Yesterday I was with a client who was appearing on FOX News as a Democratic spokeswoman. She was a guest on Studio B with Shepard Smith on the subject of a People magazine article about the VP rollout and how Senator Joe Biden got the news.
It was an education to be in the FOX News studio at the convention. My female client was taken to make-up which was very Hollywood-like. (They put false eyelashes on her and I must say when they were finished she looked amazing). We were then taken to the news floor where at one end of a newsroom bullpen was a raised platform serving as Shepard Smith’s set.
As we waited to go on I saw something that truly disturbed me. Shepard Smith began his show with the line, "Group therapy continues in Denver" referring to the healing of the supposed "Clinton/Obama divide" as perceived by FOX News. But as he continued (I was watching his teleprompter from behind him) he read something that at first puzzled me and then upon reflection infuriated me.
What he said was not what got to me. It was the way it was presented to him on the teleprompter. Referring to Senator Clinton’s speech to the convention last night he said, "Barack Obama’s chances in the general election could turn on whether Clinton can bring those supporters back into the fold. Today Barack Obama is keeping up the campaign in Missouri before heading to Montana. He will be watching Senator Clinton’s speech very closely tonight."
What the viewers didn’t see was how Smith’s words were presented on the teleprompter he was reading from. The last sentence read – ‘He will be watching Senator Clinton’s speech "very" closely tonight.’ The quotation marks around the word very were what got my attention. What did they mean? As a media trainer I understand the use of underline for emphasis but quotes... hmmm.
To me this shows the underlying problem with FOX News. Quotes in this context clearly meant wearily or distrustfully. In context with the opening line, a theme of stirring the pot presents itself that is most unseemly for a seasoned newscaster, especially a newscaster that has been touted as a possible debate moderator.
Who put those quotation marks in the teleprompter script? The producer, the newscaster or worse – was this a message from FOX News management?
Regardless, the message is loud and clear.
Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain.