Fox News: The Jeffrey Epstein Vortex
A condensed overview of 15 hours of Fox News for the week ending 9/7/25
Last week most American media companies broadcast live coverage of a humble press conference organized by adult survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking criminal enterprise in front of the Capitol building.
Fox News completely ignored it. The network spent most of its focus on Trump’s threats to send National Guard troops into Chicago, RFK Jr.’s Senate hearing and what one Fox contributor described as the Democrat Party’s death spiral.
Women sharing their stories about suffering abuse at the hands of Jeffrey Epstein, a high-rolling billionaire with powerful friends and allies including the president was not a story that Fox News wanted to elevate. Fox producers did include a few short segments about Sydney Sweeney’s jeans commercial - no really, they did that.
Sydney Sweeney’s name appeared 14 times in the transcripts last week while the word ‘Epstein’ only appeared twice. The word ‘Sweeney’ also appeared almost twice as often as the word ‘Israel’ (seven mentions) despite the hunger crisis in Gaza and massive protests in Israel calling for an end to the war and a release of all hostages.
When Fox News can’t find a way to spin any given news cycle the network simply ignores problematic stories knowing its audience is unlikely to change the channel. The network appears to have one goal - to promote and protect President Donald J. Trump and the MAGA agenda.
In this case the network’s selective coverage is especially despicable as President Trump’s behavior surrounding the Epstein case has become more disturbing and incriminating.
The network also ignored the rising cost of electricity bills, Workers Over Billionaires protests in cities across the country and more abuses committed by Customs and Border Protection agents.
Because this story is so important I’ve included excerpts from the press conference of Epstein survivors along with portions of one segment about the Epstein files from “The PBS News Hour.”
Shows I covered last week:
Fox & Friends
The Five
Hannity
President Trump announcement - Tuesday
House hearing on censorship - Tuesday
Trump meeting with Polish President - Wednesday
Epstein victims press conference - Wednesday
Tech CEO dinner at White House - Thursday
Senate hearing with RFK Jr. - Thursday
Trump announcement EO signing - Friday
PBS vs. Fox - How Both Networks Covered the Biggest story of the Week
On Wednesday “The PBS News Hour” dedicated 13 minutes to the Epstein story or about 5% of its total airtime for the week. Geoff Bennett, co-anchor of the News Hour, spoke with Liz Stein, a survivor of Epstein’s abuse and Jennifer Freeman an attorney who has represented Stein and other victims.
This is an excerpt from that interview.
Bennett: Congress last night, as you both well know, released thousands of pages of documents related to the Epstein case. Most of them were already public. There could be more to come. From your perspective. Is that enough? Or just survivors need something more concrete in order to feel real accountability?
Stein: We want substantive information released, and what was released last night is a lot of what's already been released, and it's not new information. So I think that what will really impress us would be if we saw some transparency in something more than just a show.
Bennett: Same question does it feel like accountability or justice, or is this the beginning of what's really needed?
Freeman: I hope this is the beginning. I hope there is follow up action. I hope that this is finally going to be taken seriously. Beginning with the Epstein transparency File Transparency Act, which is to release the files. And if the files don't go that release that way, we're going to seek them in litigation. And I'd always put litigation as the last resort. But the problem has been is that no one has been paying attention. We've done so many different things to try to move this matter forward. I made a FOIA request for several FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) requests and in response, what did the government do? They told me they will get back to me no later than November 2027. That's unacceptable.
Bennett: Why do you feel like your requests are being met with that level of obstruction?
Freeman: I wish I understood that better because this really, as we've noticed, this is not a political issue. It's a started with Maria Farmer in 1996. Under the Clinton administration. There have been five administrations since then of different stripes. There's no reason why it should be politicized at every turn.
How Fox News Covered the Same Story
On Monday Fox News inserted a breaking news story into a pre-taped episode “Hannity” that included some information about the Epstein files.
