Cable News and the Fostering of Xenophobia

Fear & Loathing in Prime Time: Immigration Myths and Cable News

"Number one, the illegal aliens shouldn't be here. And number two, the culture from which they come is a lot more violent than the USA."
-- The O'Reilly Factor, January 15, 2007

There are many problems facing the United States today: a faltering economy, a health-care crisis, and the continuing war in Iraq, to name a few. But viewers of some of the most prominent cable news programs are presented a different reality in which one issue stands above all others: illegal immigration.

Media Matters Action Network undertook this study in order to document how immigration is discussed and debated on cable news. When it comes to immigration, cable news overflows not just with vitriolic rhetoric, but also with a series of myths that feed viewers' resentment and fears, fostering hostility toward immigrants.

We focus our analysis on a trio of cable commentators: Lou Dobbs, Bill O'Reilly, and Glenn Beck. While hosts on other cable programs regularly discuss illegal immigration (particularly on Fox News, where it is a frequent topic on Hannity & Colmes and Special Report with Brit Hume), these three are the most notable for a number of reasons. On their eponymous programs, Dobbs, O'Reilly, and Beck serve up a steady diet of fear, anger, and resentment on the topic of illegal immigration. (More Stuff...)

I find it strange that illegal immigrants are on the receiving end of hatred while Americans who exploit their labor aren't even considered. Isn't that something? The greatest benefactors of illegal immigration have yet to be taken to task. Stupidity must be bliss too.

Feel free to contact these jokers directly and help stop the madness:

FOX News Channel
Comments@foxnews.com
1211 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10036
Phone: 1-888-369-4762

CNN
One CNN Center, Box 105366,
Atlanta, GA 30303-5366
Phone: 404-827-1500
Fax: 404-827-1906

CNN Headline News

"Pulling a Russert"; White Hate Mongers That Hide Behind Christianity Are OK

Meet Tim Russert
by Jamison Foser

"It's never the question that's the problem, Matt, it's the answer."
-- NBC's Tim Russert

"It's 'never the question that's the problem'? Really?
Spoken like the guy who gets to ask the questions."
-- CJR's Liz Cox Barrett

MSNBC recently began running commercials touting its coverage of "Decision 2008." One begins with on-screen text asking, "Why do people care about politics?" Viewers then hear Tim Russert explain: "It's about the war. Our sons and daughters. It's about the economy. Our jobs. It's about education. Our schools. It's about health care. Our families' well-being. It's about everything that matters." The ad ends with the on-screen declaration: "That's why you care. That's why we cover it."

During this week's Democratic presidential debate, Russert didn't ask a single question about global warming, continuing his longstanding habit of all but ignoring the topic. He didn't ask a single question about the mortgage crisis. (As one Cleveland resident noted, "We've got the mortgage industry's toxic waste scattered all over this city, but Mr. Blue-Collar-Buffalo-and-Cleveland-Marshall-Guy Russert couldn't be bothered with a question about it.") He didn't ask a single question about executive power, the Constitution, torture, wiretapping, or other civil-liberties concerns. But that shouldn't come as a surprise; of all the questions he has asked while moderating presidential debates during this campaign, only one has dealt with any of those topics.

This wasn't the first time Russert made the odd decision to ask Obama about controversial comments made by a famous African-American. During a 2006 interview, Russert asked Obama about controversial comments Harry Belafonte made the day before. But Belafonte, as Jane Hamsher noted at the time, had made similar comments two weeks before, and Russert had never asked any guest about them. Russert gave no indication of why Obama was uniquely qualified or required to comment on Belafonte's comments. (The only other time Russert has ever asked anyone about any comments made by Harry Belafonte, according to Nexis? 2003, when Russert asked then-Secretary of State Colin Powell about comments Belafonte made about U.S. actions toward Cuba.)

Given Russert's badgering of Obama about Farrakhan, you might be wondering how he handles endorsements by controversial figures who have a history of statements that are widely considered to be anti-Semitic ... when the endorser and the endorsed are both white Republicans.

Source

What stuck out to me in that part of the debate is that Hillary wasn't asked about rejecting the endorsement of mAnn Coulter. I'm also waiting on her rejection of Jenna Jameson's endorsement. If Tim wants to pose these "Gotcha!" type of questions, why wasn't Hillary leveled the same treatment?

