Hannity And Kilmeade Disregard Fox Memo Discrediting Online Polls

Along with Donald Trump, Fox News hosts have been hyping online polls that found Donald Trump the winner of the first presidential debate. Yesterday, a Fox vice president issued a memo noting that the unscientific polls are virtually meaningless. But Sean Hannity and Brian Kilmeade continued hyping them anyway.

From Business Insider:

Dana Blanton, the vice president of public-opinion research at Fox News, explained in the memo obtained by Business Insider that "online 'polls' like the one on Drudge, Time, etc. where people can opt-in or self-select … are really just for fun."

"As most of the publications themselves clearly state, the sample obviously can't be representative of the electorate because they only reflect the views of those Internet users who have chosen to participate," Blanton wrote.

[…]

"Another problem — we know some campaigns/groups of supporters encourage people to vote in online polls and flood the results," she wrote. "These quickie click items do not meet our editorial standards."

Blanton was apparently responding to multiple Fox News hosts and contributors citing those polls, along with Trump, to help him spin his debate loss as a win.

But Business Insider also noted that Sean Hannity continued citing the meaningless polls last night and Brian Kilmeade did again this morning.

"A representative for Fox News noted both Hannity and Kilmeade are hosts in the network’s lineup of opinion programming. The representative also pointed out that Hannity has publicly disclosed that he has endorsed Trump."

In other words, on Fox News, being an opinion host is a license to distort and dissemble.

Watch Fox’s Charles Krauthammer destroy Bill O’Reilly’s attempt to promote the Trump-winning online polls last night, from the September 27, 2016 The O’Reilly Factor, via Media Matters.

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Showing 5 reactions

commented 2016-10-02 00:52:55 -0400 · Flag

I have great difficulty getting my head around the intelligent, thoughtful arguments of the likes of Krauthammer and the NeverTrumpers at RedState. They sound like real, reasonable people and you imagine for a moment that there is such a thing as a rational Republican.

Then, of course, they ruin the illusion by lapsing into mouth-frothing over Benghazi, talking of Hillary’s untrustworthiness, trickle-down mumbo jumbo and ridiculous conspiracies. Is there such a thing as selective insanity?

commented 2016-09-30 03:55:37 -0400 · Flag

The fact that the suits sent out the memo in the first place signals a change in the air. But these mouthpieces will ignore the suits, and do whatever they want on their programs.

Coming down the pipeline:

1. A Foxie in big, big trouble with the suits.
2. Waiting for contracts to expire.
3. It’s not over for the Nixon Trainee.
4. Shouting match.

commented 2016-09-29 07:55:13 -0400 · Flag

Well who the hell is in charge at FAUX FAKE NEWS? On air idiots or the real bosses!!!!!!

commented 2016-09-28 21:57:46 -0400 · Flag

I’m grateful to Bill for taking the time out from his binge voting for Trump on Brietbart to set us all straight! 👍

commented 2016-09-28 19:51:55 -0400 · Flag

That’s because their viewers wouldn’t know what the fuck an online poll is anyway. They are old senile men who don’t understand what that computer thingamajig does except for playing solitaire and looking at pics of their grandkids.