What if it was Sean Hannity rather than Jamal Khoshoggi?

[Cyrano]

What if we were talking about Sean Hannity rather than Jamal Khoshoggi? Would our reaction be the same?

I'm struggling with my conscience on this. After all, Khoshoggi was a journalist, activist, and opponent of Saudi Arabia, -- a country which still dwells somewhere in the dark ages.

Sean Hannity is a propagandist for Fox "news" who nightly spews bullshit
about the greatness of great orange leader.

The question I'm asking is, would we be as outraged if what happened to Khoshoggi, happened to Hannity?

And I'm having a real problem with my own concept of morality.

Knoshoggi was a journalist fighting for a cause.

Hannity is, at best, a biased journalist, fighting for a cause he believes in.

So what if it were Hannity instead of Khoshoggi?

(Full disclosure: My personal belief is that Hannity is a right-wing whore who is working in the service of destroying democracy in America.)

But my opinion aside, is he a journalist? And would journalists around the world be as outraged as they are about Khoshoggi?

I really don't know.

So let me ask again: If this were Hannity and not Khoshoggid, would the worldwide journalism community be demonstrating the same outrage?

[JI7]

1. this is kind of useless since hannity isn't a journalist

you might as well ask if we would be outraged if it happened to ted nugent.

[Cyrano]

8. Millions of American believe Hannity is a journalist

So here's the thing. Are we, the majority correct in thinking he's nothing but a propagandist with a microphone?

Or are the millions of Americans, who believe he is a journalist, correct?

I know that most of us here on DU believe he's a man who spews shit nightly.

But can you convince millions of people that he's not a journalist?

[JI7]

10. who cares ? most think he is a joke. the right wing trump base likes him

[DBoon]

27. Millions of Americans believe Ted Nugent is a talented musician

and?

[Canoe52]

28. Millions believe tRump is a stabile genius, can you convince millions he's not?

[CatMor]

2. I can't be objective with this question .....

I would be thrilled if it happened to Hannity so would want the worldwide journalism community to feel the same.

[onecaliberal]

3. He's not a real journalist, but yes.

[tazkcmo]

4. Hannity isn't a journalist.

His murder would just be one of hundreds that happen on a daily basis.

[dalton99a]

5. If the Saudis want to cut up Trump's friends, hey

[MLAA]

6. Maybe an interesting question would be..

Would the Magats be upset if it were hannity and impotus ignored it and sided with the Saudis?

[yardwork]

7. Are you serious?

Are you seriously asking if we wouldn't be appalled if a foreign government abducted, murdered, and dismembered Sean Hannity or anybody else?

The main difference is that the Republicans would be appalled along with us.

[Cyrano]

9. But what about the international journalism community?

What would their reaction be?

[yardwork]

12. I think you're mixing two things.

Yeah, most reasonable people have contempt for Hannity as a journalist.

But the attack itself is horrific aside from the terrible implications against journalism.

[nevergiveup]

11. WW III ?

[H2O Man]

13. Or, what if it was Elmer Fudd?

Like Hannity, Mr. Fudd is a cartoon character popular with a specific segment of the population.

[Bettie]

14. If Hannity were killed in the same way?

I'd feel it was horrifying and terrible.

I wouldn't be sad that he was dead.

[Turin_C3PO]

32. My feelings exactly.

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

15. If only........ I mean yeah..... What you said.... But seriously, this

whole thing is goddamn horrible. And it's not like they're even bothering to do a halfway decent job of covering it up.

[Hortensis]

16. It'd be the same evil. Just not the same loss

of a man's contribution to society.

And if Trump instructed his administration not to inform properly Hannity that Saudi Arabia was planning his murder (as is our standard procedure), I would consider that, all by itself, cause to remove him from the presidency.

My reaction would be the same. Not the slightest difference. I would admire Hannity (for the first time ever) for making his last contribution the reporting of his own kidnapping, torture and murder.

[Cyrano]

17. Everyone here on DU hates Hannity, but,

the basic question stands. Is he a journalist?

We all consider Fox "news" to be a joke.

