Wednesday, January 12, 2022

Fox Devoted Only 88 Seconds To January 6 Committee's Request To Talk To Hannity
(Zero Discussion About Why; No Statement From Hannity)

The News About Sean Hannity Doesn't Get Much Traction At Fox
Paul Farhi, Washington Post, January 7, 2022 (my emphasis)

Much of the media world scrambled to cover the revelation this week that the congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection is seeking the cooperation of Fox News host Sean Hannity. But his employer wasn't part of that rush.

The unexpected request — revealed by the committee Tuesday along with text messages Hannity sent to President Donald Trump's aides last year expressing concern before the riot about the White House's plans for that day — generated a flood of news articles as well as hours of panel discussions and analysis on Fox News's cable rivals, CNN and MSNBC.

But it was quieter on the network on which Hannity has starred for the past 25 years. Over three days, Fox News journalists collectively devoted 88 seconds to the news.

Fox News's coverage has consisted of brief mentions during news reports hosted by anchors Bret Baier, Dana Perino and Shannon Bream, the last after midnight on Wednesday. It has offered no discussion, no interviews and no statements from Hannity.

In its brief reporting, Fox News repeatedly cited a statement from Hannity's attorney, Jay Sekulow, arguing that the committee's request "would raise serious constitutional issues including First Amendment concerns regarding freedom of the press."

Yet none of the airtime that Fox News has devoted to the matter has explained why the committee wants to talk to Hannity — because he was the author of dozens of text messages that suggested advance knowledge about Trump's efforts to undermine the election results.

"He can't mention the election again. Ever," Hannity wrote to White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) in late December. "I do NOT see January 6 happening the way he is being told," he wrote to Meadows, who also got Hannity's Jan. 5 text: "[I'm] very worried about the next 48 hours."

Despite his lawyer's protestations, it's not clear that Hannity was acting as a journalist in his messages to Trump's inner circle. The host himself has described himself various ways over the years. "I never claimed to be a journalist," he told the New York Times in 2016 when asked about his friendship with Trump. A year later, however, he described himself to the Times as "an advocacy journalist, or an opinion journalist."

Fox News calls Hannity "an opinion host" and doesn't refer to him as a journalist.

Newsmax Morning Show Host: "When WE Take Back The House In November . . ."

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Is There Anyone More Pathetic Than Ted Cruz? The Ongoing Mortification Of Ted Cruz
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Have you ever watched a wind sock deflate until it is just a sad polyester shell crumpled on the pavement? Have you ever left some soft cheese near a hot stove and come back to find a demoralized puddle in its place? Have you ever failed to properly care for a houseplant so that not only do you watch it die, but you spend several weeks witnessing it wither, crumple and lose all dignity?

Relatedly, did you see Ted Cruz on with Tucker Carlson on Thursday night? . . .

The interview could not have been a more vivid reminder that the Republican Party has been undergoing a Change for some time. . . . It is sickening to see, even if the victim is Ted Cruz. If anything, it's more stomach-churning, because he is so eager and so transparent about it. He is thrilled to be undergoing this lobotomy! He tweeted out the interview himself!
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