"We" are still in the majority, --- not for long. and hopefully it's not too late to rid our Nation of the Anti-Americans. --- bring it.
On Tuesday, November 24, 2015 at 11:25:55 AM UTC-6, KeithInTampa wrote: > > LOL! > > How sad for folks like Edwing Lyngar, and other confused, minsinformed and > hate filled far left extremists! Thankfully, "We" are still in the > majority, and hopefully it's not too late to rid our Nation of the > Anti-Americans. > > > > On Tue, Nov 24, 2015 at 12:02 PM, plainolamerican <[email protected] > <javascript:>> wrote: > > Fox News tried to tear my family apart: How they failed to incite my > fatherMurdoch’s > news channel invited my dad on to slam me for being liberal. Instead he > proved my anti-Fox points for meEDWIN LYNGAR > <http://www.salon.com/writer/edwin_lyngar/> > > - Share8K > > <http://www.salon.com/2014/03/12/fox_news_tried_to_tear_my_family_apart_how_they_failed_to_incite_my_father/> > - > > <http://www.salon.com/2014/03/12/fox_news_tried_to_tear_my_family_apart_how_they_failed_to_incite_my_father/> > - > - > Post > - 0 > > <http://www.salon.com/2014/03/12/fox_news_tried_to_tear_my_family_apart_how_they_failed_to_incite_my_father/#comments> > - > - > > TOPICS: FOX NEWS <http://www.salon.com/topic/fox_news>, ANDREA TANTAROS > <http://www.salon.com/topic/andrea_tantaros>, THE FIVE > <http://www.salon.com/topic/the_five>, THE RIGHT > <http://www.salon.com/topic/the_right>, GOP > <http://www.salon.com/topic/gop_2>, FATHERHOOD > <http://www.salon.com/topic/fatherhood>, CABLE NEWS > <http://www.salon.com/topic/cable_news>, EDITOR'S PICKS > <http://www.salon.com/topic/editors_picks>,MEDIA NEWS > <http://www.salon.com/category/media/>, POLITICS NEWS > <http://www.salon.com/category/politics/> > [image: Fox News tried to tear my family apart: How they failed to incite > my father] <http://media.salon.com/2014/03/gary_lyngar.jpg>Gary Lyngar on > Fox News (Credit: Fox News) > > A pundit on Fox News was so upset about my recent Salon piece, “I lost my > dad to Fox News: How a generation was captured by thrashing hysteria > <http://www.salon.com/2014/02/27/i_lost_my_dad_to_fox_news_how_a_generation_was_captured_by_thrashing_hysteria/>,” > > that she invited my dad on the network to blast me > <http://video.foxnews.com/v/3308933418001/gary-lyngar-my-son-is-dead-wrong-about-me-and-fox-news/#sp=show-clips>. > > The ham-handed attempt failed, and gave me new respect for my father. Next > to the lunatic Fox News host, Andrea Tantaros, my dad looked like a > textbook case of decency — even when he was dismissing evolution. > > After my post on Salon about my dad’s destructive Fox News habit, my > Twitter feed and email exploded with people sharing their sad stories of > lost loved ones. The sentiments were near universal: That is *my* father, > mother, spouse or other loved one. It seems I could start another political > party of Fox News orphans, and we’d be bigger than the current Republican > Party. > ADVERTISING > > For every five nice comments, there was at least one furious note of some > kind or another. Some had a point. I *was* insensitive comparing the loss > of a parent to Fox News to that of a cancer patient, and I’d reconsider > that choice of metaphor if I could. I would also say that I was too focused > on the older population. It’s true the median age for Fox viewers is 68, > but I should not have dismissed those people who are middle aged or younger > caught up in the impotent fury of Fox News. Sadly, hysteria crosses > generations. > > There were other comments that only served to prove my point about > manufactured outrage. Many Fox defenders dismissed me as a liberal, a > socialist or a communist — those magic words that hold sacred power to so > many. Some people got silly; one person called me a graphic female body > part. > > Labels don’t mean much to me. I embrace some and reject many more. > Listening to Fox News defenders, I heard the world “liberal” spat out like > someone bit into a piece of dog shit. I’m not even sure I like the word > liberal. It’s too reductive and damaged. But why does it matter? Are we not > all human beings? > > I also heard the claim that “the left and MSNBC is exactly the same as Fox > News,” which is of course a false equivalence. I know many on the left who > despise left-wing media. MSNBC does not in any way, shape or form drive > politics on the left. The most common trait I’ve noticed from hanging > around so-called liberals is that they almost *never* agree on anything. > > Despite all the attention, I was still surprised when someone at Fox News > called up my dad. This exemplifies Fox News “balance.” Rather than invite > someone who would challenge their orthodoxy, they called up my dad to > confirm that I am, indeed, just some asshole. > > My dad hadn’t even read the essay (in the previous essay I noted that he > never uses the Internet) when Fox News first called. He finally broke down > and read it. I was never afraid of hurting his feelings, because he doesn’t > take it that way. To Dad, my writing is just white noise. Any hurt feelings > my father *might* have had were overshadowed by his tremendous excitement > about meeting interchangeable, nondescript Fox News host Tantaros. > > Before my father