to www.pollster.com (type it in if the link does not work) and check out the state by state polls. Barack Obama is leading McCain in Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa, Oregon, Minnesota, and even Colorado. Hillary is losing to McCain in Michigan, Oregon, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Colorado and she is tied with McCain in Minnesota. If Hillary can't win Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Oregon in the general election, then she can't beat McCain.

VOTE FOR BARACK OBAMA IN NORTH CAROLINA AND INDIANA, AND LETS GET A DEMOCRAT WIN IN NOVEMBER!

[ched]

Obama rightly stiffed FOX when it came to appearing on a FOX sponsored debate, thus sending a strong signal to Democrats that he knows FOX is a fake news operation. It was a smart move made at a good time in the campaign.

Likewise, his decision to appear on the FOX Sunday show was a smart move made at the right time. While many in the FOX audience are no doubt among the 20-some percent (or is it twenty-some people?) who still think Bush is doing a great job, there are doubtless countless others who watch the Sunday show (which is, as you know, broadcast on Fox affiliates, not just the cable faux news channel) who are not mouth-breathers. And many of them live in Indiana and North Carolina. So really, Adam, do you think he gained or lost supporters with his Fox Sunday show appearance?

Guess it's a good thing Obama doesn't make strategic campaign decisions based on how you (and the rest of us dems) feel about FOX news, but instead on how those decisions will effect his chances in the upcoming primaries and, hopefully, the general election.

But thanks for piling on with the right wing noise machine during the Wright fiasco and hurting his chances in the upcoming primaries. And btw, when you get all outraged about a campaign decision of a candidate whom you've endorsed, you come across as spoiled and whiny, a lot like those big money Hillary supporters.

[new logic]

Obama....please choose your battles....Why dignify these Fascist? people listen to fox for entertainment not news.
reevaluate your advisers

[ebanks84]

Obama has the judgment that counts. We should never prejudge someone because of our values. His set of values are very different and he quantifies all men, which is good.

[Binx101]

Okay - The Fox thang is now done. It seems to me that observations and criticism are based in frustration of what seems to be collapsing to pressure. On the hand - we don't quite understand - at least I don't - the pressures on the Obama campaign in shutting out PRAVDA, sorry FOX. It does imply that FOX Fiction News is further legitimated by the exercise. However, whether the interview is dissected or not to suit any FOX analyst the same interview with any other Info-tainer would have been spliced and worked by FOX in the same way.

William Krystoll, a despicable shill for powers behind the current coup, would be saying the same thing, with the same dyspeptic summary and the same look on his face that screams support for stem cell research. So perhaps the net result isn't quite as grim.

Strategically - it may not be a mistake, long term and outside the inner circle of Obama strategists, I feel there is a greater good. As a student of the Dao of Stategy - keeping one's enemies closer than one's friends may be the operative maneuver.

FOX is a pervasive force in the terrestrial markets (broadcast TV that reqires an antenna) as well as basic cable. There's a lot of voting Americans that don't have the same access as many of us here do and those in the bowels of the campaigns may have a different strategy of how to reach them.

Binx101
The Almost Daily

[Mavin1620]

I was always taught that you answer the question you want to answer not the question you were asked.

What was wrong with Obama? Everyone knows what Fox is, so why wasn't he ready? The democrats are getting the worst advice.

[urweatherman]

Sounds like a true democrat....never answer the question the people care about...only one that you have a prepared answer for......you said it!

[ExRepublican]

"I was always taught that you answer the question you want to answer not the question you were asked."

If crooked as a dogs hind leg, yes. Answer the way you were taught. If honest, then no. Answer the damn question(s) IF they are on the up and up.

Not tearing apart your ma & pa but they boo bood. They are in the majority. In fact, this is the face of America in this day & age. Lie, cheat & steal...........and then punk someone.

heesh.

[marymansour]

Well guess what! Hillary, always eager for a 'me too' moment has consented to go on Fox also.

[PNolan]

Senator Clinton has been on FOX News Sunday - she made the rounds of all the Sunday a.m. shows a few months ago.

[DakotaMinnesota]

I'm of the opinion that his appearance was necessary simply because this may actually have been the first time a lot of the Fox viewers got to see Obama speak at length. Simply drawing a bead on his decent personality was so important for me in deciding to support him, not to mention the intelligence and sincerity in the way he expresses himself. And that's what his groundswell of support is all about - his ability as a leader, not dogma and ideology.

But it's true. Fox News is a fascist mouthpiece. Barack was definitely in the lion's den and risked legitimizing them. Really, though, it's their funeral.

Barack '08
Google "Smedley Butler"

[urweatherman]

If Obama is so intelligent, how could he have been duped by Reverend Wright? The Iranian leader and Chavez will chew him up and spit him out!

[ebanks84]

Do say? That just goes to show how much you know about Obama. NOTHING!

[dbroad]

Chris Wallace from Fox News gave Obama more respect that the last debate on ABC. That is a FACT.