Faux's War on Obama
Thu Mar 20, 2008 at 06:45:52 AM PDT
agitprop
n 1: political propaganda communicated via art and literature and cinema.
You can add television.
I had the misfortune of checking in on Faux last night from 7 to 11. What I saw was a nonstop attack on Obama, mainly focusing on every contact Obama has had with African-Americans who do not fit into Faux's defintion of patriotic correctness. Some may brush this off. But I take it seriously. Remember, it was Hannity and Faux that began pushing the swift boat thing.
It's clear that Roger Ailes has given the word that Obama must be destroyed. Now. That was clear when the 10:00 hour led off with the usually non-political Greta Von Facelift lobbing softballs at the current Republican operative working for Faux, Karl Rove. To a lesser extent, it could be seen in the piece shown on the automotan Shepard Smith's "news" hour, seeking to portray Obama, in Faux's unfair and unbalanced way, as a waffler when it comes to the Iraq War.
But things really got going at 8, with the Prefect of the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of Patriotic Correctness, Charlie McCarthy, a/k/a Bill O'Lielly. O'Reilly's fair and balanced skewering of Obama took the form of him bringing on Laura Ingrham. The two of them engaged in a tag team "hate America" attack on Obama.
But the coup d'grace was delivered by the right-wing agitpropagandist himself, Josef Goebbles, a/k/a Sean Insanity. Hoarse from nonstop smearing of Obama on his radio show, Hannity engaged in hour-long tirade featuring "scaring black men from hell." Interesting to note that his Quisling, the collaborator and enabler Alan Colmes, has been nowhere to be seen this week. Perhaps Colmes at long last could not stomach what he knew Hannity would be serving, and Faux let him skip the country on vacation. You know this whore without any self-respect wouldn't quit on principle. Not when Faux is paying him so well for playing a stooge for Hannity. (BTW, there is a special place in hell for Colmes. Maybe eternity being hunted down by the French Resistance ;)). And, of course, the irony is that Obama was interviewed by Minor Garrett on the show a few days ago. When will Democrats finally learn that you can't appease Faux? Refusal to appear and denunciation is the only thing they understand.
In all seriousness, we should not downplay the damage this smear job can do on Obama. Ask John Kerry. Unlike Kerry, and Michael Dukakis before him, Obama has the charisma and force of personality that could overcome this hit job. But don't be so sanguine about it. The louder Faux screams, the greater the chance the sliming will seep into the public consciousness. We need to find someway to counteract this NOW.
Boycotts, LTE and advertiser pressure are not enough. Perhaps a mass demonstration outside Faux's New York offices is one way. I don't know. But if we let this viscious smear job go unchallenged, we may regret it in November.
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