“The House Committee investigating the Justice Department's handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case withdraws former FBI Director Robert Mueller subpoena. Mueller had been directed to appear before the House Oversight Committee on Tuesday, but the subpoena was withdrawn after the panel learned of his health issues. Mueller was reportedly diagnosed with Parkinson's disease four years ago, and has difficulty speaking,” said Ashley Strohmier, Fox News correspondent.
The Epstein Survivors Press Conference
Last Wednesday on a bright sunny day a group of about 20 women of various ages stood in front of the United States Capitol Building and told the assembled press how they were sexually abused as children by Jefferey Epstein. For some of the survivors it was the first time they spoke of their trauma publicly.
The women were joined by a few attorneys who had fought on their behalf and a small group of lawmakers including Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA), Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY).
A large red sign with the words "Epstein Files Transparency Act" was attached to a lectern crowded with microphones.
The event was organized to promote legislation that would force the government to release all documents related to Jeffrey Epstein and his crimes. All 212 Democrat representatives are supporting The Epstein Files Transparency Act along with four Republicans - Thomas Massie, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lauren Boebert and Nancy Mace.
Supporters of the bill would need two more Republicans (a total of 218 lawmakers) to sign the petition to bypass House leadership and trigger a vote. So far they have failed to garner enough votes mainly due to Trump’s opposition of it.
The president has called the bill a ‘hostile act’ to his administration.
A Few Quotes from the Press Conference
“Who was he to our government that he was allowed to operate openly for decades? Why was he allowed to sponsor visas for young models, using their immigration status as leverage to abuse them and silence them? Epstein was not just a serial predator. He was an international human trafficker,” said Lisa Phillips, Epstein abuse survivor and podcaster.
Haley Robson, another survivor, also spoke.
“And the FBI knows the truth. The government knows the truth. You may pull the wool over the sheep's eyes, but we are the keys. We know who was involved . . . President Donald J. Trump. I am a registered Republican. Not that that matters, because this is not political. However, I cordially invite you to the Capitol to meet me in person so you can understand this is not a hoax.”
Anouska DiGiorgio, another survivor, appealed directly to the president.
“President Trump, you have so much influence and power in this situation. Please use that influence and power to help us, because we need it now. And this country needs it now.”
Courtney Wild, another survivor, was one of the first women to accuse Epstein of abuse.
“The only reason anyone ever found out that the government had already given Jeffrey Epstein immunity through the Non-prosecution agreement was because our lawsuit forced the government to tell us otherwise. Nobody would even know that today. Sometimes it's hard to believe that I had to sue the United States just to learn that my abuser was given immunity . . . This is not a blue thing or a red thing. This is an everyone thing. We can all agree on this with the injustice that has happened here.”
Chauntae Davies, another survivor, mentioned Trump’s relationship with Epstein.
“Epstein had a free pass. He bragged about his powerful friends, including our current president, Donald Trump. It was his biggest brag, actually.”
Some of the women’s statements were interrupted but the sound of fighter jets flying overhead. President Trump arranged a military flyover to honor a fallen Polish pilot and mark the visit of Polish President Karol Nawrocki to the White House.
Donald J. Trump only comment about the event was to dismiss it as a Democratic hoax.
Fox Might Have Ignored the Epstein Files but - PBS Didn’t.
Here’s another except from Geoff Bennett’s interview with Jennifer Freeman an Liz Stein.
Bennett: The Epstein case has fueled conspiracy theories. It's fueled political fights. The president today referred to it as a Democratic hoax. What does it feel like as a survivor to see your lived trauma reduced to political fodder?
Stein: Well, I think it's important for people to understand that this is not a political issue. This is a crime. In the crime is sex trafficking. And so to have we had 20 Epstein survivors gathered today to have so many women coming forward with similar stories. We don't know each other. We've never met each other, most of us. Yet we have this commonality and it's being ignored and downplayed. The amount of emotional turmoil that you go through in coming out and telling your story, the risk to your safety, your life changes forever when you become public. So no one is doing this for any reason other than to find the truth and to seek justice in the fact that this is being downplayed and brushed off as some kind of hoax or some kind of Democratic ploy is really just insulting and it's it's shifting the narrative to a place where it doesn't belong.
