What is it about the Fox News Channel that makes it so disturbing?

You got that straight, mister? Or do you need a little visit with Mr. O'Reilly and his birch rod to learn the difference between what's creepy and what's disturbing? It's your choice.

Because it's owned by a right-wing asshole (equally hated on both sides of the Atlantic), run by another right-wing asshole who's responsible for that fascist shit Rush Limbaugh, and has a bunch of screaming right-wing assholes?

Well, that's why I find Fox so disturbing. It's the closest any American media outlet has come to intentionally aping Pravda and TASS.

of course, that's all probably part of the plan though. if she was an old fugly woman she'd probably only get a radio show, a la rush, not be featured on every cable news show that needs a conservative commentator on the air

if Fox had Glen Benton (the crazy Satanist lead signer of Deicide) as one of its anchors, it would be the coolest network ever (even with the right-wing crap).

One of their weekend reporters was on the other day and he gave about three sentences of highly opinionated BS toward the tail end of his slightly slanted report. And then he said, "Fox News: we report, you decide." What a joke.

Um, sorry Ann but you ain't all that.

I'm not saying she's ugly by any means, but I don't think she's anywhere near as attractive as she seems to think she is.

Doh! *SMACKS FOREHEAD* My wife just reminded me that Abrams is on MSNBC.

Anyhow, getting back. Didn't Fox come up with the "Jihad Johnny" nickname?

Yeah it's them. It's also sort of funny to see them continually trying to re-focus on the "war" in the past few weeks when everyone else was reporting on corporate malfeasance. And that morning show is the best, with those two very unfunny guys - one of them literally is the weatherman - and that Edi (sp?) girl, who's just about the brightest person on the network. It's as if murdoch or ailes pick the female anchors they would most want to sleep with in the perfect worlds

In comparison, CNN looks like they've lit their studios with flourescent lights. Their idea of hi-def is to have Wolf Blitzer walk around a big screen TV. We're talking about a network that had "Talk Back Live!" and that blog show where the two women click on the internet. Cameramen filming cameramen filming ordinary people. I get the idea that some CNN producers probably busted their chops on shows like "Donahue" and "That's Incredible!"

Fox is sharp and contrasted (in light and color only). CNN looks all washed out.

Also WTF is the deal with talking points? Is this an undergrad lecture?

Red Eye - wtf is with this show? it's like mindbogglingly bad but in a way that I really wouldn't expect from Fox. It was like 5 straight minutes of Fox anchors and random creeps making poop jokes.

I mean I assume it lasts longer but I couldn't take any more.

I saw Andrew WK as a guest panelist on Red Eye once, and I could smell his intellectual contempt through the screen.

http://images.salon.com/politics/war_room/2008/06/11/fox_obama/story.jpg

"People have all these ideas about him," Rhodes says. "He's political, he's this, he's that. But really, every inch of that guy is a television producer. I believe that what he wanted to be was the greatest television producer in the history of the universe. It's almost incidental, the politics. It's all about being compelling, because that's the thing with Roger — even when he's not convincing, he's compelling. And that's what he wants you to be when you work for him. It's all about finding an edge, finding an angle, something that makes you different from the other guys."

from:
http://www.esquire.com/blogs/politics/fox-news-hiring-4938161

and then this epic, epic character study:
http://www.esquire.com/features/roger-ailes-0211

I couldn't finish that Esquire profile: the incessant use of the second-person pronoun grossed me out. Besides, Ailes told me what I needed to know last week after the Giffords shooting: he admitted that the left represents "the other side."

http://a57.foxnews.com/www.foxnews.com/images/root_images/0/0/beware_20140918_123859.jpg

does the american left no longer care abt fox news

http://a57.foxnews.com/www.foxnews.com/images/root_images/0/0/beware_20140918_123859.jpg

AND THIS FAT SCHLUB IS THE ONLY THING PROTECTING YOU

Fox News and Limbaugh keep saying stupid things night after night, day after day

Hm, so I don't know if we've had a general 'best' Fox News thread but since the Dominion defamation trial is about to happen barring a last minute switchup, might want to start talking about it in more detail. Key thing to note is that the other week the judge overseeing proceedings in Delaware, Davis, in response to competing summary judgment claims shut out Fox News entirely, granted Dominion almost everything, and basically reduced the realm of what was left to discuss to whether actual malice was afoot (still a high bar re the NYT v Sullivan precedent, but now looking a lot more likely given a ton of defenses Fox could have used won't be applicable). So this week is pre-trial motion stuff and, in a very smart move, the Washington Post sent Erik Wemple over to cover it. His two threads from today are worth noting.

First, slightly threaded wrongly but more or less starting here, involved questions of 'newsworthiness,' which may seem random but is part of Fox News's defense. Clarifying, really:

Judge Davis warned lawyers not to make any argument in opening or closing that contradicts the judge’s ruling in the summary judgment phase of the litigation. “I will stop you,” he said, pledging to instruct the jury that the statement was erroneous. 3/

— ErikWemple (@ErikWemple) April 11, 2023

As you can see, Davis rather notes that if they want to go that way, that opens up a huge problem for them:

To counter the newsworthiness point, Dominion lawyers, said Judge Davis, could press Fox News witnesses on whether they thought of having guests aside from Sidney Powell or Rudy Giuliani on their show to comment on the stolen-election claims. 8/

— ErikWemple (@ErikWemple) April 11, 2023

Like then-President-elect Joe Biden. “Did you have him on?” asked Davis, acting in the role of a Dominion lawyer pressing a Fox New witness on the stand. “I could have a lot of fun with this case,” said the judge, to chuckling in the courtroom. 9/

— ErikWemple (@ErikWemple) April 11, 2023

The second thread, though, introduces an interesting new wrinkle that is wonky but clearly has got Davis kinda pissed, and not at Dominion:

More from the courtroom in Dominion Voting Systems v. Fox News from the courtroom of Judge Eric Davis in Wilmington, DE: A lawyer for Dominion this afternoon issued a stern rebuke to how Fox News and its parent company, Fox Corp., have behaved on one key item in this case. 1/

— ErikWemple (@ErikWemple) April 11, 2023

Drilling deeper:

The issue arose in a hearing last week. The Dominion lawyer said that after further inquiry, Fox News sent another list on Easter Sunday – which included the three officials above, PLUS Rupert Murdoch. Which is to say, the mogul is an officer of both Fox Corp. AND Fox News. 5/

— ErikWemple (@ErikWemple) April 11, 2023

The upshot: From the beginning of this suit, said the Dominion lawyer, they have been blocked from securing key discovery documents relating to Rupert Murdoch – which is a reason why Dominion ended up filing a second suit against Fox Corp. (The cases have since been combined.) 6/

— ErikWemple (@ErikWemple) April 11, 2023

Said the Dominion lawyer: “This alone has meant that we are missing a whole bunch of Rupert Murdoch documents alone that we otherwise would have been entitled to.” 7/

— ErikWemple (@ErikWemple) April 11, 2023

We were pondering on the main Trump thread about why he didn't pardon himself and my own thought was narcissism combined with the idea that they thought they'd never be caught. Gotta say, that's starting to sound like Fox News as a corporate entity right about now in this situation -- almost any other time they'd have long worked out a settlement. Dominion didn't budge and now here we are.

Gonna be a hot summer.

Still not clear to me if this will be televised or not. (If it is, how many of the people testifying will look noticeably different under random courtroom lighting as opposed to their polished TV presentations, I wonder.)

I'm amazed that this case has not settled. I assume that's because Dominion is not willing to settle, since Fox absolutely wants to get out of this.

yeah I'm surprised too, this kind of shit never goes to trial. wonder if Dominion thinks their case is just that strong

Yeah my guess is Dominion figures the calculation is very much in their favor, and certainly after the initial summary judgment they barely have any reason to back down or change up. And who knows, they might even be altruistic about it!

It's astonishing that there is hard evidence that the network acted with actual malice.

Certainly it seemed like it was always possible, but sure is funny (and again, telling) that they put it down in black and white like that.

There's another factor here at play too -- I mentioned Sullivan. This is hardly being ignored, but this is bringing up a major issue on the right about now because for all their playacting moves about making the media 'honest' or whatever (DeSantis's gobbing and relevant legislation on the matter in Florida as an example), it's Sullivan that's let them act this general way in the first place. If Fox is found liable, well, a high high bar was cleared, bad enough. But if Sullivan itself was removed, that opens them up for a LOT more lawsuits, not to mention a slew of other right-leaning outlets, in a classic case of 'be careful what you wish for.' Forgot where I read the piece but there were a number of right-wing Florida media types going all out AGAINST that proposed state legislation precisely because they can actually put two and two together.

I assume that's because most of them think it's only liberals' ox that will be gored.

Right, which is why the ones who figure it otherwise are the ones going "Uh guys, GUYS?!!?"

Yeah, it's the same reason they can overlook their own "groomers," or corrupt judges, or swamp dwellers or whatever, though ultimately that hypocritical avenue is barely worth engaging in, since it assumes the GOP and their ilk are operating in good faith, rather than as full of shit cynics, morons and monsters.

I don't think their motivation was malice toward Dominion, but rather a reckless disregard for the truth, aka the FOX NEWS business plan.

No, I get that, I was referring to the standard under Sullivan, which defines actual malice as knowing the falsehood of the statement, or acting with reckless disregard for the truth or falsehood of the statement. That is what a public figure must show to win a defamation suit against the press.

Right and to expand on jimbeaux’s point, Sullivan was essentially saying “Hey someone in actual power can’t cow the press unless you can really really prove it.” Essentially what has happened is a hilarious reversal — a decision that let the Murdoch model thrive is now keeping Murdoch’s own creation itself — a source of power — from being sued to hell by people NOT in holding of such power. Removing that guardrail screws them completely.

Separate WaPo piece about today:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2023/04/11/fox-dominion-jan6-ruling/

Not everything was for Dominion today, but arguably they don't have to do much anyway:

Judge Eric M. Davis expressed concern Tuesday that the jury deciding whether Fox defamed an election-technology company by airing bogus claims that it rigged the 2020 election could be prejudiced by suggestions that such statements contributed to the riot by Donald Trump supporters at the U.S. Capitol.

“To say somehow that Fox influenced that, I’m not deciding that part,” Davis said at a pretrial hearing. “We’re not putting the January 6th attack on (trial). That may be for another court at another time. It’s not for this one.”

But the judge said that witnesses can be asked about Fox’s strategic decisions after the insurrection. In particular, he mentioned network co-founder Rupert Murdoch’s acknowledgment in an email that Fox was “pivoting as far as possible” after Jan. 6. Davis suggested that lawyers for plaintiff Dominion Voting Systems could fairly ask Murdoch about that.

He also said it would be acceptable for Dominion’s lawyers to talk in court about the increased personal security costs the company incurred after the insurrection.

Meantime in a perfect timing scenario, massive new Gabriel Sherman piece:

https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2023/04/rupert-murdoch-cover-story

Def. seems like one of those unstoppable monsters who will die suddenly right before finally getting his comeuppance.

About the only relief I take from that story: Jerry Hall was not as terrible as I thought (she's still terrible for marrying him).

lmao @ "you can't leak this to the writers of Succession" as part of the divorce settlement

Meanwhile in Delaware, going great again for Fox. (This was after the judge continued to ream them about the second point raised yesterday re Murdoch's exact status.)

More really bad news for Fox News: A Dominion lawyer this morning gave a presentation asserting that the company had found out about documents and material that they should have received in discovery but did not get them.

— ErikWemple (@ErikWemple) April 12, 2023

Subsequent thread

Those documents and materials include communications relating to an NPR report by David Folkenflik regarding host Bret Baier’s proposal for a special on election lies during the time relevant to the trial.

— ErikWemple (@ErikWemple) April 12, 2023

Hahah this is NOT what Fox will want

Judge Davis called the issue “serious” and discussed directing a special master to investigate Fox’s handling of discovery.

— ErikWemple (@ErikWemple) April 12, 2023

I mean I'm just a rando outsider looking at all this but either these Fox lawyers are ridiculously incompetent, being directed by their clients to do things they'd rather not, or just simply complicit. (The Smartmatic lawyers in their own separate lawsuit -- which is working towards happening in turn! -- are absolutely taking notes.)

This sanctions order is rather unusual and a significant problem for Fox.

It’s hard to make sense of Fox’s approach to the Dominion case. It would have made a lot of sense to negotiate a settlement early. https://t.co/hhr1MkR7i9

— Renato Mariotti (@renato_mariotti) April 12, 2023

xp When you have a client with unlimited funds and no scruples, you withdraw or you find yourself doing things you'll regret.

The embedded tweet in Mariotti's is worth it for the photo:

The judge overseeing the Dominion case says he is imposing a sanction on Fox and would likely order an investigation into whether its legal team withheld evidence. ⁦@katie_robertson⁩ ⁦@jwpetersNYT⁩ https://t.co/618AlxSrcR

— Peter Baker (@peterbakernyt) April 12, 2023

https://i.etsystatic.com/34948493/c/1772/1408/0/248/il/7d68f5/4561307654/il_680x540.4561307654_6l7r.jpg

Hail Mary time!

Washington Post: Opening arguments in Dominion v. Fox have been delayed until Tuesday "to allow both parties to hold conversations about the possibility of a settlement, according to two sources with knowledge of the situation..."https://t.co/IIuPsobYGV

— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) April 17, 2023

lol

Fox News full page ad in NYT this AM on public trust as it seeks to settle ten-figure defamation suit on eve of jury trial pic.twitter.com/MyhbgbSbrg

— David Folkenflik (@davidfolkenflik) April 17, 2023

has Dominion given any indication they want to settle? feel like these cases never actually go to trial but they're also never as open-and-shut as this one is

No indication at all, but I gather the vibe is that the judge wouldn't announce this if they weren't taking Fox's offer seriously. Which tells me that Fox is offering quite a bit, and I'm guessing not just money.

please go to trial please go to trial

FWIW:

However, three people directly involved in the case said that they did not expect the parties to settle. Lawyers for Dominion were filing requests with the court on Monday morning, an indication they expected the case to go to trial on Tuesday....

The reason a settlement has been elusive so far is not just monetary. Fox, one of the most profitable media companies, would have to issue an apology to Dominion under the terms Dominion would accept, according to several people familiar with the limited settlement discussions that have taken place in previous months.

An apology (singular) is not nearly enough. I want "We're Fox: We're Fuckin' Liars" on a chyron scrolling across the bottom of the screen 24/7 for as long as that network exists.

I don't see an advantage to settling, unless they just really want/need the money. The cat is already out of the bag, and Fox et al. have already demonized Dominion. There is no reversing that, so they might as well go for revenge.

Begin, the Dominion Wars have

oh fun thing about that "most trusted name in news" graphic - they basically ran their own poll self-selecting for FOX viewers. the actual YouGov survey had FOX second from the bottom. the only one lower was Breitbart.

Okay IT IS HAPPENING (of course it could still always be settled at any point). No TV coverage nor public audio line, nor tweeting/posting from within the courtroom. Various amounts of people tweeting from the media overflow room which has audio and video; I'm following Wemple (it's his beat after all) and Scott MacFarlane, who seems to be doing more regular posting. 12 jurors selected, they're working on a further 12 alternates, eight to go and working on a fast clip per MacFarlane a few minutes back, so opening statements will be happening sometime today. Some tidbits:

Judge has estimated this will be a SIX WEEK trial. He admonished attorneys a few moments ago... warning he will be diligent about staying on track & staying on schedule

If there are lengthy objections made.. "They'll come out of your time" ... Judge Eric Davis warns attorneys

— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) April 18, 2023

And in terms of evidence being introduced:

NEW: Dominion’s updated trial exhibit list includes 7000+ items, including dozens of emails from Rupert Murdoch and a series of messages from Sean Hannity to Murdoch

Final item (exhibit 7,021): “Fox and Friends” broadcast from Nov 15, 2020

— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) April 18, 2023

Other items listed on Dominion’s updates trial exhibit list:

Emails received by Dominion on that read “You evil motherf****”, “Justice doesn’t need witnesses”, “Gitmo soon for you and your friends!!”

— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) April 18, 2023

The first several items listed on Dominion’s newly-filed updated trial exhibit list include Lou Dobbs show transcripts, Dobbs tweets, “Justice with Jeanine” transcript and social posts .. and video of “Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo” videos and transcript.

— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) April 18, 2023

Also, roffle

True: Caley Cronin, a PR rep for Fox News, was summoned from Davis's courtroom and directed to the overflow room for having taken a photograph in the courtroom before the day's proceedings. 6/

— ErikWemple (@ErikWemple) April 18, 2023

burn in hell FNC

Jury selection's done, so here it all goes!

Live updates also happening here and I'm sure plenty of other similar spots:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2023/04/18/dominion-fox-trial/

Also sounds like there IS in fact a live phone feed for the public but anyway.

Strike that, I think people are being understandable wishful/confused. Won't update with EVERY tweet on this thread but this sounds fun:

The most updated Trial Exhibit list from Dominion includes approximately a dozen emails from Rupert Murdoch to Lachlan Murdoch (including one with subject line “Trump”)

There are also several exhibits described as “email from R. Murdoch to J. Kushner”

— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) April 18, 2023

Right after the jurors and alternate jurors were sworn in, one alternate juror told the judge he couldn’t participate.

“I’ve been up all night — I can’t do this,” he said, without explaining further.

The judge met with him a moment later and excused him. Another alternate juror was quickly sworn in.

i have jury duty on may 1 and am going to remember this move

"But it's about a jaywalking tick--"

"I CAN'T!"

Up all night to get excused

May I approach the bench? I can't go through this
I've been up all night - I just can't do this

- Don Henley, Jury Duty Blues 1991

Extended delay on day one from a judge that promised to keep things moving perhaps implies more settlement talk in progress.

Indeed, but my guess remains that the closer this gets to actually starting the more Fox News is desperately trying to square its circle. We'll see!

I'm not sure why Dominion would settle for anything less than what they initially asked for when they filed their suit. The best reason for FOX to agree to full capitulation would be to avoid the nightly spectacle of other networks reporting their daily disaster in the courtroom for weeks on end. But what might be the tipping point is Rupert Murdoch deciding he doesn't want his emails aired in public and shutting the whole thing down as the cost of preserving his privacy.

can FOX really afford to pay 1.6 billion or whatever it is? that would ruin them

Weren’t there rumors that Murdoch wasn’t involved in the Fox business anymore because of dementia?

Murdoch has a net worth of 17.5 billion dollars. xp

Yeah, I think Dominion squashed rumors that they were negotiating a settlement

Jury trials can be tricky, but they have no shortage of evidence, it appears

A treat

During the lunch break, court posted new order from Judge Eric Davis. He has officially ordered a special master to review whether FOX "complied with their discovery obligations" in this defamation case

Note the language below:

"Send invoices only to FOX" pic.twitter.com/HDMsOrqMOq

— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) April 18, 2023

I’m not a lawyer but am married to a litigator who does trials. Typically the the judge and trial lawyers have nothing to do with settlement negotiations. I noticed the judge made no mention of why he delayed the trial for a day. So maybe this talk of settlement is nonsense, which would track with the plaintiffs’ announced refusal to settle?

Or not!

ALERT: SETTLEMENT in case

— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) April 18, 2023

Gonna be fascinating to learn about the pound of flesh here.

Dammit. The more light that was shone on FOX's shady bullshit the better, this feels disappointing.

Hahah THIS says a lot:

Judge thanks the New Castle County, Delaware jurors for their service

"It was extremely important. Without you the parties wouldn't have been able to resolve their situation"

— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) April 18, 2023

I'll add in my own limited jury experience -- of the couple of times I've been called for cases, once I was with a pool of people waiting to come into the courtroom; at one point looking into the courtroom -- I think the door wasn't necessarily held open but we could occasionally see in -- we could see someone, I'm guessing a defendant, learning earnestly to what I presume was his counsel. After about something like an hour we were told the case, whatever it was, had been settled. Shortly afterward -- might have been on the day, maybe a little later -- I heard that this was incredibly common, and that basically once one party realized that this was absolutely it (and especially if there wasn't any real sense that they could win or succeed otherwise, and/or didn't want a lot more to get on the public record) that settling/pleading/etc was the only way out.

So point being, this may mean no fireworks/deeper delves, but we've had a lot more already than has been had in a dog's age in terms of on the record behind the scenes stuff. I'll take it over nothing at all! (Also, the possibility that, say, DOJ has access to a number of communications as relevant for other matters is not miniscule.)

little late for any kind of gag order though... cat's out of the bag

Yup. Whatever this settlement is, Dominion called the majority of the shots.

Again, I'm reading a LOT into this, and maybe too much if this is simply standard rhetoric, but it feels of a purpose:

Judge to jury "The case has been resolved. And it was resolved because of you"

— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) April 18, 2023

xxp Ned, I had a really similar situation I described recently... we sat around for five hours (landlord/tenant case) and when they saw all the people waiting around to serve, the parties quietly decided to settle instead

I wanna see a picture of Murdoch handing over one of those giant novelty checks to Dominion

afaics, FOX losing was a 99% certainty. Then factor in that an outraged jury often makes awards that exceed what the plaintiff asked for. Whatever Dominion settled for, it's a better outcome for FOX than going to trial.

curious about the terms, and how they prevent the usual suspects at Fox from spouting off further defamatory bullshit.

Xp Ned, I would presume that’s standard rhetoric (i.e. thanking the jury for their service even though they didn’t sit as a jury).

FLASH: $787.5 million dollar settlement pic.twitter.com/IN316UUzbB

— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) April 18, 2023

Dominion CEO: “Fox has admitted telling lies” pic.twitter.com/Ic28NBecw8

— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) April 18, 2023

700 mil is not enough

how many more suits has Dominion filed? this is just round 1

Still a chunk of change, essentially half of what they'd asked for, which sounds like a pretty good deal without having to argue the case further, and that 'telling lies' point doubtless means some sort of formal statement or something more to follow.

The next major case I can think of, overseen by the same judge, is Smartmatic vs. Newsmax, who have notably less resources in comparison, shall we say.

Separately, Dominion has Mike Lindell in their sights, so that'll be fun. Think that goes to trial later in the year. If HE blinks he essentially has to undo his last few years in public, which I think will be less likely than what's possible here.

how they prevent the usual suspects at Fox from spouting off further defamatory bullshit

In general, not much; on this point, the word from on high will be to never ever even talk about that again.

Could be coyness, could mean there's nothing more, guess we'll see.

Dominion attorneys refuse to answer when asked if there’s any other component to settlement, beside money

— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) April 18, 2023

what a pathetic joke of a $ judgment, hoping for something more

settlements as civil trials are about to commence is not that uncommon, from what i understand. the willingness of the plaintiff to go to trial on the very basic level of making ppl show up to court does often grease the skids in a real way even if the defendant's side has played hardball on the idea of a settlement before that. you'd think the final trigger to settle wouldn't be that literal -- initiating the pomp & circumstance of a trial -- but sometimes it is

i was a file clerk at a personal injury law firm a long time ago & we had one case that had been nearly a decade long back and forth between the firm & the defendants/insurance company. it was finally set to go to trial after years & years of settlement negotiations, so they had me take all the trial materials to the federal courthouse in downtown chicago (on foot) -- dozens upon dozens of binders of exhibits for each side + the court, huge poster boards w/ evidence on them etc etc. it took me the whole day going back and forth from the office lugging this shit around. one of my colleagues was like "haha this will prob finally get them to settle" & i was like "haha right" thinking in my head that this lady is nuts, clearly we're too far down the line at this point. needless to say, i show up the next morning on the day of the trial and like a half hour before it's about to start someone comes to me and goes "hey we just settled that case, can you go back to the courthouse and pick everything up and bring it back here?" so yeah

xpost - Yep, feeling like a relative slap on the wrist and FOX will not change their ways one iota.

Ah and there is this, somehow I thought it was only against Newsmax:

Don't forget: Smartmatic still has their defamation case against Fox.

— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) April 18, 2023

That amount of money seems like considerably more than a slap on the wrist to me, but ymmv

(Might seem minor but recall they were asking for almost 3 billion. Their lawyers are almost certainly going to talk to Fox going 'Imagine what paying us 1.6 billion will be like as a relative bargain.)

any amount of money, if it's nothing more than money, is disappointing

Jordan's post there sounds about right! Again, it really can come down to 'this is it, you're fucked if this goes further.'

Keep in mind how this dynamic plays out with Trump, BTW. All this time he's been able to throw money at problems and make them go away. Now he's facing a slew of cases all at once where that's not happening, or where it CAN'T happen simply by doing that, and crunch times are popping up all over the place. The reason why the E. Jean Carroll trial is happening next week is because it's not being delayed further by his moves, and the judge in that case said "Hey, all this shit you're dealing with at the same time? Can't help it if you brought it on yourself."

WmC otm, even double that it's a slap on the wrist if there's nothing else on the table.

xpost - Yep, feeling like a relative slap on the wrist and FOX will not change their ways one iota.

― Maxmillion D. Boosted (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Tuesday, April 18, 2023 3:30 PM (four minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

I mean they got exposed pretty hard as blatant liars and both Tucker and Hannity were revealed to have called Trump a cancer and a demon, plus having to pay nearly $800 million on top of that, that doesn't seem like just a slap on the wrist and I think it'll make them hesitate before following Trump off another cliff. which inevitably will end up with Trump calling for a boycott of FOX News. shit seems kinda bad for them idk

I kinda gotta agree with KT here

there are fewer than five fox news viewers alive who would change their minds if tucker carlson went on air and ate dog shit out of a work boot while tearfully apologizing. just not how that audience works https://t.co/fjxnj9Zccs

— kilgore trout, blue check free since 2003 (@KT_So_It_Goes) April 18, 2023

And he's right -- consider how this whole thing essentially happened precisely because they were panicking over the Arizona call and what followed and how their audience was going elsewhere. If Tucker did that, entertaining as it would be, the audience would essentially be all 'He got bought/sell out/etc.'

well right I mean it came out that A) they were knowingly lying about this and B) their on air talent actually fucking hates Trump, if the MAGA crowd is still watching FOX after that nothing is gonna stop them

It also seems unreasonable to expect dominion to righteously push forward just for the purpose of turning this into some kind of act of political vengeance. Their business was harmed, and presumably they believe this amount of money fixes that harm.

also kinda sidelines their whole 'noteworthy because Trump said it' defense going forward

oops many xps

it doesn't seem like much of a penalty to me because it doesn't seem high enough to affect the way fox runs its company. doesn't it amount to not much more than half a year of fox news' profits? maybe i'm horribly skimming the financials, it would be pretty typical for me

but the bigger thing is why it's tough to be excited about the case in the first place: the recipients of the settlement money aren't the real people who were damaged, which is everyone who has been knowingly fed bullshit for the last 25 years and all of the people who have to deal with the people living in that fantasy, but instead a company that is doing just fine. it's guess it's nice that some damaging texts and emails came out which once again confirmed that they know how evil they are while they do it. but has that changed the way the company is valued or the way it operates, since all that stuff leaked a while back?

Look don't get me wrong, I don't blame Dominion for not pushing for revenge on behalf of half the nation or whatever and yeah, there's been some damaging things brought to light, but my bigger take is that this allows FOX to continue right on as they've always done, peddling dangerous bullshit. Did I think this lawsuit was going to suddenly make them disappear completely? Of course not, but I did hope for something with more lasting impact to slow down the blatant deluge of disinformation.

Not enough, but that’s a lot of ice cream cones.

I guess it remains to be seen how constrained hosts and guests at Fox are going forward. Like, what if they have Trump on, and he starts spouting shit, will they be required to shut him down? How do you muzzle loons like Judge Whomever or Mr. Pillow?

Well strictly speaking that's back to the media law/Sullivan standard point I raised the other week. Fox has to calculate now that any weakening of that standard has the clear potential to further hurt them like crazy.

xxpost That's before taxes, though. #ThanksBrandon

Fox will just file this as cost to retain market share.

What the Fox people need is fear like real journalists in parts of the world live with everyday.

In making the announcement, the network said, “We are pleased to have reached a settlement of our dispute with Dominion Voting Systems. We acknowledge the Court’s rulings finding certain claims about Dominion to be false. This settlement reflects FOX’s continued commitment to the highest journalistic standards. We are hopeful that our decision to resolve this dispute with Dominion amicably, instead of the acrimony of a divisive trial, allows the country to move forward from these issues.”

gnnnnnnnghhhh so unsatisfying I want seppuku

Typically the judge and trial lawyers have nothing to do with settlement negotiations.

The lawyers are always involved. I've also been before plenty of judges who will quite openly try to pressure the parties to settle.

i'd also say -- and perhaps this is to state the obvious -- that you don't build up a billion dollar corporation w/o caring a lot about money. all these corporations penny pinch like crazy bcuz the ppl who run them want to keep every last little dime out of the hands of other ppl. so yeah we can look at murdoch's net worth and fox's revenues and say that this is a pittance & that we were denied a chance at justice (a fairy tale thought as explained by the tweet ned posted) but most billionaires can't perish the thought of wasting a spare $78 let alone losing $787 million. the vast majority of uber rich ppl aren't like us, they don't look at their money and think "hey i got $780 million to spare who cares." they want it all. an apology, a guilty verdict... the idea of being branded morally corrupt -- or even better being forced to admit that they're morally corrupt -- isn't causing rupert murdoch to lose sleep at night, or else he'd be running a different business. but i bet losing $780 million even w/ $15 billion in yearly revenue or whatever is burning a hole in his chest.

"We don't get embarrassed."

- Siobhan Roy

After the surprise settlement with Fox News was announced, Dominion lawyer Stephen Shackelford said the company was not done holding people accountable, but did not specify who.

“We are not done yet,” Shackelford told reporters. “We have some other people who have some accountability coming toward them.”

Dominion attorney Justin Nelson told reporters: “Truth has meaning. Lies have consequences.”

Also worth noting:

Dominion just got walk-away money 7x their worth. Not taking the money would have been business malpractice. They played this well.

— Andrei Taranchenko (@andrenaleen) April 18, 2023

That may seem glib but a huge part of what Fox was saying in the runup to the trial was that 1.6 billion was too much, the company too small, etc. etc.

It's a yuge victory for Dominion. Hats off to their lawyers.

And per Josh in Chicago's point:

I happened to have reviewed the status of the Dominion suit against Rudy, OAN , et al. It has been just sitting there for two years. Circling like a hawk.

— emptywheel (@emptywheel) April 18, 2023

In a followup tweet, she adds discovery there starts 'in earnest' in a month.

I'd be interested if the settlement also covers Dominion's legal fees.

wonder if the Mango Mussolini will chime in on this, or wisely keep his piehole shut

Like maybe i would have settled for 1BN because it talks up well

I'd be interested if the settlement also covers Dominion's legal fees.

― Ned Raggett, Tuesday, April 18, 2023 5:06 PM (one minute ago)

their lawyers are prob taking close to half of that total

That would be beyond surprising. I am sure they are getting a good payday, but not $390 million good.

dominion's lawyers are from susman godfrey, a litigation firm that is the elite of the elite. no idea whether the fee arrangement was contingency but I wouldn't be that surprised if it were. 100% chance that fox is paying all of dominion's legal fees in addition to that, imo.

wonder if the Mango Mussolini will chime in on this, or wisely keep his piehole shut

Not much to wonder about there, tbh

Under the terms of the settlement, Fox News will not have to apologize or admit to spreading false claims on network programming, according to a person familiar with the details of the agreement.

of course not.

but boy oh boy that fine that is 6% of their annual revenue is surely gonna learn 'em good!

I wanted the trial too, but I think a nontrivial consequence of this (and hopefully of what's to come from Smartmatic and other Dominion suits) is that it might make all of them less eager to scream "election fraud" next time around. Because you pretty much can't claim massive widescale fraud without defaming somebody.

it might make all of them less eager to scream "election fraud" next time around

I'm genuinely curious here, what exactly in the entire of Murdoch and FOX's practices over the last several decades leads anyone to believe that they are suddenly going to feel shame and change course? I just don't see it.

Eh? It's not a question a shame, more like "Yeah can we avoid having to go through all that again regarding even a sliver of our private emails and texts going public and not having to pay a huge chunk of change, please?"

Like here's a small detail -- when those Tucker messages about him loathing Trump right before J6 in particular emerged, he went on some right-wing radio talk show or the like essentially grovelling and passing it off to a credulous audience as 'Uh that was me venting frustration at a Trump staffer in November 2020' (not so, obv.). It's one thing to pander to the feebs who support their enterprise, it's another thing to grovel to them specifically so they don't ask what's going on.

Yeah, for sure it's nothing to do with shame. It's just a reminder that they can actually be held accountable for defaming people. At a minimum I'm sure company lawyers will be putting out memos about what to say if a guest goes off the rails and starts impugning private people or businesses.

Another reason Lindell should be rethinking his options right now is that Fox can say they got rid a chief offender early on (good ol' Lou Dobbs) and IIRC still won't let Lindell himself on anymore. He's been riding this train ever since in comparison. But he's either so deep in the rabbit-hole he can't reemerge without whatever his business model is collapsing or is genuinely out of it.

it's also a shot across the bow to the Newmaxx/OAN outlets who don't necessarily have the deep pockets to weather something like this

This is a win for Fox. Such a bummer Dominion didn’t fight it out in court. Basically a slap on the wrist for Fox. Nothing will change.

I like how we're all confidently predicting we all know exactly what this means, even me! Clearly we're all correct!

Meantime, worth a read (this is a gift link). And right out of the gate:

“Dominion’s litigation exposed some of the misconduct and damage caused by Fox’s disinformation campaign,” a Smartmatic spokesman said in a statement on Tuesday. “Smartmatic will expose the rest.”

Sure, that could eventually be settled as well. But you think they're not encouraged by developments?

Meanwhile turns out there's also these kind of suits.

A Fox Corp. investor has sued Rupert Murdoch, Lachlan Murdoch and other Fox Corp. board members over "stolen election claims" https://t.co/cXhaCWrG90 by @janestreet pic.twitter.com/achrEXbTwC

— Amanda Terkel (@aterkel) April 12, 2023

Settlement happens in like 95% of all civil litigation.

I like the shareholders derivative suit.

And in terms of financial hits, assuming that they pay out, like, immediately (I assume that's not actually the case but hey, if someone knows better), per WaPo:

The $787.5 million price tag for Fox’s settlement with Dominion Voting Systems amounts to almost one-fifth of the company’s cash on hand, a sizable hit to the company’s bottom line. Fox Corp. CEO Lachlan Murdoch told analysts in February during an earnings call that the company had about $4 billion in cash on hand.

So essentially 20% of cash on hand. This is not chump change in that regard!

This settlement reflects FOX’s continued commitment to the highest journalistic standards.

this is a pretty impressive "lol fuck you" from Fox's lawyers

It’s a lot of money but it’s not enough to change their behavior. Just my opinion, and I have <0.00000000000000001% in my bank account so I don’t know how it hits rich people. I just don’t see them caring, at all, tomorrow

the bigger and more important factor would be public opinion, especially the dipshits who have watched the shows and bought into the lies, and I don’t think there’s going to be any change there. The worst already happened. People with eyes to see will have seen that they are liars, and it barely dented their viewership. It just doesn’t matter. It’s a monetary payment for their continual fuckup, the cost of doing business

Also why would dominion care at all about the state of democracy and trust in our system of government. They’re not civic advocates, they’re a company that happens to involve civics. They’re stoked tonight

they’re the winners, not anyone else

imo

^yup

Well, it was a civil dispute, so I'm not sure what else one could expect, but it is very satisfying to see Fox have to stroke such a big check.

We were all hoping the outcome would hurt FOX where they cried like a stuck pig. Didn't rise to that level == disappointment.

We got a lot out of it, rubbernecking-wise. Mostly just confirmed what everybody has known forever, but it doesn't hurt to have it from the primary sources. Also, if they were going to get called on anything I think lying about election results is a top-tier thing to get called on.

I guess it depends on what you really thought was likely to happen. In some ways it's been more revealing than I expected.

Quite, and echoing that sentiment, from a Mastodon post:

I'm a former trial lawyer, former prosecutor, and current mediator. I have both represented and sued some of the largest companies in the world. I am very experienced, and VERY good, at what I do.

At trial, Dominion would not and could not have received an apology. Period. The vanishingly rare circumstances in which a court could order a retraction do not exist here.

At trial, Dominion would not have received $787.5 million, which is 45x its highest annual earnings. If a jury awarded it that much, the court almost certainly would have reduced it on remittitur.

This is a superb and stunning settlement. Dominion has hurt Fox badly, exposed Fox's lies, and done the American public a massive service. If you feel otherwise, fine – but that's all it is: a feeling. Factually, you are incorrect, and to soothe your feelings you should take recourse to bourbon or cannabis, not social media.

i agree that a lot was won in conventional terms, it's a stunning settlement, so many millions. i disagree that the american public has been done a massive service. we don't live in conventional times. fox lies constantly and has no allegiance other than what makes money for them. they'll make a profit this year. tucker carlson is still on the air. he's probably lying about what happened at this very moment, and he's the top rated whatever on television. until i see him and the thousands of acolytes waiting to fill his shoes eating horseshit i won't think that fox has been hurt in the slightest

the american public that pays attention has learned that fox lied and lies. most of us already knew that, maybe a couple thousand people in the US learned something new. everyone else did not. i don't really care about the dollars. it didn't change behavior, it's not changing behavior, so to me it was one group of people who had way too much money forced to give it to another group of people who have way too much money

and that is so tragic for the people who lost it, and such good news for the people who got it. but man they don't really give a fuck about you or me

it would have been much better for dominion to let the lawsuit proceed for weeks and for fox's shit to be in the news every single night. instead they decided to be nice to their fellow rich friends and give them a couple hundred extra million in exchange for the story dying earlier. it was a triumph for all the money both sides are floating in

at the same time, of course, i'm glad it happened, i'm glad it was in the news for a minute and that fox looked bad for a split second. i just don't see anyone in my real life giving a fuck about this

and last post promise but tomorrow fox is going to lie to my mom about everything and she's going to believe every single word of it. honestly that's all i care about. nothing has changed. their disinformation kills people, kills people i cared about, and then brainwashes the survivors into thinking they deserved it. dominion got a bunch of money. fox gets to settle. who cares, the fucking assholes won yet again

sorry about being negative. i know that's deeply frowned upon by some people here, and i don't feel like that much irl right now. i'm just being honest. i don't mean to diminish the glee that people feel tonight at fox news looking horrible. i think that's real, and maybe it does add up to something, i hope it does

In choosing between the conclusions of z_tbd and the former trial lawyer, former prosecutor, and current mediator, I think z_tbd has a more complete grasp of the larger truth here. Yes, there was some good in this outcome, but nothing that alters our basic reality sufficiently to celebrate for more than a brief moment over a very minor victory.

It's still odd what can happen. Dig this quote:

Going forward, Fox News faces a similar lawsuit from the Smartmatic Company and perhaps thousands of lawsuits from Fox shareholders. What a disaster.

This is what happens when money becomes more important than honest information...the template changed from "Fair and Balanced" to "tell the audience what it wants to hear." And millions of Trump voters, to this day, want to believe the 2020 election was rigged.

That opinion can certainly be presented if you provide a counter opinion - equal time.

However, once the facts begin to overwhelm any point of view, a news agency has an obligation to say that...

Fox News saw it differently, and now payment has been rendered. But the nightmare will continue for FNC.

The person who said it? The answer may surprise you...

altering basic reality was never on the table

Ah, one the news media's elder statesmen, I see.

look what Fox did was very much against the spirit of the No Spin Zone

altering basic reality was never on the table

hence a brief celebration of a minor victory

I wonder how this will affect the deal with Mattson.

