Friday Fox Follies - Fox "News" Goes to War

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Soon after this column went to bed last week all hell done broke loose on the Loofah Lad desk: The NYT revealed the serial sexual harasser had prompted cash payouts to be given at least 5 women, totaling some $13 million dollars. This reporter has been writing about The Falafel King’s sexual peccadilloes since the Andrea Mackris lawsuit of 2004.

Then, inexplicably, Emperor Trump, with his own history of sex accusations — and, incidentally, just days after declaring Sexual Assault and Awareness Month — came out in defense of his vanilla milkshaking buddy. This, in essence, called all O’Reilly’s accusers liars. The irony of Trump defending O’Reilly was that a small story blew up bigly. Through the Oval Office Orangutan more people would hear about Loofah Lad’s hypocritical lifestyle. That’s Why Trump’s Defense of Bill O’Reilly Is So Baffling.

FROM THE WAYBACK MACHINE: Remember when Fox “News” slammed President Obama for correctly calling police stupid when they arrested Professor Henry Louis Gates after he broke into his own house? That was the whole reason for the Beer Summit. But now Emperor Trump can accuse Obama of committing felonies and defend his groping buddy O’Reilly, who may have committed felonies, and it’s crickets from Fox.

It was only after Emperor Trump launched 59 tomahawk missiles into Syria, I became convinced that Bill O’ got Trump to launch the attack to get him off the front page. It worked with Fox & Friends. This morning the war was all that they seemed to want to talk about. The occupants of the Curvy Couch were ecstatic about Emperor Trump’s show of strength and determination, as this unedited air check demonstrates:

Sorry about that. The control room got the clips mixed up.

Read all of O’Reilly, Trump, And Ailes: The Culture Of Predatory Harassment Dominating The Conservative Movement, in which Media Matters notes:

Of course, the problem of sexual harassment and assault is by no means limited to only “conservative” workplaces, but it’s telling that three of the most powerful men in Republican politics over the past few decades — Trump, O’Reilly, and Ailes — have all repeatedly been accused of systemic harassment of female employees and predatory behavior.

That’s why the Lawyer For Victims Of Fox Harassment [says]: Trump Is Empowering Harassers.

No matter. Fox “News” is standing by its ratings powerhouse: Amid News of Harassment Settlements, Report Says O’Reilly’s Contract Was Recently Renewed at Fox. Until he’s no longer a ratings powerhouse, or he costs the station too much money as advertisers flee. The rush out the door started to resemble the Glenn Beck advertising boycott I wrote about under the nom de troll Aunty Em Ericann over at NewsHounds. This as one advertiser, after another, after another defected. Now O’Reilly’s down to Wonder Hanger Max and Sea-Bond.

Even before Agent Orange came out in favour of sexual assault there were several calls for O’Reilly’s firing — from more than one columnists, newspapers, legislators, civil rights attorneys, and groups, including the National Organization of Women. Some called for an investigation.

Despite Fox banging the war drums the headlines just kept a’coming:

Fox Contributor Julie Roginsky Sues Fox, Ailes For Sexual Harassment • Fox News offered contributor a big promotion — but only if she’d have sex with Roger Ailes: lawsuit • New Sexual Harassment Allegations Make Clear Fox Never Attempted To Change • The Sexual Harassment Crisis Is Bigger Than Just Bill O’Reilly • O’Reilly Scandal Proves That Sex Predators Stick Together • The Sexual Harassment At Fox As Reported By The Press Throughout The Years • Bill O’Reilly: An awful, awful man • Erik Wemple: Fox News Is A “Cesspool Of Sexual Harassment” • Gretchen Carlson Tweets Support For Fox News Accusers: ‘All I Can Say is Thank You’ • Fox News harassment victim blisters Bill O’Reilly: ‘If you want a date, go on Tinder like everyone else’ • President P***y Grabber Doesn’t Think O’Reilly ‘Did Anything Wrong’ • CNN’s Brian Stelter: This Is ‘A PR Disaster’ For O’Reilly • When O’Reilly Urged People To Boycott An Advertiser That Featured “A Man Who Degrades Women” • Bill O’Reilly Repeatedly Smeared Women Who Spoke Up About Sexual Harassment And Assault

Even Howard Stern is having fun at O’Reilly’s expense:

IRONY ALERT: In his recently released book Bill O’Reilly Writes About Consent In New Book: ‘No Means No’:

In a chapter titled “Social,” O’Reilly and Feirstein impart “some Old School [dating] advice” on readers, which includes:

“5) No means no. It would be easy to make fun of all the hoops college administrators expect their students to jump through today before they engage in any kind of intimacy. But there’s no middle ground here. It’s all about the Old School tenets of respect and responsibility. No means no.”

