Whine, kick and scream about Fox News. What happens? People who do not normally watch Fox News wonder what all the fuss is about. The start to watch Fox News. The learn things that are not being discussed on the other networks. The keep on watching. Proof? Look at the ratings. O'Rielly now has as nearly many viewers as any one of the broadcast networks evening news shows. Fox loves stories like this.

Per Jacob--Anti Obama is unAmerican.It follows therefore that per Jacob , free speech is UnAmerican.Well, Jacob, perhaps Beck is right on target that Obama's pals like you and many of his czars are in fact Commie sympathizers...

Weisberg, you won't get much support for this article. Fox viewers are very loyal, after all, its very comforting to have our preexisting leanings reinforced in such a way as to leave no doubt about our innate self righteousness Non viewers don't feel qualified, and don't really enough to comment because, after watching for just a few minutes and seeing the obvious spin, they simply move on yo another channel.I am moved to comment because my father, now in his 80's ,with very reduced social interaction, gets his news exclusively from fox. Quotes "fair and balanced".He is fair-minded, intelligent, and thoughtful, Used to take subtle pleasure dismembering poorly informed political rantings, often without the speakers awareness.His political views would be defined as conservative centrist. He has become a ranting, quietly, neo- rightist, is often unaware that the views he is expressing have been widely discredited.I should be happy that I now win most of our political "discussions", but instead I'm frightened. If the political views of a man I've respected all my life can be twisted in this fashion,how many more are there out there who never had a chance? I guess its no wonder so many politicians feel they can ignore their "ignorant" constituency and do whatever they please up to and including, at the highest levels, violating the basic rules of our constitution, " for the good of the people". I guess they feel its OK if they do it in a "fair and balanced" fashion.

"a textbook example of biased journalism" says someone from NEWSWEEK

hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

I disagree with both Weisberg and fans of Fox. There is no such thing as objectivity, because all facts are interpreted through an irreducible cultural perspective. News organizations may try to offer opposing points of view, but there will always be a detectable slant that can never be entirely removed though attempts at fairmindedness. Ironically, the left and the right tend to agree on one thing, the validity of the concept of objective truth. But as long as journalists continue to cling to the notion of pristine journalistic objectivity this bias will remain hidden to them. The comments here are a case in point. I cant stand watching Fox, because of my liberal bias, but I don't think Fox defenders like Laurs1 are any more off-base than Weisberg fans like kvasyr. I like Newsweek and the NYT because they confirm my liberal bias, but I don't see them as any more objective in any supposedly universal sense than outlets like Fox. The cultural polarities between red and blue states happen to be so large in this period of time(I dont believe it will always be so ) that we end up with ludicrous mutual bitch-slapping contests on discussion boards like this over whose objectivity is really, really objective. Someday the left and right will jettision the concept of objectivity in favor of something like situated truth, and our conversations will be much more civilized as a result.

I agree that Fox is is un-American. The Germans had their own radio equivalent in the 30's with Josef Goebbels as Rupert Murdoch and Julius Streicher playing the part of Bill O'Reilly.The formula and the attitude are indistinquishable. As I saw Conservative Republicans slowly morphing into what I call "Clozi's" (closet Nazis), I realized that although they present themselves as the "Patriotic Party" they are in effect the "Money, Jewels and Power Party". The party of "Me", not "We". This is what caused me to quit the Republican Party and I hope it causes others to abandon that "Pirate ship" also.

I agree that Fox is is un-American. The Germans had their own radio equivalent in the 30's with Josef Goebbels as Rupert Murdoch and Julius Streicher playing the part of Bill O'Reilly.The formula and the attitude are indistinquishable. As I saw Conservative Republicans slowly morphing into what I call "Clozi's" (closet Nazis), I realized that although they present themselves as the "Patriotic Party" they are in effect the "Money, Jewels and Power Party". The party of "Me", not "We". This is what caused me to quit the Republican Party and I hope it causes others to abandon that "Pirate ship" also. J.Hans Swircek.

bueskies82,
Define successful, please. If that means more money or a bigger audience, then you are correct.