OK, I'm watching an old episode of "The King of Queens" and Tucker Carlson has just made an appearance.

1/2 Remarkable statement from Fox to me just now in response to Smartmatic’s lawyers saying they are ready to pick up where Dominion left off.

"There is nothing more newsworthy than covering the president of the United States and his lawyers making allegations of voter fraud.” https://t.co/0j7tDdsATb

— Sara Fischer (@sarafischer) April 19, 2023

how about a "news" organization that credulously believes him?

or acts like it does so they don't hurt their viewers feelings?

In a brief segment this morning, Newsmax covers Fox News' $787 million settlement before airing its own statement about its pending Dominion case.

"Newsmax says it stands by its coverage and analysis of the 2020 election and will continue to vigorously defend against the claim." pic.twitter.com/1noxXTNoef

— Justin Baragona (@justinbaragona) April 19, 2023

i love the news. i get it from newsmax because they cut right through the bullshit and give it to me straight

its right there in the name, newsmax - it's max(imum) news!

why would people want anything less than the maximum of news? morans!

*shakes head*

I want the news but don't call me max

One difference between the Fox News and Newsmax cases might be that Fox personalities and management were totally cynical cultural warriors who knew and discussed in private that the election claims were bullshit, while Newsmax might be complete dullards/true believers who really believed the stuff the deniers were pushing. The latter might still have violated some duty to verify the truth, but it might not be so easy to prove actual malice as it appears it would have been with Fox.

thus vindicating the anti-intellectualism of the right - the best defense is not knowing better

Bartiromo, Pirro and apparently Bongino getting the ax because Murdoch wants to be less "vulnerable." If that were truly the case, he'd jettison Hannity, Carlson and Ingraham, but of course he won't.

Pour encourager les autres to a small degree, perhaps.

Perhaps those cynical Fox lifer hacks know how to control themselves, vs. those B-list nutters, goofs and grifters.

Also this just seems like a prediction than a truth at this point, Bongino aside.

Dominion's co-founder/CEO on why they went for the settlement and more besides. (Gift link, read away.)

thanks!

maybe the dominion settlement was good actually

Just maybe!

Lmao

Shocking news from Fox: Tucker Carlson is out at the network. pic.twitter.com/NWfxQMCw3h

— Oliver Darcy (@oliverdarcy) April 24, 2023

Mr. Carlson’s last program was Friday April 21st. Fox News Tonight will air live at 8 PM/ET starting this evening as an interim show helmed by rotating FOX News personalities until a new host is named.

Sttttrong suspicion both Hannity and Ingraham -- who are popular but nowhere near as Tucker -- are in 'pour encourager les autres' mode.

what's the cable network version of going to substack?

Newsmax?

rumble?

kind of doubt he's going to jump to Newsmax or OAN since they have pending Dominion lawsuits

He and Bongino can just rant on Twitch or something.

I hope the interim FOX personalities who host the new show are actually rotating as they do so, like there's an intern sitting off camera who reaches out and gives their chair a spin every once in a while.

new host catturd2 or LibsofTiktok lady

He and Bongino can just rant on Twitch or something.

this is wild hes their top guy wonder what happened, could be related to all those texts of him talking shit but seems weird that they would care didnt seem like that big of a story

one unfortunate thing is that the timing would line up for a 2024 run

surely this

Turns out, costing your employer $787 million dollars is kind of a thing

— Elie Mystal (@ElieNYC) April 24, 2023

Shaping up to be a pretty good Monday.

The departure comes about a month after Abby Grossberg, a former top booker on Carlson's program, sued the network and cited "vile sexist stereotypes" working for "Tucker Carlson Tonight." 3/

— ErikWemple (@ErikWemple) April 24, 2023

maybe another factor?

who'd have guessed that Tucker's staff is packed with vile shitheads

looking forward to Jerome Corsi's "If It Ain't Woke, Don't Fix It"

Tucker was either found with a dead boy or a live Swanson fish sticks meal.

Per @samwolfson, Fox was still previewing Tucker Carlson's show this morning, teasing an interview with Vivek Ramasaway

— Sam Levine (@srl) April 24, 2023

the voting machine conspiracy wasnt just him it was all over the channel which would make one think that it was at least tacitly approved by higher ups

maybe they found out he was a shoggoth

maybe they were just sick of his shit altogether but usually these companies will bend over backwards for their top performers

I bet it had to do with sexual harassment or the like.

they fired O'Reilly, I guess they're not invulnerable

its true

maybe they felt like after the huge settlement they had to pure the conspiracy guys its just not worth the risk

Never mind, ay?

most of their guys they can just tell to not do that stuff anymore but tucker is too far gone

lmao can you imagine how much fox news grandpas would hate that little shit

Ben Shapiro would be a really good fit for that slot.

— Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) April 24, 2023

He really was a minor part of the lawsuit, though. If anything the leaked docs showed he pushed back more than most (though relented and still spewed bullshit.) He seemed like the sort that would rat on Fox to save his own ass, so maybe that was a factor, too.

Here was the end of what turned out to be Tucker Carlson's final Fox News show last Friday. Certainly no indication that he didn't expect to be on the air tonight. In fact Tucker's final words are, "we'll be back on Monday." pic.twitter.com/F9R5MpWHDK

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) April 24, 2023

thing is hes just pushing all sorts of conspiracies left and right so if they feel like they need to clean that stuff up he has to go

Funny how, if that was a UK news agency the statement would contain a fair bit of "highly respected, quality presenter, many years of fantastic news coverage, wish him well".

However, it's full of "Fox news is this, that, the other, and we are GREAT"

Also Erickson's kinda clueless if he hasn't realized that Shapiro has realized 'Uh, yeah, I've got my own little empire here, why would I bother going over to one that can fuck me over?'

oh he would do it cmon

These dorks all crave eyeballs/legitimacy/$$$.

When Paul and Barnabas fell out, the split resulted in a more rapid dissemination of Christianity.

I hope the same applies to conservative values shared by both parties . All the best and continued success to @TuckerCarlson and @FoxNews .

— Trudy Seivwright MD (@SeivwrightTrudy) April 24, 2023

just the analogy I had in mind

exactly my thought too

We'll have to wait 'til Bannon interviews Tucker to find out the REAL TRUTH ...

huh maybe it was the texts

"…it was Carlson’s comments about Fox management, as revealed in the Dominion case, that played a role in his departure from Fox, a person familiar with the company’s thinking told The Post." https://t.co/8NTyjXcfN9

— Jack Jenkins (@jackmjenkins) April 24, 2023

Per WaPo:

But it was Carlson’s comments about Fox management, as revealed in the Dominion case, that played a role in his departure from Fox, a person familiar with the company’s thinking told The Post....

“We’re just learning of this like everyone else, total surprise on my end," one stunned staffer told The Post, speaking on condition of anonymity to share private insights into the newsroom, adding that colleagues were shocked as well.

Another on-air personality added: “This is major. It sends a message that even the guy with the highest ratings of all, by a long shot, doesn’t get to survive this disaster.”

Anyway look for Gabriel Sherman to have full details one way or another by the end of the day, I figure.

by "Barnabas" she actually meant "Bannon."

Jinx etc but yeah maybe there's a certain too-big-for-britches scenario happening here.

bonobos

the truth comes out

The bitches set me up.

— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) November 8, 2011

reasonable point

i have said many times that tucker carlson doesnt have influence, the 8pm time slot at fox news has influence. think of how powerful bill oreilly was and whens the last time you even thought about him?

— Andrew Lawrence (@ndrew_lawrence) April 24, 2023

Trump-Carlson 2024

Don Lemon out at CNN too.

xp re: 8pm timeslot

that feels heavily otm, there's a deep roster of horrible fucking people there, their farm system is strong

agree with this that it was prob all the things including not wanting to expose themselves to future law suits

The timing of Tucker Carlson’s ouster seems really strange despite the reporting it was triggered by his criticism of Fox executives. That’s not really new? They already knew that? Weeks/months ago? And still were promoting his show tonight as recent as this morning. pic.twitter.com/pokDRuKYcf

— jordan (@JordanUhl) April 24, 2023

A more likely explanation would be the cascading issues (Tucker booker suing over sexism, Ray Epps smear, Dominion fallout and Tucker generally being beyond reproach) and tightening up the ship/getting talent back in line to shore up risks.