PBS - Maria Farmer Sounded the Alarm in 1996
Bennett: Jennifer. Liz mentioned one of your clients, Maria Farmer, who sued the federal government for failing to stop Epstein decades ago in light of today's advocacy. What concrete actions are you seeking?
Freeman: We are going to press that lawsuit. It's a very important case. It's to hold the government accountable for what they really failed to do. Maria Farmer, the original whistleblower of the Epstein matter, came forward in 1996, as Liz noted, and she went to the FBI. She did what every citizen is supposed to do when their crime has been committed, especially against children. And she reported to the FBI. And what did they do? Absolutely nothing. That's unacceptable. That's clear negligence.
Maria Farmer, a visual artist, was the first woman to file a criminal complaint against Jeffrey Epstein for sexual misconduct. Farmer filed complaints with both the NYPD and FBI on August 26, 1996.
Farmer also told friends and family members about the abuse immediately after it happened. She was a 25-year-old graduate student when she was abused by Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Epstein also abused her younger sister Annie who was only 15-years-old at the time of the abuse.
In 1996 Epstein hired Farmer as an art consultant and offered to put her up in a mansion he owned in Ohio. That same year Maria’s younger sister Annie was abused at Epstein’s ranch in New Mexico.
In 2002, Maria and Annie Farmer along with their mother met with Vicky Ward, a journalist at Vanity Fair, who was working on a profile about Jeffrey Espstein. Ward also spoke with other sources who Maria Farmer contacted immediately after the abuse occurred.
The final article about Epstein did not include the Farmer sisters’ story of abuse.
In 2022, The New Yorker published an extensive article which they claim exposed how Ward changed her story multiple times regarding the reasons the Farmer’s accusations were not included in her 2003 Vanity Fair article about Epstein.
Ward blamed Graydown Carter, the then editor of Vanity Fair for omitting the Farmer sisters’ accusations of sexual abuse. Carter responded by criticizing Ward and disparaging her reputation as a journalist.
The New Yorker was able to procure emails, original drafts and other corroborating evidence that they claimed proved Ward had changed details about the reasons why the abuse account was not included in the article over a period of years.
In the same New Yorker piece Carter also offered conflicting statements about why the abuse story was not included. After he was confronted with some of his discrepancies he admitted that he couldn’t remember much about an article which at that point was nearly 20 years old.
In 2011 Ward inexplicably wrote a highly flattering profile of Epstein and Maxwell for the Vanity Fair blog which downplayed the sexual abuse allegations against him.
Jeffrey Epstein was first arrested on sexual charges on July 23, 2006, in Palm Beach, Florida.
Decoding Fox News has not independently verified the claims found in The New Yorker about Ward and Carter. Ward has disputed many details in The New Yorker article in her Substack newsletter.
The Farmer sisters have publicly criticized Ward.
According to The Daily Beast,
“The Farmers, who were heartbroken over their allegations being excluded, say they’ve refused to do on-record interviews with Ward whenever she’s asked in recent years because they felt betrayed and distrustful of her because of this experience.”
To add to the mystery and drama involving Jeffrey Epstein and Vanity Fair, the Epstein estate recently released a letter allegedly written by Alan Dershowitz dated December 11, 2002.
Dear Jeffrey, As a birthday gift to you, I managed to obtain an early version of Vanity Unfair article. I talked them into changing the focus from you to Bill Clinton, as you will see from the enclosed excerpt. Happy Birthday and best regards.
Dershowitz included a mock cover of a parody of Vanity Fair titled ‘Vanity Unfair.’ The letter was allegedly meant as a joke. Dershowitz has represented both Trump and Epstein.
How Two Networks Presented the Jobs Report
On Friday morning “Fox & Friends” included a short segment about the jobs report.
“The August jobs report will be released at 8:30 a.m. eastern time, and President Trump says the country will see a job creation boom once the AI industry gets going,” said Fox.
Fox producers included a short media clip of President Trump.
