I presented a non-wingnut but diehard republican friend of mine (his irrititating stance it "to hell with everything as long as my taxes are low") with the following argument and it actually got him to stop watching Fox News! He is also into Rush and Hannity but has admitted that ever since this conversation he has found Hannity to be disingenuous too. He still thinks Rush makes "a lot of sense." Anyway, argument to follow.
So, you have eight coworkers. The other seven tend to agree and the other one is constantly disagreeing, though making some sense too. But while the other seven go about their business, taking in criticism and sometimes changing their approach based on it, the eighth responds to criticism by insisting that he is the only one who is right. The other seven, he says, are biased, controlled by higher-ups by money and promises of power, and often conspire among one another against him to boot. When presented with evidence that doesn't support his point of view, he gets angry or defensive, and once in a while he even calls the others names. He asks you over and over to listen only to him and not anyone else. The other seven often bristle at the eighth's criticisms when they feel they are unfair or unjustifiable, but they almost never reciprocate. You:
A) Take his word for it and never listen to your other seven coworkers.
B) Listen to his criticisms and take them into account when evaluating the other sevens' points of views. Actively seek out other's criticisms to evaluate his point of view.
C) Weigh his views the same as any other individuals' views.
D) Completely alienate him as a basket case; his advice is not going to serve you well.
Whatever your answer, it is unlikely to be (A). There are plenty of warning signs that this coworker is either arrogant or starting to lose his grip. This coworker is Fox News (and right-wing radio) compared to all other media organizations. They are the ONLY media outlets who constantly inform you that all other sources are intrinsically flawed or compromised, and ask you to listen only to them. This allows them to be free to selectively pick which news you see, sidestep cogent arguments against their point of view, and dismiss any and all criticisms.
After this conversation, my friend stopped watching Fox News cold. He works in a very corporate-backstabbing environment with lots of coworkers at his level who he has to cooperate with but is also competing with, and this resonated. He was really convinced by the "beware he who tells you to ignore others" part. Anyway, now I just need to get him off of Rush...
