News Hounds

“Teabagging” Now Part Of The Official Mainstream Lexicon?

Fox fave Brent Bozell has his hairshirt in a wad over the use of the word “teabagging.” He whined about it with Megyn Kelly, last April, in a discussion of how not only was the evil, librul mainstream media not sufficiently covering the teabaggers; but they were using a term, to describe the protesters, that was just sooo “insulting.” Recently, he mewled about it on Fox&Friends when he asked Charles Blow, of the NY Times, if MSNBC and CNN should “apologize for all their teabagging jokes on their national news programs." As Blow said that that he needs to ask those networks, Bozell shouted, “That’s the coverage, that’s the coverage.” Poor Brent. He can take solace in the news that the term “teabaggers” was a runner up for the mainstream New Oxford Dictionary's word of the year. Their definition relates to the protesting aspect of the movement. Obviously, there’s another meaning hanging out there but Oxford doesn’t mention it. But while Brent was fulminating about the word, the teabaggers themselves celebrated it – and that’s the truthiness!

Fox&Friends Get Friendly With Homophobic and Bigoted Teabagger Mark Williams

Fox News does love its tea parties. It has given aid and comfort for this right wing Howard Beale movement since its inception – supportive coverage that was not given to the anti war movement during the Bush administration when those who didn’t support the president were considered librul traitors by the Fox illuminati who seem to have no problem with Obama as Hitler and health care reform as Dachau. Yesterday, Fox&Friends, in providing wrap up coverage for the crazy clown car (whoops, Tea Party Express) tour, interviewed right wing talk radio host and proud teabagger, Mark Williams. During the segment, Williams provided us with some homophobic “humor” and an anti-Islamic visual was shown. Happy, happy, joy, joy.

Jon Stewart Not Exactly Impressed By Hannity's Apology For Phony Footage

Sorry, Sean. Your apology for "inadvertently" showing footage of the 9/12 protest crowd for Michele Bachmann's Superbowl of Freedom crowd (which had a much smaller attendance) didn't quite fly with Jon Stewart. That's an understatement. As Mark Karlin, of Buzzflash, notes, "What's central to the importance of Stewart's continuing witty skewering of FOX is that Stewart is one of the few television personalities who has the influence to put FOX on the defensive." Video after the jump.

Is Fox News' Increased Role In Republican Politics Bringing Diminishing Results?

Media Matters' Eric Boehlert has a very interesting column about the growing influence of the far-right media in Republican politics and its widening disconnect with voters. Boehlert writes:

It makes sense that, as a purely partisan player, Fox News would immerse itself in backroom horse-trading. It makes sense that rather than covering the campaigns and the candidates, Fox News would insert itself as a political player within Republican contests and throw its support behind a specific candidate, the way it did in NY-23.

The looming problem for the GOP, though, is that the right-wing media can't pick winners and stands poised to rip the Republican Party apart.

Fox Opinion News Get Caught Using Wrong Footage - Whoopsie!

Fox Opinion News, as America's Tea Party news room, seemed to be on board with the teabagger mythology that hundreds of thousands of proud pitchforkers attended the 9-12 march in September. And it also seems that they have no problem with the latest iteration of the mythology which claims that Saturday's astro turfed insane clown posse gathering on the steps of the Capitol brought in 20,000 to 40,000 teabaggers when the actual number seems to be smaller. So it was no suprise that Fox fave and conspiratorialist Congresswomen Michele Bachmann promoted the propaganda while being interviewed on Fox Opinion News. Problem was that the film footage, which purportedly showed vast hordes of pissed off populists, was taken at the September rally which drew far greater numbers than Saturday's party. But who cares about such silly details when you've got propaganda to peddle?! Jon Stewart explains it all.

Update: Media Matters has a piece on Fox's "use" of audio and video. In their summary, they forgot to mention the Planned Parenthood in the crosshairs graphic used during a Laura Ingraham segment.

Update: Hannity apologized for the "screw up" on his 11/11/09 show. He did not explain how someone could have "inadvertently" mixed up video from a much larger event with video of a much smaller event and nobody at Fox noticed or cared until Jon Stewart mocked them. Video after the jump.