The News is All Bad

Blame Game

I read an editorial the other day by a liberal columnist who claimed Fox News was destroying the credibility of the national media. She claimed Fox was a pure propaganda machine that tarnished the reputation of news professionals everywhere. I agree with everything she says, but she shows her bias by not reporting both sides of the story. During my mid-day break, I frequently watch the national news. In order to get a middle of the road view of any issue I switch back and for between CNN and Fox. CNN is as far left as Fox is right, so by switching back and forth, I can usually find a balance. I shouldn’t have to do that.

I first became fully aware of just how biased the national media was during the 2016 election. I noticed that CNN and CBS gave Hillary most of their coverage and only reported negative things about Trump. Fox did just the opposite. On election night, I watched as the different networks grudgingly declared Trump the winner. CBS was on the brink of declaring for Trump when one of the senior correspondents said, “Wait! We can still win this.” My first thought was, who is “we”? Then it dawned on me that CBS was part of Hillary’s campaign. After five years, nothing has changed. The closest I have seen Lester Holt come to criticizing a democrat was when he admitted President Biden had a problem at the border. Has anyone heard him say anything good about a Republican? I haven’t.

I am a Conservative, always have been. Because the Republican party leans to the right of the Democrats, I usually vote Republican, but not always. I actually voted for a Democrat once. He was a local judge and friend of the family, and I would act as his informal guide when he came out to the farm to hunt quail. I knew him as a human being and a pretty fair wing shot. I voted for him every election for more than twenty years. I watched the last debate before the 2016 election. Both Hillary and Trump convinced me not to vote for the other one, so I voted down ticket. The coverage of the debate was fair and allowed me to make up my own mind. The commentary following the debate was pure propaganda.

During Trump’s presidency, he was attacked at every turn by CNN and blindly supported by Fox. Both were unfair and neither provided a service to the American public. Trump was, and is, a complete and utter jerk. His policies and programs, however, for the most part were good ones. I liked the way he handled China. His immigration policy was both firm and fair. His dealings with our, so called, friends caused them to take another look at how they were abusing our friendship. I would have loved to have a candidate with similar policies who didn’t go out of his way to make enemies. The news coverage tended to polarize us as much as the politics. It did not serve the American public.

The propaganda machines hide behind the first amendment and declare themselves exempt from responsibility. The first amendment was designed to protect the news, but it shouldn’t protect propaganda machines. When the media chooses sides, they abuse the protection of the First Amendment, and need to be held the accountable. There needs to be a watchdog for the national press. When it leans too far to either the left or right, they need to be reined in by the American people. They have a duty to be fair.

Frank Watson is a retired Air Force Colonel and long-time resident of Eastern Washington. He has been a free-lance columnist for over 20 years.