As for the "fair and balanced" portion, let me quote Scott Norvell. On May 20,2005, he was the London bureau chief for FOX News. He said, in the European edition of the Wall Street Journal, "Even we at FOX News manage to get some lefties on the air occasionally, and often even let them finish their sentences before we club them to death and feed the scraps to Karl Rove and Bill O'Reilly."

You can trust your own opinion of what you hear from these folks because you understand where they are coming from; just as when one child is screaming about their sibling, you know you are hearing only one very lopsided side of the issue.

This article is another great example of left wing liberal hypocrisy. Of course their attacks on Bush and Republicans were justified. However, when those attacks come back on them its suddenly "unAmerican". If Fox is so unAmerican and bias, why do they have the most balanced demographic of viewer? From a 2008 Pew study:

CNN: 51% Democrats, 18% Republicans, 23% independents

MSNBC: 45% Democrats, 18% Republicans, 27% independents

Fox News: 33% Democrats, 39% Republicans, 22% independents

Weisberg is clearly incapable of being honest with himself and has chosen to be a propagandist instead of a journalist. Fox News is the only network tat is the least bit critical of Obama and the democrats who control our congress. Guys like Weisberg would distract you with this crap instead of being critical of the people in power.

Cable "news" is in the same category as talk radio - a significant entertainment factor and a lot of preaching to the choir. From my perspective people on the right like Anne Coulter and Rush Limbaugh know how to generate a steady revenue stream. For the left I think I hold Obermann (sic?) and Rangel pander to their own constiturency just as much. And why would an American president even care? Men dying in supsect wars, an economy in shambles (except for the Wall Street bali out victims), and ACORN telling people how to saely file their taxes when their income is from 13 year old sex slaves, should be DOMINIATING his teams thoughts as they struggle for valid solutions. And he is worried about "stupid" policemen, the Olympics (to beneft Daley) and cable stations watched by less than 10% of the American population. Lead the country Mr. President-your concerns are much bigger than someone disagreeing with you. Does this make me a racist now, since I do not agree with his focus on insignificant issues?

Does anyone even take Fox News serious anymore? Is this article even neccessary? IT's a bullshit channel, made for the Palin's of the world. If Fox News told it's idiot viewers that breathing oxygen was an Obama plot to brainwash American citizens these a-holes would asphyxiate themselves. Hmmmm, actually, an America without Fox viewers, our national IQ would increase by 50 points immediately.

Even this Obama lap dog Weisberg cannot deny that Fox news is the far most popular TV news in USA, and more American watch this station that ALL liberal TV news ALTOGETHER. They are the best for a reason - cheap propaganda or teleprompter will not help you from hard questions whether you are left or right (yes, rights also had hard time there), the same reason why Obama preferred to hide from them, in 10 minutes the whole country would know that he is a brainless doll, not the genius.
And "un-american", "enemy of State" next, is not it the start of new witch hunt orchestrated by White House? This article was published suspiciously close to White House announcement that Fox news is their enemy number one (how not to remember Obama's friend Hugo here). We already know that liberals in power are going to shut down several conservative radio hosts by financial and legislative means so far, not by brutal force yet.
By the way, do you know that Glen Beck (not my favorite) set special "red phone" in his TV studio, which can be called any time by White House staff (they confirmed they had received the phone number) in real time to dispute ANY fact on his show - for several days nobody called.

Why then more viewers watch Fox news at 3 am than CNN at 10 pm (it is a fact, not a joke)? They are very, very serious enemies of liberals and must be destroyed in this very short 2 years time interval when Democrats have power, it will be impossible even to dream of it in next 22 years.

I prefer to learn about the abuses at ACORN, the soaring electric bills that will come with Cap and Trade, the problems associated with the Health Care take over by a government that thinks nothing of paying for Mexican abortions. I can't get that at ABC, CBS, NBC, MSNBC, or the NYT. I am a highly educated, Christian, non-Republican conservative. The liberal slant of the other networks is repellant. Sure FOX is slanted, but at least the slant is in my direction!

You forget, J.H. Swircek, that nazi propaganda in 1930s did not have competition, the same as soviet radio. This is how your friends nazis and commis operate. Hugo and Obama have similar aim - to eliminate all opposition stations. Just to the contrary, for several years GOP was in power, and nobody touched your lively liberal stations.