MSNBC host Katie Phang made the obligatory disclaimer that "we all respect the First Amendment."
But in the same breath in her interview of Dem Rep. Eric Swalwell aired on her Saturday show, Phang suggested to Swalwell that there should be "congressional oversight, regulations, some type of gatekeeping" of Fox News.
Having thus been teed up, Swalwell teed off in a disturbing direction, floating the possibility of denying US troops the freedom to watch Fox News.
And just like Phang with her phony expression of devotion to the First Amendment, Swalwell piously professed, "I don't want to get into the business of telling troops what they can and cannot watch."
But he proceeded to suggest just that.
I don't want to get into the business of telling troops what they can and cannot watch. But if you have a news station that a court is going to rule is, in its evening hour, perpetuating dis- and misinformation, I don't know if I disagree with [inaudible, maybe "those"?] that saying that we need to take a look at how this is being broadcast to our troops.
So I don't think we are without complete recourse.
Note Swawell's ominous last line, "I don't think we are without complete recourse." Translation: "we have ways of making Fox News stop talking!"
Imagine the Biden administration creating a Bureau of Television Truth—Armed Forces Division, with the power to ban shows not to its liking! And as its first commissar, why not . . . Eric Swalwell!
MSNBC's Katie Phang suggesting that their should be "congressional oversight" and "gatekeeping" on Fox News, and Dem Rep. Eric Swalwell floating the notion that US troops should be prohibited from watching Fox News was sponsored in part by Quickbooks, Subaru, ADT, VisionWorks, and T-Mobile.
Here's the transcript.
MSNBC
The Katie Phang Show
3/12/23
8:22 am ET
ERIC SWALWELL: The evidence now shows that everyone at Fox knew that the election fraud claims were bs, but they spun them and told them anyway. And what happened? Well obviously, it hurt Dominion financially and reputationally. It hurt the country even more because a mob was assembled and aimed at the Capitol and we're still -- we're still healing from. And so, it looks like this is going to trial. I hope there's some accountability. And maybe, hitting them where it hurts most, you know, the pocketbook, will bring reforms in the evening hour, at Fox News.KATIE PHANG: So, let's talk about the harm to the country. Because I think that's the most important thing. Yes, Dominion voting systems reputational harm, lost profits. There could be a dollar, an amount that was going to make them whole.
I'm wondering a lot abou Americans and the disinformation and the misinformation that was pumped out of Fox News. Has there been any discussions in Congress about, maybe, congressional oversight, regulations, maybe the FCC getting involved?
I know we all respect the First Amendment, Congressman, but should there be some type of gatekeeping that happens so that this doesn't happen again?
SWALWELL: Well again, I think about our troops. And I've been all over the world and have visited our troops in some of the harshest places. And nothing makes them feel more like home than their access to American television programming. And a popular channel is Fox News.
And again, I don't want to get into the business of telling troops what they can and cannot watch. But if you have a news station that a court is going to rule is, in its evening hour, perpetuating dis- and misinformation, I don't know if I disagree with [inaudible, maybe "those"?] that saying that we need to take a look at how this is being broadcast to our troops.
I hope that's an incentive for Fox News to clean up its evening hour, starting with Tucker Carlson and going late into the evening with Laura Ingraham. They all spun and told these lies.
So I don't think we are without complete recourse.