went on the show, I gave him good advice about being on > camera, like “look into the lens instead of the monitor” and “have them > turn up the ear piece” (my father is hard of hearing). Mostly, I told him > to be careful and have fun with it. I have a deeper understanding of media > than perhaps some people, because I’ve earned my living in public relations > for more than 15 years. In my day job, I’ve worked with journalists, > magazines and television news programs far more than the average person. > > In the full interview, which only aired on the Internet (meaning he won’t > be able to see it), my dad surprised me. Even though I don’t agree with > him, he was measured and thoughtful in his comments. Tantaros was a > completely different story. > > She misstated, misunderstood or fibbed about the tone of the original > piece, picking the most salacious moments, trying to rile up my dad. She > acted exactly how I portrayed Fox News in my first piece, needlessly > inflammatory and defamatory. > > Tantaros also led my dad into one of his favorite Fox-inspired topics: > People getting “free stuff.” This is at the heart of current Fox News > messaging. Many hosts use this loaded phrase as shorthand for demonizing > poor people, single women on birth control and the Affordable Care Act. > “You are just trying to avoid the mistakes of history. You’re just trying > to save this country as you say and not give it away for a bunch of free > stuff,” she said toward the end of the interview. > > The on-air piece and opinion piece that followed on FoxNews.com seemed to > dismiss my entire opinion because I went to college. To quote Tantaros: > “You could say (you lost your) son to a raging liberal academia.” > > Despite it all, I’m honestly happy for my dad. He had the chance to appear > on one of his favorite programs. Not many people can say that. In the years > I’ve known him, he’s never been on television or even met a journalist that > I know about. And I’m glad he got a platform to talk about the first essay > I wrote about him. I’m open to constructive dialogue with him, and this > might be as close as we ever get. > ADVERTISEMENT > > In my first essay, I examined not only my father’s Fox habit but also my > own history of watching. The most powerful story in human creation is the > heartfelt conversion, and my personal opinions have changed, even > dramatically in recent years. However, I did not go from one “certainty” to > another, but rather I went from convinced-about-everything to unsure-about > many-things. > > Certainty is the most dangerous emotion a human being can feel in politics > and religion. Certainty stops all outside thought or reason. It closes the > door and is a metaphorical spit in the face of anyone who disagrees. > Changing one’s mind is the essence of critical thinking. As Thomas > Jefferson himself said, “Question with boldness even the existence of a > God; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of > reason, than that of blind-folded fear.” > > In America we’ve stopped hearing each other in the streets, restaurants, > churches and, in my case, in my own home, talking with my father. It is > tragic, but it’s not *all*our fault. Fox News makes a living dividing > people, offering the seductive lie of certainty to some people who just > want to be reassured. Who doesn’t want ironclad answers? > > My father said something to me before the interview that struck me. He > said I’m wrong about Fox News. “Fox didn’t warp me,” he said. “I created > Fox News so I’d have something to watch.” > > What a nugget of pure genius. Dad has always been conservative, although > as I said, not to the extent that he is now. He and like-minded > conservatives created a “news” source that would tell them what they wanted > to hear, without calling into question their preconceived notions. > Confirmation bias is a much different thing than news. > > <http://www.salon.com/2014/03/12/fox_news_tried_to_tear_my_family_apart_how_they_failed_to_incite_my_father/> > You can follow Edwin Lyngar on twitter @Edwin_Lyngar > <https://twitter.com/Edwin_Lyngar> > > On Tuesday, November 24, 2015 at 11:02:27 AM UTC-6, plainolamerican wrote: > > Old white people are drowning in despair and rage. Here's how my father > lost his mind -- thanks to his cable diet > EDWIN LYNGAR <http://www.salon.com/writer/edwin_lyngar/> > > - Share273K > > <http://www.salon.com/2014/02/27/i_lost_my_dad_to_fox_news_how_a_generation_was_captured_by_thrashing_hysteria/> > - > > <http://www.salon.com/2014/02/27/i_lost_my_dad_to_fox_news_how_a_generation_was_captured_by_thrashing_hysteria/> > - > - > Post > - 2818 > > <http://www.salon.com/2014/02/27/i_lost_my_dad_to_fox_news_how_a_generation_was_captured_by_thrashing_hysteria/#comments> > - > - > > TOPICS: THE RIGHT <http://www.salon.com/topic/the_right>, FOX NEWS > <http://www.salon.com/topic/fox_news>, THE FIVE > <http://www.salon.com/topic/the_five>, STUART VARNEY > <http://www.salon.com/topic/stuart_varney>, MEDIA CRITICISM > <http://www.salon.com/topic/media_criticism>, GREATEST GENERATION > <http://www.salon.com/topic/greatest_generation>, > > ... -- -- Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. 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