— jordan (@JordanUhl) April 24, 2023

tfw you dont get to go on tv anymore

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FufmkX6XsAQRzJj?format=jpg&name=medium

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FufnNSiacAA-XcO?format=jpg&name=medium

Seems that Conservatives on twitter are blaming this on Paul Ryan taking orders from AOC

lol waht

ive been saying that too

That's it. Paul Ryan has now destroyed both the Republican Party & @FoxNews @TuckerCarlson was the only thing I watched every day on Fox. No need to tune in now.

Fox joins @budlight pic.twitter.com/JZXlgcEPTW

— Joe “I'll take Ultra MAGA over Mega Moron" Friday (@InsurancePlanX) April 24, 2023

of course!

Paul Ryan was at #WEF #Davos 2023 making deals with the enemies of the U.S.

Day after AOC call for Tucker to be cancelled. He is cancelled.

EU UN WEF dictating American policy by proxy. pic.twitter.com/e3mZG4TpAO

— RadFit8186 (@JustinS59482769) April 24, 2023

its all there

First it was @dbongino, now it’s @TuckerCarlson!!!

Ex-Speaker Paul Ryan and the Murdoch’s will do whatever @AOC directs them to do in an effort to make sure President Trump doesn’t get back into the White House!#TrumpTucker2024

— Katie Arrington (@karringtonsc) April 24, 2023

sorry

the brainworms

even for Glenn that's quite the cheese-sliding-off-the-cracker moment

oh ryan is on the fox board i see https://www.foxcorporation.com/management/board-of-directors/

when Bill got canned was he allowed to at least do a final show? the suddenness of this is indeed really weird, feels like either something major is about to drop or Rupert really is pissed off at the Dominion shit and needed to take it out somewhere

Also seeing conspiracists somehow connecting it to the Ray Epps interview on 60 Minutes last night. (I say "somehow" because I refuse to devote the time to figuring out how.)

after searching twitter for 30 seconds i think these two tweets explain it

The regime’s love for Ray Epps is the strangest thing

100s of peaceful protestors have been arrested & called “insurrectionists”

An unarmed female Veteran was shot dead & some say “she deserved it”

But the guy yelling to go into the Capitol multiple times on video?

Protected https://t.co/M8kxdQC6sy

— DC_Draino (@DC_Draino) April 24, 2023

“He’s obsessed with me,” Ray Epps says of Fox News host Tucker Carlson. “He’s … [trying] to destroy my life.”

Carlson has focused on Epps more than 20 times on his show, which Epps says is to shift blame from those who really instigated rioters on Jan. 6. pic.twitter.com/pBRS6tMji3

— 60 Minutes (@60Minutes) April 23, 2023

https://t.co/rQ7ZB6X2jG pic.twitter.com/qUced1vpFe

— Cole Sullivan (@cole_sull) April 24, 2023

🟡 NEW: Tucker Carlson's executive producer Justin Wells is also out at Fox News, @maxwelltani reportshttps://t.co/PR1Cb13WFi

— Semafor (@semafor) April 24, 2023

NEW: Tucker Carlson's executive producer Justin Wells is also out at Fox News,
@Lassie reports

i just took a 2 minute dip into some terrible twitter world where RFK jr is posting that Tucker's out for telling the truth about the vaccine and it's followed by endless comments regarding this and not a single one mentions the lawsuit.

I hope it is true

can't... stop... laughing... https://t.co/YCMZEpobyf pic.twitter.com/BD22I1Jp2S

— Matthew Gertz (@MattGertz) April 24, 2023

I can't believe it, one day I'm here, the other day I'm not, I mean who has heard of this happening to a person at a job before

Did he make that Tucker face when he found out?

Why was Tucker Carlson forced out at Fox? Because he had become too woke.

— New York Times Pitchbot (@DougJBalloon) April 24, 2023

I like to think that Sean Hannity is placing his Tucker voodoo doll in a box next his O'Reilly and Glen Beck ones

excuse me it's glenn as in neo-nazi

he doesn't actually go into the fox news hq very often, right? like he has an entire setup to shoot his show at home. wonder if he was even fired face-to-face

It's her time pic.twitter.com/kubHyC4Dmz

— Astead (@AsteadWH) April 24, 2023

who is this?

it’s a Succession joke

Yeah, sorry to the non-watchers.

Whenever a new season of Succession is on and a bunch of media people make the same joke I don't get, I assume it's related to that.

THE END OF MEN TUCKER

https://www.thepinknews.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/tucker.jpg

He was doing fine until he stopped tanning his balls

"Oh tanning balls, oh tanning balls, how lovely are your branches... "

he tried tanning his balls but he was a tucker

lmaooo

This may be the final shot of Tucker Carlson on Fox Ever pic.twitter.com/aKmsgXkegv

— The Serfs (@theserfstv) April 24, 2023

he died as he lived, looking like he didn't understand what was going on

On the contrary: he knows about buggery all too well.

As I was hoping/assuming, Gabriel Sherman with deets

https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2023/04/tucker-carlson-fox-news-fired

how do I inject this https://t.co/nenzwrs8u1

— kilgore trout, blue check blocker (@KT_So_It_Goes) April 25, 2023

(As KT said later, "brian kilmeade has the screen charisma of a boiled hot dog. it is amazing this is what they rummaged out of their stable to replace tucker"

gabriel doesn't seem to have too many details apart from whoa

Oh there'll be more. But I did like how his email was shut off immediately

Meantime:

Update: I have spoken with three people with knowledge of Fox's ouster of Tucker Carlson

They say Carlson's digital exchanges captured by the Dominion legal team echo the suite of concerns alleged by his ex producer - that his show's workplace was defined by sexism and bigotry.

— David Folkenflik (@davidfolkenflik) April 25, 2023

NOW this concerns them.

You’re only allowed to do that kind of stuff On Camera

Fox News is woke, it’s over.

You’re only allowed to do that kind of stuff On Camera

Being general counsel for Fox must be an easy gig. Like, you just wait for a Murdoch to tell you something you've known for years to be a liability has finally crossed a line, get the appropriate mad lib document and start filling in names/dates.

The inevitable reason why this all might not be an unmitigated great thing (just mostly):

WHAT'S INTERESTING, is that Newsmax saw a big ratings BOOST last night. Their 8pm hour averaged 531k total viewers.

Last Monday, pre-Carlson cancelation, Newsmax averaged just 146k viewers at 8pm. The Monday before? 209k. And the Monday before that? 220k.

— Oliver Darcy (@oliverdarcy) April 25, 2023

horrible people will watch propaganda tv, the only thing that will ever change is the source

i think a lot of people, especially my parents age, really like to keep the tv on at all times. and at a certain time of night it's time to get serious and watch the news and keep up on current affairs, so if tucker is gone they just find an adjacent show that has chyrons, overlay graphics, and a voice that seems confident

like we knew Tucker fans were gonna go elsewhere, they weren't just going to stop being terrible people.

was hoping more of them would have angrily ran out of their houses and gotten run over by a steamroller though

Dummies moving to Newsmax just in time for Newsmax to get the Dominion slam-down. Where Tucker goes, nothing grows.

If Tucker joins NewsMax will his show be called Tucker Max

I heard they're dropping the Max, so just "Tucker."

"The Man and His Dream."

https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2023/04/tucker-carlson-fox-news-rupert-murdoch

A new theory has emerged. According to the source, Fox Corp. chair Rupert Murdoch removed Carlson over remarks Carlson made during a speech at the Heritage Foundation’s 50th Anniversary gala on Friday night. Carlson laced his speech with religious overtones that even Murdoch found too extreme, the source, who was briefed on Murdoch’s decision-making, said. Carlson told the Heritage audience that national politics has become a manichean battle between “good” and “evil.” Carlson said that people advocating for transgender rights and DEI programs want to destroy America and they could not be persuaded with facts. “We should say that and stop engaging in these totally fraudulent debates…I’ve tried. That doesn’t work,” he said. The answer, Carlson suggested, was prayer. “I have concluded it might be worth taking just 10 minutes out of your busy schedule to say a prayer for the future, and I hope you will,” he said. “That stuff freaks Rupert out. He doesn’t like all the spiritual talk,” the source said.

