Back in October of 2014, Fox used video, done by the right wing Campus Progress group, which purported to show that those librul elites at Harvard love ISIS and hate America. It's January of 2015 and Fox is still pushing the same old, same old story.
Taking a page from Bill O'Reilly's stalker, Caleb Bonham, head of the right wing Campus Reform and self described "Christian politico with a sense of humor," specializes in gotcha videos in order to advance a particular propaganda point. His more vile videos include one in which African-American students appear to support black on white crime and another in which he tries to get female students to say that abortion makes it easier for men to have casual sex.
In keeping with the popular Fox/right wing meme, he frequently appears on Fox where he whines about how colleges are infected with liberal bias. Such was the case when, in October, he took his Harvard sting video to Fox's Outnumbered. In the finest tradition of Jesse Watters, the questions in the clearly edited video were constructed to make the students look like they are anti-American when the answers, about American foreign policy in the Middle East, were well articulated. Nevertheless, the Outnumbered hosts were properly chagrined and appalled as was Greg Gutfeld who, in interviewing the virulently right wing hate radio host Mike Gallagher, cited the video as the reason why Harvard students are "brain dead." Flash forward to January of 2015 and Bonham is still using that video to pimp the propaganda.
On this morning's "Trouble with Schools" segment, Anna Kooiman set the table for the right wing meal: "They are supposed to be some of the smartest students in the world but one question got some pretty shocking answers at Harvard." She went to the video, showing Bonham, with the Battle Hymn of the Republic playing in the background, asking a student whether ISIS or America is a greater threat to world peace. The video was cut immediately after the student said "America," so we don't know what else he said. Other student commented on America's role in destabilizing the Middle East. The chyron: "Missing the Mark, Harvard Students Say America is Bigger Threat" which was not established by the video.
A grinning Kooiman tossed to a grinning Bonham who thanked him for bring this "startling" information to Fox's attention. She asked why Harvard students think America is a bigger threat to world peace than ISIS. Bonham claimed that his right wing "Leadership Institute" sees an alarming trend in "faux intellectual" students trying to appear intellectual. (Like right wing ideologues who appear on Fox News?)
Kooiman quoted a "professor," Gilbert Achar,who ascribes, in part, the "barbarity" Paris massacre to the "barbarity" of the US in the Middle East. Note - Achar teaches at the Univ. of London - not Harvard. Never wasting an opportunity to bash Islam, Kooiman asked who are more barbarous - militants who behead people or America. Bonham responded that those who killed the journalists are the real barbarians. He praised the US for fighting for peace and justice. (Guess he forgot about the torture stuff)
Never wasting an opportunity to bash the science behind climate change, Kooiman quoted academics, not from Harvard, who cited climate change as playing a role in the rise of ISIS. Bonham dismissed the claims as just partisan commentary for those who say SUV drivers are to blame for climate change which is clearly not the case. Kooiman quipped "just drive smart cars and ISIS will go away."
Who needs higher education when Fox & Friends tells you all you need to know!!!!
Check out Harvard's response to Bonham in the second video.
http://www.newshounds.us/brad_stine_talks_ice_cream_gets_brain_freeze_blames_liberals04042012
With all my love,
Aunty Em Uncle
By no means did this start only after the Fairness Doctrine was canceled. In fact, it’s why Reagan was able to do away with it with no fuss.
We really need laws regulating what can be allowed within a news program (or network) and still be considered news, rather than propaganda.
Even a return to the Fairness Doctrine (killed by Ronald Reagan) and applied to cable news, as well as network news, would be a step in the right direction. (And isn’t it a bit ironic that it was only after the Fairness Doctrine was abolished that the right-wing started claiming the news was “biased” to the left? If the right hadn’t been so gung-ho in doing away with the Fairness Doctrine, the news wouldn’t have gone “hard left,” thus necessitating the rise of FoxNoise. The real irony is that FoxNoise only developed because the right-wing didn’t like the government’s demand for “fair and balanced” reporting.)