Ted Koppel Tells Sean Hannity He Thinks He's Bad for America

[DonViejo]

by Josh Feldman | 11:41 am, March 26th, 2017

CBS Sunday Morning today featured a piece from Ted Koppel on America’s serious divisions and a back-and-forth between Koppel and Fox News’ Sean Hannity on the subject.

Koppel opened by talking about the “alternate universes” Americans are living in these days, running clips of people like Hannity, John Oliver, and Tomi Lahren in talking about the people who are “driving the country further and further apart.”

Part of Koppel’s report focused on the rise of conservative media and the influence it’s played on the current state of American politics, citing Rush Limbaugh in particular.

In the snippet of the interview that aired during the segment, Hannity told Koppel that he needs to give the American people a little more credit––that they can distinguish between news and opinion programming.

He sensed Koppel’s cynicism and asked, “You think we’re bad for America? You think I’m bad for America?”

Koppel said, “Yeah.”

Hannity told him “that’s sad” and reiterated his belief that he’s “selling the American people short.”

Koppel offered Hannity a partial compliment by saying he’s very good at what he does, but added that he’s also “attracted people who are determined that ideology is more important than facts.”

http://www.mediaite.com/tv/ted-koppel-tells-sean-hannity-he-thinks-hes-bad-for-america/

[SticksnStones]

1. I watched the segment and came away thinking

There's still this "both sides do it" narrative. Yes he pushed back hard on Hannity (hallelujah!) but as long as facts are still seen as having a liberal slant there will never be a coming together or any kind of healing the divide.

And Koppel certainly showed there's a career to be had in stirring the pot.

[still_one]

3. yup, I couldn't watch it all, because that was the same bullshit that I was hearing with the false

equivalency narrative.

[SticksnStones]

4. I almost turned it off once seeing Hannity's big old head

But my hands were full so it ran.

And Koppel's push back was one for the ages. But it gets surrounded by that "both sides" narrative ~

Nothing will be healed until FACTS are valued once again. It's not enough to claim well there's a difference between reporting and punditry.

Facts are Facts are Facts regardless of the delivery system!

[still_one]

5. Maybe I will give it a go later on an empty stomach

[SticksnStones]

8. Or wait until after the midterms...

[still_one]

10. thanks for the advice

[JEFF9K]

9. Good one!

[klook]

22. Hannity and Koppel - two of the biggest heads on television.

Big difference is that inside Hannity's there's a lot of empty space with a squirrel-sized brain rattling around.

[SticksnStones]

25. Truth.

[Stuart G]

2. Thank You for posting....k and r..

[tblue37]

6. One of these things is not like the others! John Oliver does not fit in that crowd. nt

[Generic Brad]

16. Comedians are not political pundits

It is definitely a false equivalency!

[tblue37]

17. Besides, Oliver does not lie, and he actually does long-form journalism about

important issues!

[Xolodno]

29. Maybe that was his point.

He's not a journalist.

[JEFF9K]

7. "Bad for America" certainly pays well! nt

[Jonny Appleseed]

11. Someone needs to get Jon Stewart back to troll Hannity

He's getting a little too rambunctious lately.

[benld74]

12. Geez, I really miss the Fairness Doctrine

Wonder where the push came from to have
The FCC to remove it
Any takers???

[klook]

23. Killed by the FCC in 1987 (appeal denied in '89) -

4-0 vote by a commission composed of 3 Reagan appointees and 1 Nixon appointee. See Syracuse Peace Council decision.

[c-rational]

30. Agreed

Missing the Fairness Doctrine.... Wasn't it Reagan that got rid of it? Time to bring it back.

[jrthin]

31. It Was. Repubs,

Good at destroying all that is constructive to a decent society. Btw, welcome.

[gopiscrap]

32. welcome to DU

[JHB]

13. Conservatives: (barking at the moon)

Liberals: "Oh my God, they're literally barking at the moon!"

Koppel: "Both sides have turned the volume way up."

[Achilleaze]

14. well, republican propagandists ARE good for RUSSIA

and, of course, as all honest and decent people know, republican propagandists like Hannity are toxic for America. They really suck. And America is paying the price.

[truebluegreen]

15. Koppel's been a both-siderist for years--unwatchable imo--

as has much of the media. I credit/blame the insidious "fair and balanced" BS and even worse, "we report, you decide"--as if "you deciding" has anything to do with reality.

And yeah, lumping John Oliver in with Hannity?

[mdbl]

18. thanks Ted!

Hannity is not only bad for America, he's an affront to legitimate journalists.

[smirkymonkey]

20. +1000

Thank you Ted! I wish Sean would take your words to heart, but the miserable ratfu**er will never see the error of his ways.

[zentrum]

19. John Oilver was

....equated to Hannity? What tripe.

Have lost all respect for Koppel's powers of critical thinking and ability to distinguish true harm from satire and what is and is not false equivalency.

[Gabi Hayes]

21. along these lines MTP is having Hugh Hewitt on again

king of lipless smarm........

[Gabi Hayes]

24. here's all you need to know about that slimy, craven faux journalist:

https://www.democracynow.org/2004/7/29/abcs_ted_koppel_refuses_to_apologize

AMY GOODMAN: Do you think that the ABC and the other networks should apologize for providing an uncritical forum for the administration to lay out their unsubstantiated claims of weapons of mass destruction?

TED KOPPEL: I am glad you phrased your question so nicely. No, I don’t think an apology is due if what you are saying is could we all have been more critical? I think the answer is yes. I must tell you, I am going to be responsive in behalf of Nightline over which I do have some control. We did do a 90-minute town hall meeting, the title of which was Why Now? and the essence of which was: Where is the evidence that there’s an immediate danger to the United States? Did we do enough programs like that? I concede we did not. But that’s a function of perhaps incompetence on my part, but certainly not ill will and I will try and do better the next time, but I don’t think I need to apologize for it.

plenty more after that
why anyone thinks this guy deserves any sort of respect has always been way beyond me, starting with that ''america held hostage'' BS.

[democratisphere]

26. Hannity is a "for hire" propagandist for the right.

Nothing new here.

[lambchopp59]

27. "liberalism has to be defeated... socialism has to be defeated".

So much for "fair and balanced" Hannity! Couldn't help but notice later in the interview, Sean also started to pull one of Faux Noise's tricks: interrupt the guest when he/she starts proposing something factual or down to earth and turn the narrative back to the narrow "talking points" slant. Sean graciously (cough) stopped, being the guest there, and perhaps a glimmer of politeness he's unaccustomed to shone through in deference to the elder interviewer.
Sean's admission here, albeit nauseatingly obvious anyway, is disturbing at least. In a Sean Hannity world, the poor would starve, the working class would be enslaved and eventually there would be very few left with the means to even hear his bloviating. "Higher education" would consist of reinforcing corporate based lies, and we'd be on even a faster track to global warming annihilation than we already are.
The truly, nauseatingly "SAD" part about the RW's sucking up to the corporatists?:
Is how truly insane they'll appear when nature gives us all the smack down.

[Snackshack]

28. "He Thinks"...

That is being overly nice about it.

Hannity is bad for facts/reality period.