Carlson declined to comment. A spokesperson for Fox Corp. declined to comment.

It’s been reported that Fox Corp. CEO Lachlan Murdoch and Fox News CEO Suzanne Scott made the decision to fire Carlson on Friday night. Another source, a person close to Murdoch, has said something similar to me. Scott informed Carlson of the decision on Monday morning.

Rupert Murdoch was perhaps unnerved by Carlson’s messianism because it echoed the end-times worldview of Murdoch’s ex-fiancée Ann Lesley Smith, the source said. In my May cover story, I reported that Murdoch and Smith called off their two-week engagement because Smith had told people Carlson was “a messenger from God.” Murdoch had seen Carlson and Smith discuss religion firsthand. In late March, Carlson had dinner at Murdoch’s Bel Air vineyard with Murdoch and Smith, according to the source. During dinner, Smith pulled out a bible and started reading passages from the Book of Exodus, the source said. “Rupert just sat there and stared,” the source said. A few days after the dinner, Murdoch and Smith called off the wedding. By taking Carlson off the air, Murdoch was also taking away his ex’s favorite show.

lol tucker got fired cause he reminded rupert of his ex

makes as much sense as anything else i guess

Carlson strikes me as more atheistic than most ILXers.

Yeah, he doesn't seem like a True Believer, but there are vaguely religious notes he can play with the civilizational collapse rhetoric that has become his stock in trade.

at best, Carlson seems like a half-hearted easter/christmas Christian... this speech sounds just as full of shit as everything he's been saying lately

Pray my ass

Feel like Tucker long ago entered the realm where even he can't tell if he believes what he's saying. He's just been making so so so much money that he's been doing whatever he thinks it takes to keep the wheels turning.

one thing worth noting is that hes been racist his entire career so seems like he does believe in that

did murdoch try to get married and fail this month? maybe he's compensating. that's my theory

Rupe to fiancée: "Oh you like Tucker, do you? You like him?? Well, you'll have plenty of time to spend with him, he's FIRED!!"

one thing worth noting is that hes been racist his entire career so seems like he does believe in that

― lag∞n,

and in Swanson

gotta love that meat money

also pudding

lol

also wearing goggles on the tanning bed

Never forget that Tucker’s mother abandoned him when he was six years old. Foresight is 20/20

Why do bash “dead-beat” dads for not being there for their kids but we never question if the child has bad vibes? Or if they’re just unpleasant to be around?

— sadiq (@SadiqoJN) December 7, 2018

Lol PK

Pentagon loves Tucker gone:

...But at the upper levels of the Defense Department, news of Carlson’s firing from Fox News on Monday was met with delight and outright glee in some corners.

“We’re a better country without him bagging on our military every night in front of hundreds of thousands of people,” said one senior DoD official, who like others interviewed for this story was granted anonymity to discuss a politically sensitive topic.

“Good riddance,” said a second DoD official.

Asked to respond to the news that DoD officials are pleased by his departure from Fox, Carlson responded by text message: “Ha! I’m sure.” He declined to comment further.

letthemfight.jpg

lol tuckers response pretty good

In the message, sent to one of his producers in the hours after violent Trump supporters stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, Mr. Carlson described how he had recently watched a video of a group of men — Trump supporters, he said — violently attacking “an Antifa kid.”

It was “three against one, at least,” he wrote.

And then he expressed a sense of dismay that the attackers, like him, were white.

“Jumping a guy like that is dishonorable obviously,” he wrote.

“It’s not how white men fight,” he said. But he said he found himself for a moment wanting the group to kill the person he had described as the Antifa kid.

BREAKING: One of Tucker Carlson's redacted text messages from the Dominion trial was particularly troubling to Fox Execs. We've learned what it said. Read it here. w/@jimrutenberg and Jeremy Peters https://t.co/xfaA3S8Jb0

— Michael S. Schmidt (@nytmike) May 3, 2023

I’ll bet $1,000 this was leaked first because it’s one of the *less* inflammatory texts https://t.co/i1kaTXtU9P

— Christopher Hooks (@cd_hooks) May 3, 2023

Kind of an interesting point

What's interesting about that text is Carlson is more candid about his goonish racism & authoritarianism, and more troubled by where it is leading, than his defenders in the post-left like Glenn Greenwald. https://t.co/ENmMGfqkuw

— Jeet Heer (@HeerJeet) May 3, 2023

White men known as particularly dirty fighters iirc.

they should just show us the texts where he says slurs and whatnot theyre gonna get out eventually whats the point of this charade

That text is going to make Tucker even more popular at CPAC or NatCon or whatever. Fantasizing about Antifas getting beaten to death is playing to the base.

And being super racist too!

good reminder that those who we think "say the quiet part out loud" sometimes actually don't!!

I am sure Fox management was shocked, shocked that Tucker would say such things.

White people fight like this

Maybe they were upset about the part where he expresses remorse.

you know that crazy high pitched laugh he did turn his show sometimes? the one that made his whole body convulse? the one that everyone said made him look like a psychopath? well, what if....

now i’m just thinking of the simpsons episode where the stand-up comic is doing the “white people drive like this” bit

White people fight like this

― INDEPENDENTS DAY BY STEVEN SPILBERG (President Keyes), Tuesday, May 2, 2023 11:01 PM (yesterday) bookmarkflaglink

sorry, used to being at work where we've got some people in their early 20s who have never watched the simpsons

So sad (gift link, read away)

ah ok now its starting to make sense, tucker is a dummy

EXCLUSIVE: Tucker Carlson tried to push out Fox News' mega-powerful PR chief. It backfired spectacularly -- and helped set the stage for his own ouster.https://t.co/Mmjm4x9Z1P

— Noah Shachtman (@NoahShachtman) May 8, 2023

Hahah he tried to get rid of BRIGANTI? That's like someone trying to oust Coco Schwab as Bowie's key assistant from 1976 on -- never gonna happen.

"I am bigger than this network."

"You thought."

is it good when the people youre trying to persuade laugh at you

In some cases, executives laughed off Carlson’s attempt to get Briganti fired, assuring him and others that Briganti was not going anywhere anytime soon.

Briganti “hates all the talent,” the former Fox News commentator says. “She was so disgusted by the level of fucked up idiots who work there, in her opinion, and had to clean up their messes and their overblown egos.”

tough but fair

What makes this all the more entertaining is that there's that third factor of the producer who felt pressured by Fox's lawyers in the Dominion discovery process and has since filed a separate suit, releasing snippets trashing Tucker further.

Given the way she speaks to the press on behalf of people she hates, I'm genuinely curious if there's anyone on earth Briganti likes, or if she's one of those uniquely NYC rich corporate types who genuinely loathes all of humanity, a character straight out of a Ballard novel.

Didn't Ailes hire her directly? Game recognize game.

For fun!

https://www.axios.com/2023/05/09/tucker-carlson-fox-news-letter-fraud

Jesse Waters takes the throne

https://www.wsj.com/articles/fox-news-names-jesse-watters-to-replace-tucker-carlson-as-anchor-of-8-p-m-hour-75a72fce

Watters that is

"Watt-ahs, that is!"

https://i.imgur.com/YKDH4dP.jpg

that dude creeps me out so much. he has this weird frozen half smile even as his guess rant about the craziest things.

and Watters?

well, they're both big cocks, I'll give him that.

Fox News announces new prime time lineup post Tucker Carlson firing:
• 7 pm, Laura Ingraham
• 8 pm, Jesse Watters
• 9 pm, Sean Hannity
• 10 pm, Greg Gutfeld
Bring on the lies and conspiracy theories! pic.twitter.com/nXpxmlcnMR

— Mike Sington (@MikeSington) June 26, 2023

I think Gutfeld may be my least favorite of these 4 shitbags, just perpetually smarmy and smirky