A former Trump supporter revealed just how pernicious and deep-seated Fox News’ pro-Trump/anti-Democratic propaganda is and how he discovered that Trump is “not who I voted for.”

Army veteran David Weissman appeared on AM Joy today where, as Raw Story noted, “he learned much more about the president after the election than he did prior to voting” and put a “large part of the blame” for his ignorance on Fox News.

Weissman began by explaining the shocking belligerence of a woman toward a local NBC reporter trying to maintain social distancing in a now-viral video. Weissman pointed out that conservatives have been led to fear Democrats and the mainstream media and thus hold a “totally different world view, totally different reality.” He suggested that Fox News and other conservative media have led them there.

But aren't people like the maskless woman in the video "afraid of themselves getting sick” Reid asked.

Short answer, no.

WEISSMAN: A lot of this fear that I mentioned about, a lot comes from propaganda from conservative networks downplaying the virus. They don’t think the virus is as serious as it really is. A lot of people do not believe in the numbers of the fatalities from the virus.

Weissmann blamed Trump for characterizing the pandemic as a hoax and waiting so long before acting. But he also noted that Fox hosts downplayed the virus right along with him. “And that’s why you have so many thinking that this is not as serious as it really is, why they have no problem going into public and protesting,” he added.

I would argue that desperation has something to do with it too. But Fox has deliberately poured fuel on the fire.

But the MAGA fear and loathing toward Democrats and the media has been going on “for many, many years," Weissman also noted. He didn’t say so but I think we all know that Fox News’ whole brand is built on that kind of divisive and inflammatory rhetoric.

Reid asked what made Weissman stop supporting Trump. He said it began with “a very interesting dialogue” with Sarah Silverman on Twitter and that started a change in his worldview.

WEISSMAN: So when my worldview changed, I was able to see who Trump really is. And I realized he is not this patriotic businessman. He dodged the draft five times. He had business failures … the person that Fox News and other media outlets made him out to be, he is not that in real life. And when I realized that and I learned that that’s not who I voted for — when I voted for Trump, I was picturing somebody else.

I believe that indirectly explains why Trumpers cling to him: because to reject him would require a change in worldview and they are unwilling and/or unable to change their worldview (at this point).

You can watch it below, from MSNBC’s May 3, 2020 AM Joy, via Raw Story.

(H/T reader Eric Jefferson)