Once upon a time, in a universe far away from 21st century America, networks that ran news considered it a public trust.
The watchwords were accuracy. But, above all, news divisions sought to give out information, not disinformation. A universe far away from 21st century America.
The most glaring example of where we are now is symbolized by Fox Business’ Trish Regan whose hour-long show Trish Regan Primetime will go “on hiatus” (which in networkspeak can mean it may not return at all).
Proof that:
–There is a God in heaven.
–There is a limit on the ideological bilge some Fox hosts can disseminate.
Variety offers a gentile summary of what happened: “Regan, who hosts a show that tends to focus on the political, has generated some criticism in recent days for hosting segments suggesting that liberals were overstating the effects of the spread of coronavirus to discredit President Donald Trump. A graphic that accompanied one segment that aired Monday read ‘Coronavirus Impeachment Scam'”
The New York Times is is more blunt:
“The Fox Business anchor Trish Regan, whose on-air dismissal of the coronavirus as “another attempt to impeach the president” left her cable network facing a firestorm of criticism this week, has been removed from her prime-time slot for the foreseeable future, the network said on Friday.
Ms. Regan’s 8 p.m. program, “Trish Regan Primetime,” is “on hiatus until further notice,” Fox Business said in a statement. The network declined to say if Ms. Regan would continue to appear on its other programs, saying that its coverage plans for the coronavirus crisis remained in flux.
Fox Business attributed the move to “the demands of the evolving pandemic crisis coverage,” saying it was shifting resources toward daytime coverage of the pandemic and global markets. Both “Trish Regan Primetime” and its follow-up at 9, “Kennedy,” will be replaced by general-interest programs.
Still, the abrupt removal of Ms. Regan — a reliably pro-Trump personality who has twice interviewed the president — came as right-wing media stars have faced growing scrutiny for commentary that played down fears about the coronavirus and suggested that the illness had been overhyped by President Trump’s critics.”
Fox News has generated tons of money with their business model that peppers much of their airtime with commentary or or spin delivered with much certainty that’s either negatively aimed at one party so much so that it has earned itself the nickname “State TV.”
Bloomberg News has noted that “The success of the company hinges almost entirely on Fox News’s profits and controversial ratings push.’ And, putting it in context, Bloomberg News says “The new Fox is valued at $23 billion, most of which hinges on the success of Fox News. About 90 percent of Fox Corp.’s cable-network Ebitda may come from the Fox News brand, estimates Michael Nathanson, an analyst for MoffettNathanson LLC. And with Fox News Channel’s cash-flow margin of nearly 60 percent in 2018, it has a big lead over Comcast Corp.’s MSNBC and AT&T Inc.’s CNN, according to estimates by Kagan, a unit of S&P Global Market Intelligence.”
Is Regan’s “hiatus” signaling more responsible Fox is in the making? You have to wonder why a company making billions on polemics, partisanship and often inflammatory, and polarizing won’t seriously change it’s business model to be more responsible.
You wonder…(Oh, the billions..).
Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.