The Weenie Media Tries to Join the Fight Against Fox News

Jacob Weisberg of Newsweak is clearly afraid of Fox News and the impact it's having on electoral politics in this country. He writes a piece practically sobbing that the most watched cable network (by a whole lot) is somehow harming "real" journalism. Here's how it ends:

That Rupert Murdoch may skew the news rightward more for commercial than ideological reasons is somewhat beside the point. What matters is the way that Fox's successful model has invaded the bloodstream of the American media. By showing that ideologically distorted news can drive ratings, Ailes has provoked his rivals at CNN and MSNBC to experiment with a variety of populist and ideological takes on the news. It's Fox that led CNN's Lou Dobbs to remodel himself into a nativist cartoon. It's Fox that led MSNBC to amp up Keith Olbermann. Fox hasn't just corrupted its own coverage. Though its influence, it has made all of cable news unpleasant and unreliable.

What's most distinctive about the American press is not its freedom but its tradition of independence—that it serves the public interest rather than those of parties, persuasions, or pressure groups. Media independence is a 20th-century innovation that has never fully taken root in Europe or many other countries that do have free press. The Australian-British-continental model of politicized media that Murdoch has implemented at Fox is un-American, so much so that he has little choice but go on denying what he's doing as he does it. For Murdoch, Ailes, and company, "fair and balanced" is a necessary lie. To admit that their coverage is slanted by design would violate the American understanding of the media's role in democracy and our idea of what constitutes journalistic fair play. But it's a demonstrable deceit that no longer deserves equal time.

Whether the White House engages with Fox is a tactical political question. Whether we journalists continue to do so is an ethical one. By appearing on Fox, reporters validate its propaganda values and help to undermine the role of legitimate news organizations. Respectable journalists—I'm talking to you, Mara Liasson—should stop appearing on its programs. A boycott would make Roger Ailes too happy, so let's try just ignoring Fox for a while. And no, I don't want to come on The O'Reilly Factor to discuss it.

Sure, go ahead and appear on those other networks that nobody watches. That'll really advance the cause of good journalism.

What a weenie.

This whole effort is about marginalizing conservative thought, making it "out of the mainstream" and "radical". It's not about good journalism.

And isn't it interesting that Newsweak, which should really be called "News a Week Late", comes out with this column at almost the same moment the White House flacks are saying pretty much the same thing. Is it just a case of "great minds" thinking alike, or perhaps a little coordination with a compliant press?

Chris Wallace called the Obama White House "the biggest bunch of crybabies he'd seen in 30 years in Washington". Looks like Newsweak is making a play for the award.