However, the best take was from Stephen Colbert, who finally broke his silence on Bill O’Reilly:

COMEDY CORNER: Speaking of funny stuff, watch as Seth Meyers Skewers Trump’s Relationship With “State TV” Fox News:

TUCK TUCK BO BUCK: A lengthy profile in the New Yorker is well worth your time, but here are 2 pull quotes from Tucker Carlson’s Fighting Words:

Some cable shows rely on the drama of putting people in the same place, but Carlson’s thrives on remote interviews, which allow his producers to “box” his face, keeping it onscreen so that viewers can watch him react. When Carlson is talking to someone he agrees with, he pulls back, adopting the role of an earnest student seeking edification from a wise professor. But the segments most people remember are the contentious ones. Carlson grows incredulous and furrows his brow; he grows more incredulous and unfurrows it, letting his features melt into a disbelieving smile, which sometimes gives way to a high-pitched chuckle of outrage. One of his favorite tactics is to insist that his guest answer a question that is essentially unanswerable, as when he pressed Bill Nye to tell him what percentage of climate change was caused by human activity, then berated him for evading the question.

[…]

In conversation, Carlson often returns to an unusual disclaimer: “I’m not a deeply moral guy.” Maybe this is his way of playing the rogue. Maybe this is a debater’s ploy—a way of insisting that some principles are so clear that even he can see them. But with Carlson it is wise to consider another possibility: Maybe he means it. And maybe he is right.

FOX RACE RELATIONS:

Third Woman Joins Racial Discrimination Case Against Fox News

VIDEO: Fox News Is Extremely Racist

PASSAGES: As Megyn Kelly [is now] Free to Appear on NBC, there’s a new Reality Check: Megyn Kelly Would Probably be Doing Better Than Fox Wants to Admit at 9pm. Meanwhile, Megyn Kelly [says]: Fox Designed to ‘Isolate and Silence’ Accusers.

Bad news for insomniacs as Fox “News” cancels the awful Red Eye, in favour of another rerun of Tucker Carlson’s crapfest. Therefore, this may be the last place to see who puts the shill in Tom Shillue:

EFFLUENTIAL PIPELINE: Having previously established the closed-loop system that is Fox “News” and the Oval Office, FFF notes this week’s examples:

Trump applauds Fox News coverage of surveillance claim

Hypocrite Trump Attacked Use of Anonymous
Sources in February. Now He’s Citing Them

Trump pushes another Fox News
conspiracy theory stating he was
spied upon before getting nomination

Trump Claims Fake Fox News Scandal
Rest of Media Ignores is ‘The Real Story’

President Trump wants the
FBI to watch more Fox & Friends

FOX BYTES: Why Greta Van Susteren Can’t Be Taken Seriously About Fox’s Sexual Harassment Scandals Anymore • On Hannity, Trump Advisor Suggests Viewers Troll Susan Rice On Twitter • Watch Fox Host Get Ridiculed For His Sad Attempt To Give Trump Credit For The Obama Economy • Fox Business Host Allows Industry CEO To Continue Denying The Real Reason For Coal’s Decline • Fox’s Siegel Ignores High-Risk Pool’s History Of Failure • Fox Blames Democrats For Republicans Deploying Nuclear Option Over Gorsuch Nomination • Watch Martha MacCallum Attack House Intel Member Over Susan Rice – And Then Accuse HIM Of Being ‘Very Partisan’

Headly Westerfield invites you to read Pastor Kenny’s Reply to his latest Pastoral Letter at the Not Now Silly Newsroom.