Der Spiegel: FOX (News?)-'A DICTATOR's Reality Show'

[kpete]

01/05/2012

The Republican Reality Show
Fox News Takes Center Stage in Primaries

By Gregor Peter Schmitz

Like a Dictator

Fox News needs sensationalism to maintain its ratings, which is why the Republican candidates cannot expect preferential treatment this year. Because hatred of Obama and the left has become old news, Fox has turned its focus to transforming the Republican primaries into a circus -- fueled by Ailes, the Republicans' shadow leader, who at times wields his power like a dictator.

For instance, Ailes was partly responsible for a sharp increase in the number of televised debates among the Republican candidates. In these debates, Ailes has unleashed up to four Fox hosts on the candidates for the White House, with the hosts usually sitting down while the candidates are forced to stand, like students at a flag ceremony. The current leader in the polls is usually placed in the middle of the lineup, while those closer to the bottom are placed on the sides of the stage, where the camera rarely pans.

Serious discussions of the issues are not seen as important, because they could put off viewers. What is more important to Fox is choreographed conflict, as Howard Kurtz, a media columnist for Newsweek and the Daily Beast, observed in a rare behind-the-scenes visit at Fox. During the visit, one host advised a colleague to ask Perry for comment on accusations that he might be too lenient on illegal immigration, and then to cut directly to one of Perry's rivals and ask: Is Perry really too soft? On-stage argument helps inflame passions.

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http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,806765,00.html

[Turbineguy]

1. Fox reveals its true fealty.