Last year, during the Health Care debate, I e-mailed the FCC every day, begging and pleading with them to force Fox to remove the tag "News" from their station.
I cited the provision the FCC carries against false advertising. And since Fox News channel advertises that it is 'fair and balanced', they are clearly in violation.
Of course I was ignored.
I have many family members who only receive their news from Fox. Several of them never miss Limbaugh. Two belong to churches that preach the same ideological nonsense from the pulpit.
I cannot tell you how difficult is has been for me to maintain relationships with people I love who have been brainwashed into accepting everything they hear to be God's honest truth.
Like Rachel Maddow, I enjoy a good political debate, and my brother and I have had some fun ones in the past. But those times, when we could debate policies, or argue the country's direction, are gone. Because, as Rachel said, how can you have a conversation with someone who believes a lie? Especially when there is no way to debunk it.
Perjury, lying under oath, is a criminal offense. When you take an oath to tell the truth, the truth must be told. If not, (and you are a president) bad things can happen to you.
When my children became old enough to understand the consequences of lying, I explained Watergate to them. I told them that what caused the end of Nixon's presidency was not what he did but the fact that he covered up what he did.
Although the republican congress was searching for any excuse to get President Clinton, they (unsuccessfully) jumped at the chance to impeach him for lying under oath.. Perjury.
Without a free press,(meaning free from conflicting influence, bias and agendas) democracy can no longer exist. Both sides must have an equal voice- and both sides should be presented as fact. This is how and why we lost the House. Big Pacs paid big money to spread big lies.
I wonder what the next crop of journalists are studying now in college. Are the professors teaching how to get to the truth of a story- or showing them the easy cop-outs to make the story? Has integrity truly become a dirty word?
I think that like doctors, journalists, pundits and others need to take a truth oath. Tell it like it is from whatever side you are on, but tell it like it is as truth.
Or have a disclaimer run every fifteen minutes stating that the comments and opinions on this show are not based on fact. Viewer or listener beware.
Is there anywhere the truth still exists?
I am just so sad. So very very sad.