The Blaze’s Dana Loesch unleashed on the liberal media Thursday evening, during her appearance on Fox News’ The Kelly File, for creating the atmosphere for “fake news” to flourish. And she cited the Media Research Center to do it. “It was the Media Research Center and they discovered that about 8 percent of voters, they determined that maybe if what they had believed was being said about Hillary Clinton that they saw on the news, maybe if they would have believed it, it would have had an impact on the way that they voted,” she stated, “70 percent of voters don’t trust the media, that’s and MRC poll from last week.”
Fox News’ Digital Politics Editor Chris Stirewalt agreed that the public has a great distrust for the media, and argued that the media themselves were to blame. “So, we earned it in the large part. The broken faith with the American people by dishonest reporting, heavily biased reporting passing itself off as objective journalism, decades of mistakes…” he noted.
And according to Stirewalt it set the stage for the 2016 election cycle, “So all of these decades of misconduct laid open the door in 2016 that you had both campaigns, particularly Donald Trump waging war against the press.”
Going farther than Stirewalt, Loesch explained that the public was happy with Trump’s fight with the main stream media because they had to put up with years of the media’s own fake news stories about them:
Back in 2008, if you didn't vote for Barack Obama, then maybe you have some racist tendencies. That’s how this started. And this in 2010 before the healthcare—the unaffordable health care was passed, that there was a whole story of congressional members that were spit on by Tea Party demonstrators in Washington, DC. There was zero proof of this. It was a made up story. Nothing was confirmed. And it kept going and going the stories kept getting more outrageous.
She reminded viewers that it wasn’t purposely bias websites spreading the nonsense, but “major network news that was doing this.” “I remember there were reports of Tea Party activists that were carrying firearms but they were cropping people out that you couldn't tell it was a black American voter who was carrying a firearm lawfully,” Loesch recalled, “I mean that’s the kind of stuff they did, so people were fed up.”
Kelly shared the public’s frustration exclaiming, “It's almost like you just want a do-over. Let's start with media over again. You know, it's gotten so clammed up with bad information and bad actors.”
Towards the end of the segment, Stirewalt had a dire warning for the public concerning a heavily biased media, “Which is, if we can't be sure that we're telling people the truth, and there aren’t trusted sources, we won't keep the Republic.”
Transcript below:
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FNC
The Kelly File
November 17, 2016
9:43:46 PM EasternMEGYN KELLY: Fake News! It's apparently a real thing though I don't know if it was a real cause of Hillary's defeat. Let’s just start with-- Apparently the fake stories, the biggest ones include that Mrs. Clinton sold weapon to ISIS, that the pope endorsed Donald Trump [panel laughter], that Ireland was accepting American refugees fleeing Donald Trump [panel laughter], and that RuPaul, the drag queen, you know, right, said he was groped by Trump.
DANA LOESCH: Woah, that RuPaul story. I’ll tell you what right there. That probably moved a lot of needles. [Kelly laughs]
CHRIS STIREWALT: Don’t say that.
LOESCH: There was a story where [laughter] no. Seriously, though. There was a story where it was—no. It was the Media Research Center and they discovered that about 8 percent of voters, they determined that maybe if what they had believed was being said about Hillary Clinton that they saw on the news, maybe if they would have believed it, it would have had an impact on the way that they voted. But nobody trusts the media. 70 percent of voters don’t trust the media, that’s and MRC poll from last week. So I don't really think -- and those are so outlandish too, the RuPaul. It’s my favorite. I haven’t heard that one until tonight.
…
STIREWALT: The sustained attack on the press—So, we earned it in the large part. The broken faith with the American people by dishonest reporting, heavily biased reporting passing itself off as objective journalism, decades of mistakes brought—
KELLY: Some of which was revealed in the WikiLeaks.
STIREWALT: Some of it was revealed in WikiLeaks. And others were revealed by turning on the television for some channels going, “Oh, I see how it is.” So all of these decades of misconduct laid open the door in 2016 that you had both campaigns, particularly Donald Trump waging war against the press. Hillary Clinton says, “It's because of the coverage of my e-mails that I'm in trouble.” It’s like, actually it's because of the e-mails that you're in trouble. And then Donald Trump, of course, with an all out Anzio beachhead attack on the press. “CNN sucks, CNN sucks.”
KELLY: Disgusting was his favorite.
STIREWALT: Rage and hate against the press. So, he ran against the press and Clinton did to a degree too.
LOESCH: He skull stomped the press. I mean, there’s no other way to put it. We have to – It’s colorful language but that's exactly what happened. But the thing is, he did to the American media what so many voters have wanted to see happen for the longest time. I mean, think about this. Back in 2010, even before that, back in 2008, if you didn't vote for Barack Obama, then maybe you have some racist tendencies. That’s how this started. And this in 2010 before the healthcare—the unaffordable health care was passed, that there was a whole story of congressional members that were spit on by Tea Party demonstrators in Washington, DC. There was zero proof of this. It was a made up story. Nothing was confirmed.
And it kept going and going the stories kept getting more outrageous. This wasn't a left or right leaning website; it wasn’t a right leaning website that was doing this. This was major network news that was doing this. I remember there were reports of Tea Party activists that were carrying firearms but they were cropping people out that you couldn't tell it was a black American voter who was carrying a firearm lawfully. I mean that’s the kind of stuff they did, so people were fed up.
KELLY: Now it’s like-- It's almost like you just want a do-over. Let's start with media over again. You know, it's gotten so clammed up with bad information and bad actors, in some cases. In the eyes of the viewers in particular.
STIREWALT: Social media is great because it connects people in ways that they haven't been before. The success of Donald Trump is a reflection, not just of his ability to share information or misinformation. But it is a reflective of the ability to create a network and an organization of people that transcends normal networks. Great, that's really good. But there is something we have to pay attention to. Which is, if we can't be sure that we're telling people the truth, and there aren’t trusted sources, we won't keep the Republic.
…