We've also considered most right-wing newspaper columnists to be jokes, propagandists and whores for a cause we hate. Are they considered to be journalists?

Sooo, by that standard, is Hannity a journalist?

[LuvLoogie]

18. Sean Hannity doesn't leave his studio to "report" on anything.

He is a propagandist with a team of shills and liars. And he is a fucking coward. He would never walk into a sketchy situation where he feared for his life.

Use William Krystal or Charles Krauthammer for comparison. That would be more appropriate. Or perhaps a resident alien reporter that speaks out against Scandinavian socialism.

[DFW]

19. Aside from the different ends of the political spectrum

Khoshoggi was a journalist. He investigated, dug up information, and reported his findings as he understood them to be true.

Hannity is a propagandist. He investigates nothing and does not care what is true and what is not. His show spews out propaganda whose intent is purely to entertain and reinforce loyalty from a group of people who already want to hear what he has to offer.

If, as I do, you find true journalists to be useful (full disclosure--my father was one for over fifty years), and propagandists not so, then I see no moral contradiction in having different reactions if the fates of Khoshoggi and Hannity had been reversed.

The Saudis had no more moral right to do what they (obviously) did to Khoshoggi than Trump would have had doing it to Rachel Maddow. As for Hannity, my favorite comparison would be what the Soviets would have done to Göbbels if they had managed to get their hands on him in 1945, but they never did, so one can only speculate.

[dalton99a]

22. +1.

[Trust Buster]

20. Hannity kisses Trump ass who in turn kisses Saudi ass. Hannity is not taken seriously on the world

Stage.

[Buckeyeblue]

21. It would be horrible

As much as I deplore Hannity, I don't advocate for anyone's murder. Once you go there, you can't go back.

[Cyrano]

23. I must agree with you, Buckeyeblue

The murder of anyone, anytime, anywhere is unacceptable.

I believe that Hannity should be shunned by decent society. Not killed. Just ignored and reviled.

[MiniMe]

29. This!

[JHB]

24. The murder demands outrage no matter who it was, or whether he was a journalist

Beyond that, though, ... in that scenario Hannity would have died by the very sort of abuse of and abusive power that he has spent his carer trying to bring about. Hoist with his own petard.

[marylandblue]

25. Murdering anyone in a consulate is outrageous

Flagrant violation of international law. Even worse if it is a well known critic.

[blm]

26. When was Hannity ever a journalist? He's a RW entertainer and would admit to

not being a journalist who had to adhere to a journalistic standard if he ever had to go to court to prove his broadcast ‘reporting’ was accurate.

Don’t want anyone murdered, but, don’t want propagandists mistaken for journalists either. Hannity contributes every day to stoking the murderous rages of the GOPNazis and Dylan Roofs of this world.

[Talitha]

30. Sean Hannity instead of Jamal Khoshoggi?

Hell, I'd have party balloons ALL OVER my lawn!

[Turin_C3PO]

31. I hate Sean Hannity.

I don’t believe he’s a journalist in any sense of the word. But I would definitely be angry if a foreign country abducted and executed him. I wouldn’t feel the anger in my bones but my brain would be appalled lol.

[Oneironaut]

33. It's wrong in any way. Anyone who justifies killing journalists should leave our party immediately.

Say, for example, Hannity reported on something bad Putin did. Putin sends an assassination team to kill Hannity. In what universe is that less outrageous? Not one I want to live in.

It doesn’t matter if Hannity is a propagandist. Excusing murder would be massive leap off the cliff into crazyland. All journalists need to be protected.

[UTUSN]

34. As Jack BENNY said, "I'm *thinking*!1 I'm *THINKING*!1"

When a mugger pointed a gun at him and said, "Your money or your life!1"

[Demonaut]

35. terrible comparison with little context

but of course we'd outraged

[erpowers]

36. The Same or Bigger

The reaction would be the same or bigger. The reaction from American journalists might actually be bigger since Sean Hannity is an American. Just about all journalists on the left would join forces with the right and call for Hannity to be either released or those for those who caused him harm to be brought to justice.