“The real numbers that I'm talking about are going to be whatever it is, but, we'll be in a year from now when these monster is huge, beautiful places, the palaces of genius. And when they start opening up, you're seeing, I think you'll see job numbers that are going to be absolutely incredible right now. It's a lot of construction numbers, but you're going to see job numbers like our country has never seen before,” said Trump.
“The U.S. is expected to have added 75,000 jobs last month, and unemployment is expected to increase slightly to 4.3%. Those are the numbers to watch,” said Fox.
That Evening PBS Included More Details
“Welcome to the NewsHour. Fresh government data show the labor market hit a wall this summer. The August jobs report came in far weaker than expected, signaling a slowdown that could challenge the president's economic message,” said Geoff Bennett, co-anchor of “The PBS News Hour.”
Employers added just 22,000 new jobs last month. The only sector that added significant numbers was health care. Several other sectors, including manufacturing, lost jobs. Revisions also showed that the economy lost 13,000 jobs in June. That is the first net loss since December of 2020 during the pandemic. President Trump was asked about those weaker numbers. He said high interest rates were partly to blame and predicted unprecedented job growth to come next year. He then cast some doubt on the latest data and said there may be more adjustments to come, said Amna Nawaz, co-anchor of “The PBS News Hour.”
PBS producers cut to a media clip featuring the president.
“The other thing is so many different, so many different elements aren't included yet. And one of the things we've learned, and we learned that the hard way watching over the last few months are the corrections that people have been making. They'll say you're losing jobs. And then they say, by the way, we have a correction a month later,” said President Trump.
“This was the first monthly jobs report since the president fired the commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics just hours after a weak jobs report last month. Experts said today they've seen no problems with the agency's work yet or the acting commissioner overseeing it,” said Nawaz.
Steve Doocy Seemed to Work Directly for a Political Campaign
On Friday Steve Doocy hosted a ‘Breakfast With Friends’ segment from a diner in Hackensack, New Jersey.
The network really did hide the fact that at least some of the diner patrons were invited to promote the Republican candidate for governor. Doocy stood behind a counter and briefly interviewed various seated guests.
Doocy: What's your number one issue when it comes down to the governorship?
Man 1: Education is really important and funding for the schools is very important to us.
Doocy: All right. All Good. (moved to next person) What's your number one issue, sir?
Man 2: Public safety. It's very. And it's very important. A lot of people here in new Jersey now, a lot of these folks are involved in state government. These two here in the middle are not.
Doocy: What's your name?
Bob: My name is Bob.
Doocy: So, Bob, what do you think about. And he's wearing a Jack Ciattarelli t shirt. Do you think Jack's got a chance?
Bob: Definitely. Most definitely. Why? The state's changing. The last presidential election, they'll tell you that, people are fed up. Property taxes. Sanctuary cities.
Doocy: Speaking of feed, fed up. I'm buying that for you. That apple turnover. You feel like an apple turnover?
Bob: Absolutely.
Doocy: Okay. Good answer. All right. Down here Gail is in state government as well. You know, last election, Jack Ciattarelli came within three. Right now Mikie Sherrill, I think, a little up on him in the state polls. Why do you think he could actually, get elected? I think you're going to say dissatisfaction because I just saw a poll. Something like 90% of people in new Jersey are P.O.’d (pissed off).
Gail: Yeah. The biggest thing is getting people out to vote. Even the last election, which was very heated, only about 42% of the people voted. So we need people to get out and vote for Jack. But people are starting to get fed up with the issues. One of the big thing is the schools. We have 564 municipalities in new Jersey, but there's over 600 school districts. Why are there even more schools than towns? And we have to pay for the superintendents and and to the grave right. Of all the pensions and everything else? Yeah.
Doocy: An excellent point. Thank you. Do you get a cookie? Thank you very much.
When in Doubt Demonize Democrats
On Friday on “Hannity” Miranda Devine of the NY Post trashed Democrats at length.
“The Democratic Party is in its death throes. And just like an animal in its death throes, it's very dangerous. It's almost like a religion. All at the end. Their entire religion is about opposing President Trump. And they're all in the cult. They have nothing else. No policies. And no compassion. No empathy for the victims of crime. You know, the fact that they are opposing having, their streets safe and beautiful is just the most bizarre thing in the world. It shows you how far gone now,” said Devine.
