It’s always hilarious when the hosts of one of the most partisan and fact-free shows on television pompously lecture others about the importance of truth telling in the media. On The View Friday, the hosts attacked Fox News, while ignoring all other media outlets, as a dangerous and dishonest news organization leading Americans astray with misinformation.
This week’s Fox-bash session began as they talked about one case of a person tried in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot blamed “Foxitis” for leading them astray. This prompted Joy Behar to ask the panel if the news network was to blame.
ABC News legal analyst and View co-host Sunny Hostin claimed this wouldn’t be held up in court but argued people should still view Fox with incredulity. “Fox News now at this point should be on notice that what they are doing in terms of their campaign of misinformation is really harmful to their viewers, their very loyal viewers and to this country,” she said, adding that a federal judge in September ruled that primetime personality Tucker Carlson’s commentary should not be looked at as news and he wasn’t “a credible source of information.”
No one batted an eyelash as Friday co-host Ana Navarro, who also works for Fox News' haters and competitor CNN, bashed the network for "hurting journalism."
The former Biden campaign surrogate claimed she was still a Republican but Fox News was "hurting the party," "hurting the country," "hurting democracy," and "hurting journalism," as she blamed Fox for vaccine hesitancy and the Capitol riot.
Joy Behar expressed how aghast she was to find out a family member was concerned about taking the vaccine while trying to get pregnant. “Where did she come up with that? She must have heard it on Fox because you never hear it on any legit station. They're very dangerous about this vaccine!” she baselessly claimed.
Co-host Sara Haines even touted how people could trust the media before Fox News came around:
People on TV -- with great power comes great responsibility. I grew up when you tuned into the nightly news and those people, you could trust them. Although there is rampant distrust in the media there are a lot of people who still tune in and they think they're telling me something and they believe them. So the people I hold in the highest standard are the people that knowingly betray the facts, intellectually dishonest people that look at these viewers and guide them into the dark for a paycheck…
Behar ended the segment attacking anyone who worked at Fox News as having “sold their soul to the devil” for a paycheck:
Yes, and you know what, we can lay the blame right at the door at Rupert Murdoch and Lachlan Murdoch who pays these people these enormous amounts of money and make it very hard for them to say no to the lies. You know, I think people should make a living, but not if you really have to sell your soul to the devil and put out false and dangerous information which is basically what they’re doing for a paycheck, and its a big one believe me I’ve seen the information.
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Read a partial transcript below:
The View
5/7/2021
SUNNY HOSTIN:….[I] will say this, what is very interesting is that Fox News now at this point should be on notice that what they are doing in terms of their campaign of misinformation is really harmful to their viewers, their very loyal viewers and to this country. At this point my understanding is it's already facing two defamation lawsuits from smart matic and dominion voting systems for their false claims relating to their technologies. What some viewers need to understand a federal judge in September ruled that Tucker Carlson is not a credible source of news and that he is not stating actual facts about the topics he discusses and is engaging in exaggeration and nonliteral commentary and that anyone listening to him should be listening to him with an appropriate amount of skepticism about the statements that he makes. So putting that into consideration, no, no judge is going to listen to that argument.
JOY BEHAR: That's right. Ana, so you're still a Republican I understand. Tell me, is Fox News hurting your party or helping it?
ANA NAVARRO: Look, I think it's hurting the party. I think it's hurting the country. I think it's hurting democracy. I think it's hurting journalism. We've seen the result of it. We've seen what's happening with vaccinations and the hesitancy among some Republicans. It has a lot to do what they're from faux news. You know, the insurrection on January 6th , the spreading of the big lie, it's a lot of what's being heard on faux news. It’s incredible, you really can’t underestimate the effect of this. The other day I had this lady come up to me who looked like she was the last survivor from the Mayflower asking me about Joe Biden being too old and having dementia. Because they hear that over and over again from Fox News. Look, what we're seeing play out in Congress right now, what we're seeing play out with Liz Cheney, there have been Republicans who’ve come on this show, who come on every network, who’ve said it all over the place, screamed it from every hill, people like Tara Setmayer, people Amanda Carpenter, a lot of former Congress people, who said this is not about principles. It's not about being Republican or not Republican enough. It's not about ideology. It's about truth or lies. It's about right or wrong. It's one purity test. It's a cultist purity test. Do you follow and are beholden to Trump or are you not? That's the only test that Fox puts up. That’s the only test that the Republican House puts up. It's frankly disgusting. It is destructive to everything -- democracy, the country, the party and brain cells.
JOY BEHAR: Yeah, and I think they also seem to be telling people that the vaccine is dangerous, even though millions of people have been vaccinated. I just found out yesterday there are people in my family, my family, who are not getting the vaccine because they're worried. One of them said she wants to get pregnant and she's afraid it will harm her pregnancy. Where did she come up with that? She must have heard it on Fox because you never hear it on any legit station. They're very dangerous about this vaccine. We'll never hit herd immunity if we keep listening to these people. Am I right or wrong? I’m right. [chuckling] Ok, Sara, have you seen anyone afflicted with Foxitis?
SARA HAINES: Now this is a virus that's been around for a while and we should definitely be working on a vaccine. But all joking aside, I think that Fox is not to blame when you're talking about an alleged insurrectionist. That took individual choice as Sunny referenced. That's a problem. I do have some sympathy for Fox News watchers because there’s a certain amount of people that watch in good faith and they happen to have chosen Fox to trust. People on TV-- with great power comes great responsibility. I grew up when you tuned into the nightly news and those people, you could trust them. Although there is rampant distrust in the media there are a lot of people who still tune in and they think they're telling me something and they believe them. So the people I hold in the highest standard are the people that knowingly betray the facts, intellectually dishonest people that look at these viewers and guide them into the dark for a paycheck. Everyone I know that's been anywhere near Fox, that has worked there, that knows people there, I always said I could forgive these Fox people a little if they truly believed in what they are saying and those are those convictions. I have no forgiveness for people doing otherwise. Every person I’ve asked said they absolutely know what they're doing is wrong, and they choose to do it.
JOY BEHAR: Yes, and you know what, we can lay the blame right at the door at Rupert Murdoch and Lachlan Murdoch who pays these people these enormous amounts of money and make it very hard for them to say no to the lies. You know, I think people should make a living, but not if you really have to sell your soul to the devil and put out false and dangerous information which is basically what they’re doing for a paycheck, and its a big one believe me I’ve seen the information.
