Watch out, America is moving to the right and it's happening fast. The vote in Massachusetts was an ideological earthquake whose tremors are still being felt all over the country. When a big government guy like President Obama takes to the lectern to announce that he wants to freeze some federal spending, you know hell might be freezing over as well.
But nowhere is the rejection of liberal doctrine being seen more clearly than in the TV news industry. Last week, the Fox News Channel, the only network that has brought some scrutiny to Barack Obama from the beginning, was the number one rated cable operation in America. If you listen closely, you can hear Sponge Bob and Hannah Montana weeping.
In addition, a stunning scientific survey was released by the Democratic outfit Public Policy Polling. It asked Americans which TV news operation they trusted. Hide the kids, here are the results:- Fox News: 49% trust, 37% don't trust
- ABC News: 31% trust, 46% don't trust
- NBC News: 35% trust, 44% don't trust
- CBS News: 32% trust, 46% don't trust
- CNN: 39% trust, 41% don't trust
This is a rout. Nearly half the country trusts FNC, and nobody else is even close. Can you imagine the Fox bashers at NBC and the New York Times reading this poll? I'd pay to see the reaction.
Fox News can thank President Obama for all this. From the beginning of his astounding rise, most of the main stream media loved Barack. Ask Hillary Clinton. But FNC treated Mrs. Clinton, then Senator Obama, and Senator John McCain pretty much the same. We scrutinized them all. In fact, the McCain campaign kept the senator off my program, fearing tough questioning.
But it was the scrutiny of Barack Obama and the exposure of people like Jeremiah Wright that brought Fox News bitter criticism from the left. And the folks saw that; they watched as FNC was bashed all over the place. Today, many Americans have lost some confidence in the president, and they remember who was in the tank for him and who was not.
According to a new Gallup Poll, 64% of Americans believe the American press is not watching the Obama administration closely enough. Clearly, news consumers are asking the media to get back to basics: Stop cheerleading and start reporting. Look out for the folks.
Because the Fox News Channel gives voice to both the right and the left, while most of the other networks are heavily invested in liberal philosophy, when the country moves into a more conservative mode that will be reflected in their TV choices. It is hard to believe that über-liberal media outlets that trumpeted government-run health care and civilian trials for terrorists will prosper any time soon.
No, the winds of political change are buffeting the "progressive" press. They had a brief shining moment last year. But now that's all gone.
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