Stories Fox News Ignored
Every week I compare the hours I’ve watched on Fox News to five hours of the PBS News Hour. The following list are stories that PBS covered that Fox News did not. Source - PBS News Hour transcripts. This list is slightly truncated due to size.
Updates in the Israel-Hamas War
On Monday in Gaza, health officials say Israeli strikes killed at least 31 people across the territory, as Israel's military pushed on with its plan to seize Gaza City. As they fled the region many Gazans are now facing violence and hunger at the same time. (PBS News Hour)
Meantime, the world's largest professional organization of scholars who study genocide said that Israel's actions in Gaza fit the legal definition of genocide. Israel strongly rejects the accusation. (PBS News Hour)
Israel is mobilizing tens of thousands of reservists as part of its expanded military offensive in Gaza City. Newly released footage by the Israel Defense Forces shows army tanks being prepared. Some 40,000 reservists were due to report for duty. That's according to Israeli army radio. On Tuesday in Gaza health officials said Israeli strikes killed at least 47 people across the territory. The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry also said that 185 people died of malnutrition in August. That's the highest total in months.(PBS News Hour)
On Wednesday in Israel, protesters held what they called a day of disruption to voice anger over the call-up of tens of thousands of reservists for the military's offensive in Gaza City. Demonstrators accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of prolonging the war for political reasons, rather than seeking a cease-fire with Hamas. Meantime, health officials in Gaza say airstrikes and ground forces killed at least 31 people across the territory. In a statement, the Israeli military said it would continue to operate against terrorist organizations to remove any threat posed to Israel. (PBS News Hour)
On Thursday in Gaza, health officials said that more than 64,000 Palestinians have now been killed in the Israel-Hamas war. The latest strikes killed at least 28 people, mostly women and children, as Israel intensifies its operation in Gaza City. Israel's military says it already controls 40% of the area. This follows a statement from Hamas saying it would free all 48 hostages it still holds both dead and alive, but only if Israeli forces withdraw from Gaza and in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, among other terms. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office dismissed the offer as a spin, saying the war would continue until Israel's own conditions are met. (PBS News Hour)
On Labor Day unions and other groups held what they called Workers Over Billionaires protests in cities across the country. The outcry was especially vocal in Chicago, where President Trump has threatened to send in National Guard troops and federal agents to crack down on crime. Organizers aimed to have protests take place in every U.S. state, roughly 1,000 gatherings in total. (PBS News Hour)
Last month, 28-year-old Catalina “Xóchitl” Santiago was boarding a domestic flight when she was detained by Customs and Border Protection officers at the El Paso airport. For years, she has legally lived in the U.S. under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals or DACA program. Despite that, she remains in ICE detention in Texas. Amna Nawaz spoke with Santiago's partner, Desiree Miller, about the case. (PBS News Hour)
French President Emmanuel Macron says 26 Western nations have pledged to send troops to Ukraine the moment the fighting ends with Russia. France hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for meetings with European leaders and U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff. President Trump dialed in for a virtual meeting of what's known as the Coalition of the Willing. It's a group of more than 30 of Ukraine's allies. Afterwards, Macron said that a postwar presence by land air or sea would serve as a lasting security guarantee for Ukraine. (PBS News Hour)
As the American war in Afghanistan ended four years ago, thousands of Afghans who had worked with the United States, and believed in the American-led war against the Taliban, were left behind. Many of them are still there after the Trump administration suspended relocation programs. Nick Schifrin spoke with two men in Afghanistan about their fears and dark memories of the Taliban takeover. (PBS News Hour)
Electricity bills are climbing nationwide, rising faster than inflation in many places. The explosive growth of AI and the massive data centers behind it are driving demand and straining the grid. To explain how this hits consumers, and what can be done, Geoff Bennett spoke with Ari Peskoe, director of the Electricity Law Initiative at Harvard Law School. (PBS News Hour)
By the Numbers
