Outfoxed
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| Outfoxed | |
|---|---|
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| Distributed by | MoveOn.org |
| Release date(s) | July 13 2004 |
| Running time | 78 mins |
| Language | English |
| Budget | US$200,000 |
| IMDb profile | |
Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism is a 2004 documentary film by progressive filmmaker Robert Greenwald that criticises the Fox News Channel, and its owner, Rupert Murdoch, claiming that the channel is used to promote and advocate right-wing views. The film says this pervasive bias contradicts the channel's claim of being "Fair and Balanced", and argues that Fox News has been engaging in what amounts to consumer fraud.
The documentary was not released theatrically, but rather was distributed in DVD format by the Political action committee MoveOn.org, and sold online through Internet retailers such as Amazon.com, where it was a top-seller in July 2004.[1] MoveOn.org had helped promote the DVD release by taking out a full-page advertisement in The New York Times.[1]
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[edit] Assertions
The film examines the global growth of Murdoch's media enterprise in the context of concentration of media ownership considerations, and argues that having one person in control of a large media conglomerate might infringe freedom of the press. Outfoxed negatively portrays Fox News on several fronts:
- It criticizes Fox News' coverage during the lead-up to, and the aftermath of, the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
- It claims that commentators such as Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity attempt to intimidate guests with whom they disagree, such as author and activist Jeremy Glick.
- It states that more airtime and coverage is given to Republican politicians, particularly those in the George W. Bush administration, than to Democrats.
- It portrays Fox News management, including Murdoch and president Roger Ailes, both conservatives, as controlling the network's content, and further portrays editorial control from Murdoch on down as ensuring which stories and issues are covered and that the coverage is from a strongly conservative perspective.
- It asserts that suspensions or other reprisals are given to reporters and producers for not promoting the channel's political point of view.
Former Fox News journalists appear in the film critiquing the methods and perceived integrity of their former employer. For example, Jon Du Pre, a former reporter for Fox News' West Coast bureau, alleged that he had been suspended by Fox News management because his live shots from the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library on Ronald Reagan's birthday — which Du Pre described was like a "holy day" to Fox News' hierarchy — were not "celebratory enough."[2] A former Fox News military contributor, Larry C. Johnson, also claimed that he was in high demand to give on-air analysis on the "war on terrorism", until he called into question on Hannity & Colmes whether or not the United States could fight two wars (in Afghanistan and Iraq) simultaneously, an incident after which Johnson says he was promptly ignored as a potential Fox News contributor.[3]
[edit] Reviews
Outfoxed was generally well received by critics, with a rating of 84 percent (48 out of 57 fresh) on Rottentomatoes.com.[4] Variety.com reviewer David Rooney writes that the film "provides stimulating evidence of how thoroughly news can be skewed, political agendas served and a climate of fear created by a news net selling itself as an objective information service." He compares it favorably to Michael Moore's documentary Fahrenheit 9/11, adding that without the "media spotlight" that surrounded Moore's film, Outfoxed "appears unlikely to reach beyond a liberal audience with an already vehement aversion to Fox News' partisan coverage."[5]
Howard Kurtz of The Washington Post praised Greenwald's uncovering of "...a handful of memos from a top Fox executive", which he argued suggested network bias over the war in Iraq and the investigation of the September 11 attacks. However, Kurtz was highly critical of how Greenwald's allegations relied on "orders, or attitudes, of an unnamed 'they'...", and attacked the filmmaker as making "...no effort at fairness or balance himself. Not only did he avoid contacting Fox, and indulge in some misleading editing, but the film also features a parade of the network's liberal detractors."[6]
[edit] Fox News response
Fox News charged that four of the sources used by the film were inaccurately represented as formerly holding high-level positions such as producers or anchors.[7] According to Fox News, a number of these sources had in fact either worked for independently-run affiliate stations or held different positions to those claimed by Greenwald.[8] For example, Fox argues that Jon Du Pre is vaguely listed only as a former anchor, however, as seen in the film, the caption specifically identifies him as a former anchor who was part of "West Coast Bureau". Fox reiterated the fact that his employment history listed him as being employed under the Los Angeles Bureau, and his contract was not renewed due to performance issues. Du Pre himself mentions those "issues" were due to his report on Reagan's birthday where he had to take live shots at the Reagan Presidential Library. After noticing his first few live shots, Fox executives called in criticizing Du Pre's report. They claimed that his shots were not celebratory enough, and he eventually got suspended because of it, and was unable to work for an undetermined amount of time.[8] Similarly, Clara Frenk was not a producer but a pool booker at the Washington Bureau who "never voiced any concerns about the editorial process", according to the Channel.[8] Fox also pointed out that Frenk had been a volunteer for Bill Clinton's 1992 Presidential campaign.[6] Frenk has vehemently denied Fox's charges that she was not a producer and has invited former colleagues, including Rita Cosby and David Shuster, to come forward and refute Fox's allegations. She has pointed out that she was the co-producer of a segment called "Beltway Buzz", served as a field producer for dayside news and was detailed to be a segment producer on Fox News Sunday during sweeps. Regarding the film's charges related to internal dictates regarding editorial decisions, Fox News issued a challenge to other mainstream news outlets: "If they will put out 100 percent of their editorial directions and internal memos, Fox News Channel will publish 100 percent of our editorial directions and internal memos, and let the public decide who is fair."[7]
During the montage of Fox pundits telling guests they disagree with to "be quiet" or "shut up", Geraldo Rivera is seen speaking to a Hispanic man at what appears to be a comedy club. That specific instance was actually not political, but from a discussion on the Michael Jackson child molestation trial.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b Deans, Jason. "Fox News documentary tops Amazon sales chart", The Guardian, 2004-07-21. Retrieved on 2007-03-29.
- ^ Jesse Walker. "Outfoxed DVD Review", Mindjack, 2004-08-16. Retrieved on 2007-11-27.
- ^ Miles O'Dometer. "Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism", Rambles.net, 2004-11-27. Retrieved on 2007-11-27.
- ^ Outfoxed (2004) (html). Rottentomatoes.com. Retrieved on 2007-01-23.
- ^ Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism (html). Variety.com. Retrieved on 2007-01-23.
- ^ a b Kurtz, Howard. "Tilting at the Right, Leaning to the Left: Robert Greenwald's 'Outfoxed' Has Its Own Slant on Balance", The Washington Post, 2004-07-11. Retrieved on 2007-07-20.
- ^ a b FOX News Channel Statement on 'Outfoxed' (html). Foxnews.com. Retrieved on 2007-01-23.
- ^ a b c Details About Employees Featured in 'Outfoxed' (html). Foxnews.com. Retrieved on 2007-01-23.
[edit] External Links
- Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism - The critical documentary's website.
- Outfoxed streaming Dutch VPRO documentary by Tegenlicht. Introduction, several seconds, in Dutch with story itself in English and Dutch subtitles; 50 min. Broadband internet needed.
