Can we force Fox news remove the "fair and balanced" claim.

[Phrogman]

Isn't there some regulation about truth in advertising?
Wasn't professional wrestling forced to change to "sports entertainment"?

Lets get Fox to publicly remove their "fair and balanced" slogan. Theres plenty of documentation around to prove that is a blatantly false advertisement claim.

Please, lets get that pulled down ASAP. Make them quit misleading the American public.

We should be going after the media just as hard as this administration. They let this all happen.

[BlooInBloo]

1. For my part, such outlets only lay down what the idiot public will pick up....

... I'd rather not trample on anyone's freedom of speech; I'd rather get smarter listeners. To each his/her own, I suppose.

[Phrogman]

4. This is not a freedom of speech issue, its truth in advertising issue.

theres a big difference.

[UnrepentantUnitarian]

6. I'd just be happy with a disclaimer...

...saying that Fox is really an "advocacy channel" whose mission it is to do the bidding of its master, Republican activist Roger Ailes. You think we could get that? The disclaimer should appear each and every time the term "fair and balanced" is used.

[jilln]

2. Remember a couple years ago when PeTA sued the California Milk Board

or whoever for saying milk comes from happy cows, and in the miserable conditions they're REALLy kept in there's no way the cows are happy?

The court ruled that since the Milk Board is a government agency, the truth in advertising law does not apply to them.

On edit: Oops, I had it backwards. It IS gov't, so therefore it doesn't apply.

[rumpel]

3. File a complaint at FTC here are the facts

"Truth in Advertising"

GENERAL ADVERTISING POLICIES

What truth-in-advertising rules apply to advertisers?
Under the Federal Trade Commission Act:

advertising must be truthful and non-deceptive;
advertisers must have evidence to back up their claims; and
advertisements cannot be unfair.

http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/buspubs/ad-faqs.htm

"We should be going after the media" good idea.

[Phrogman]

7. Without Fauxnews help, Bush would never have been able to steal the 2000 election

They're fair game.

[acmejack]

11. FTC refused to address it, said it was a first amendment issue.

Move On filed suit with the FTC in 2004 against FNC, but facts, they don't no steenkin' facts (obviously). See my post below.

[Gwerlain]

5. I've said this before and I'll say it again...

screw balance. How about TRUTH?

[ecstatic]

8. a long time ago, a study showed that FNC viewers were most uninformed

http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=03/10/08/1554236

[DaveJ]

9. Fox will be less relevant as more people get their information online

Discussion groups like these are unfiltered, and will be the place people get their information going forward.

[acmejack]

10. Already been tried!

Move on tried & Media Matters filed suit with the FTC to no avail!

Today's issue of Broadcasting and Cable Magazine reports FTC Won't Investigate Fox Slogan:

"Federal Trade Commission Chairman Timothy Muris sees no way for his agency to investigate the fairness or accuracy of Fox News Channel's slogan "Fair and Balanced" without getting in First Amendment territory where the commission doesn't belong. Responding to a petition by MoveOn.org that the slogan is false advertising, he said, "There is no way to evaluate this petition without evaluating the content of the news at issue. That is a task the First Amendment leaves to the American people, not a government agency."

Here's a long list of the terrible things they've done, though...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fox_News_Channel_controversies_and_allegations_of_bias

[Name removed]

12. Deleted message

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[Swamp Rat]

21. Now now! No calling people names!

"stop bitching about fox news
Posted by tpp5

you sound moronic. i know you would be the first person to bash a right winger if he complained about liberal media, liberal hollywood, blah blah blah. you're doing the same thing. you are as dumb as right wing nut jobs."

Please review the rules: http://www.democraticunderground.com/forums/rules.html



Welcome to DU! :hi:

[QuestionAll...]

13. there was a case sometime ago, about truth, and fox, et al.

law ruling was, Fox doesn't have to tell the truth.

Hopefully someone can help me. I forget the journalists names - it was a big deal in regards to 'news networks' about 4, 5 years ago or so.

[newsdude]

14. "Fair and balanced"

cease to have meaning as words.
I shudder when anyone uses the term anymore.

Same thing with "We report, you decide."

Great journalistic cliches that have been branded in some fantastic Orwelliam campaign.

What I do think, though, is that there needs to be some way to count Fox News and the Chrisitan networks as paid political advertisements.

But even that's next to impossible. The lines get blurry real quick.

[boolean]

17. The phrases themselves SCREAM conservative bias

Fair and balanced? How can thee TRUTH be fair or balanced? We report you decide? Decide WHAT? Any non biased journalist would report the truth. There is no decision involved in determining what is true and what is not. The truth is simply the truth.

What these two slogans simply do is pander to the conservative base that has been sold on the lie that the media is "liberally biased". "Fair and balanced" and "We report, you decide" makes these ignorant freepers feel like they are receiving truth from conservatively biased lying.

[NOLADEM]

15. Media License holders have an obligation to the public

We could have their license revoked, which would put them off the air.

They act criminally when they conspire to slander or defame someone.

They should be castrated.

Alternately, we could re-instate the Fairness Doctrine.

[Name removed]

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[Kingofalldems]

18. ?

:popcorn: What does Michael Moore have to do with this?

[Name removed]

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[Kingofalldems]

20. Tell us about the untruths of Mr. Moore

Be specific please, and back it up.

[Name removed]

23. Deleted message

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[DaveJ]

25. Again, what does MM have to do with this?

Do you think FOX is fair and balanced?

[Name removed]

28. Deleted message

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[DaveJ]

29. Okay, and the question was

Should we try to force Fox to stop false advertising. They use the public airwaves therefore the public has some say in the matter. Personally I don't care because I don't watch Fox anyway and I doubt anyone is going to be taking them seriously in the future anyway. I can see how others might mind though....

[AllieB]

27. Hi tpp5

That was artistic license. The point of the schene was to show how easy it is to get a gun. Do you have any others? What about Fahrenheit 9/11?

[Name removed]

30. Deleted message

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[DaveJ]

33. Sorry to bother you, but, you might want to start another thread about Moore

I think Moore is a talented film maker and revolutionary in his technique. Most people know he is biased. He makes no claim of being fair and balanced, like Fox does.

[AllieB]

24. I'll have some of that

:popcorn:

Why do they always bring up Michael Moore? It's like an obsession!

[tritsofme]

31. Such regulations don't apply to cable/satellite stations. nt

[Lex]

22. Reinstituting the "Fairness Doctrine" would be helpful

for starters.

"The Fairness Doctrine is a former policy of the United States's Federal Communications Commission. It required broadcast licensees to present controversial issues of public importance, and to present such issues in an honest, equal and balanced manner."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairness_Doctrine

[sendero]

26. Fair and Balanced..

... has become a laughingstock, a joke, an overt pronouncement of bias to many if not most Americans.

They can call that anchovie a halibut, but only the dumbest of society is taken in. So even if there were some legal remedy (which there isn't and shouldn't be, they are making a subjective statement) it really isn't necessary.

[MadJohnShaft]

34. Yes Fair and Balance is either a joke or now has a wink-wink attached

[Cleita]

32. I don't no if you could do a civil suit, like sue them for

misleading claims that caused you some harm, maybe voting for the wrong candidate and getting your rights taken away like the habeas corpus thing. I don't know maybe a clever lawyer can cook something up for a class lawsuit.

Of course it would have to be settled out of court and maybe one of the terms could be making them to tell the unbiased truth. I really don't think there is much of a chance for getting them to change their stripes other than not watching them so they go out of business.