Some hateful, radical ministers -- white evangelicals -- are acceptable
by Glenn Greenwald

One of this week's hysterical press scandals was that Minister Louis Farrakhan praised Barack Obama's candidacy even though Obama had previously denounced numerous Farrakhan remarks and the Obama campaign did nothing to seek out the Farrakhan praise. Nonetheless, Tim Russert demanded that Obama jump through multiple hoops to prove that he has no connection to -- and, in fact, "rejects" -- the ideas espoused by Farrakhan deemed to be radical and hateful.

Yesterday, though, the equally fringe, radical and hateful (at least) Rev. John Hagee -- a white evangelical who is the pastor of a sprawling "mega-church" in Texas -- enthusiastically endorsed John McCain. Did McCain have to jump through the same hoops which Russert and others set up for Obama and "denounce" Hagee's extremism and "reject" his support? No; quite the opposite. McCain said he was "very honored" to receive this endorsement and, when asked about some of Hagee's more twisted views, responded: "all I can tell you is that I am very proud to have Pastor John Hagee's support."

McCain's sainted supporter, Joe Lieberman, last year spoke to Hagee's group and lavished him with such obsequious praise that Lieberman actually compared Hagee, favorably, to Moses. Why is Louis Farrakhan deemed by our political establishment to be so radioactive as to not be fit for good company -- black candidates are required to repudiate his support even when they haven't sought it and denounce his views even when they've never advocated anything close to those views -- but John Hagee is a perfectly acceptable figure whom mainstream GOP politicians are free to court without any consequences or media objections?

Source

Where's the uproar for this? White Republican welcomes the endorsement of hate-mongering, crazed churchfolk, Obama caved into the bullying of Russert and Billary over semantics and tosses Farrakhan and his endorsement under the bus and people still aren't satisfied--- WTF?!

And as SheCodes noted, there seems to be an acceptable disregard for Muslims and I'm not feeling that. A lot of my childhood friends are Muslim and they and their parents were very good to me. Simply put --- I don't hate them. Consistency counts when unity is the backdrop to your campaign.

La Raza Head Challenges Lou Dobbs

I know that I'm kinda late with the videos but I got fed up with digging for them and waiting for them to be placed on CNN.

Make note of how he constantly interrupts her and constantly tries to change the subject to win an argument and save face.

Part 1



Part 2



Part 3



Lou Dobbs needs to be checked for engaging in irresponsible journalism. You can't use crazed, racist vigilantes to substantiate your arguments about immigration reform. You can't use White supremacists to give your argument legs to stand on. You can't promote xenophobia and not expect people to pick up on it. I'm happy that Murguia is taking him, CNN, and Fox to task for what they're doing. Poison shouldn't have a place on the airwaves.

Empty Talking Head

Taken from 23/6:

Let's give Dobbs the benefit of the doubt. How was he supposed to know that Council of Conservative Citizens was a white supremacist organization when he invited one of its members to appear on his show? When he gives verbal support to the Minutemen vigilantes, how is he supposed to know that many of them are shameless racists who threaten and maim illegal immigrants, knowing they can never report it to the cops? Lou Dobbs is not Santa. He can't be everywhere at once, so he can't possibly know what all of his contributors have to say about minorities when they're not on the air. (Source)

Some time last year, I watched a piece on 60 Minutes where they interviewed Lou Dobbs. You know the drill with these interviews --- delving into the subject's life story, having the viewer learn something new about him/her, and lastly humanizing him/her.

Of course the topic of Dobbs being an alleged bigot came up and he, of course, denied it. What also helped debunk (I guess it was supposed to help) that claim was introducing to the world his Mexican-American wife (shown in above pic). I just don't understand people like him and his wife.

Illegal immigration is facilitated by greed. How many people actually consider this? I have yet to hear one of these pundits blaming greedy employers for this problem. I understand that an influx of illegal immigrants can be a strain on the economy but vilifying them serves no purpose because the anger is misdirected.

And also consider the fact that these people are being taken advantage of due to their ignorance and due to the fact that they don't have any legal documentation.

Properly channel your anger. Don't patronize businesses that employ illegal immigrants. Make some real noise about it and contact your local politician. The large numbers of illegal immigrants crossing the border will diminish as soon as people properly channel their anger and start realizing who the real enemy is. It's all supply and demand.