Fox News Rings in the New Year with Doom and Gloom and Biden's Suicidal Sunburn
A condensed overview of 15 hours of Fox News for the week ending 1/7/24
The new year on Fox News started off with a somber New Year’s Eve celebration, outrage over a presidential sunburn and a never-ending imagined stream of invading migrants at the southern border.
Steve Doocy nearly worked himself up into a frenzy as he pointed out that President Biden came back from a Caribbean holiday vacation with a sunburn nine months after having surgery to remove skin cancer from his chest. The Fox host declared, “come on Joe, are you trying to kill yourself!”
Biden’s mildly sunburnt face was a topic of discussion on every show I covered last week Wednesday through Friday. Fox News hosts really will pick on the president for absolutely everything he says and does.
The crisis at the southern border also loomed large as images of migrants streamed through cracks in the border wall that seemingly did nothing to stop anyone from entering the United States illegally.
The rest of the week was dedicated to the president of Harvard resigning over a plagiarism scandal, newly released court documents involving the late sexual predator Jeffrey Epstein and Trump’s legal team’s fight to keep him on the ballot in Colorado.
Americans who exclusively watched Fox News might have missed stories about climate disasters in Australia and Scandinavia, an internal battle for the integrity of the judicial system in Israel and a Congressional report that showed Trump’s companies making millions from foreign governments during his one term in the White House.
Shows I covered on Fox News last week:
Fox & Friends
The Five
Hannity
The Saddest New Year’s Eve Celebration Ever
In 2022 on New Year’s Eve Fox News filled large theaters in multiple time zones with live performances by comedians and various musicians. Fox rang in 2023 much like any major network would with a lavish party that included something for viewers across the country.
In mid-April Fox News agreed to pay $787.5 million dollars in a settlement to Dominion Voting Systems rather than face them in a civil defamation trial.
By the time New Year’s Eve came around to ring in 2024 the network decided a pre-taped one hour special hosted by Tyrus, a retired professional wrestler.
The program didn’t include any live music, performers, or fireworks. The guests included Michelle Tafoya, a former sports journalist, Tyler Fischer, a lesser-known comedian and Fox hosts Kennedy and Sean Duffy.
Kennedy acted as a "bartender” who didn’t make drinks but tried to crack jokes in a polka dot evening gown covered in colorful plastic spangles. Tyrus started the festivities with dread and melancholy.
“What it is America. Welcome to New Years with Tyrus,” he said as he blew on a noisemaker. “Happy New Year's Eve. We almost made it. We did it man. It thought it was going to be 2023 for another year. With inflation, corruption, defunding my truce, first world oppression, and a White House that had the moral compass of a creepy man living in a van down by the river. R.I.P. Chris Farley.”
Claudine Gay Resigns as the President of Harvard and Gutfeld Leans into the Racism
The first Black woman appointed as the president of Harvard University resigned last week. The story really started on December 5th after Gay testified alongside two other elite university presidents at the U.S. House committee on antisemitism on college campuses.
Gay and her cohorts misread the event. They seemed to approach it as if it were a court of law when it was really an exercise in political theater.
Rep. Elsie Stefanik, (R-NY) repeatedly asked the academic leaders if calling for the genocide of the Jewish people violated their standards of conduct or rules regarding bullying and harassment? All three women gave unemotional answers that sounded robotic and cold and amounted to, “it depends on the context.”
After all three university presidents faced backlash for their statements. According to reporting by ABC News, Gay issued a statement where she attempted to clarify her stance towards Harvard’s standards and antisemitism.
"Calls for violence or genocide against the Jewish community, or any religious or ethnic group are vile, they have no place at Harvard," she said, adding, "Those who threaten our Jewish students will be held to account."
At this point the wheels were already put into motion to attempt to force her resignation. Notorious right wing advocates such as Chris Rufo, who built his career building hysteria about critical race theory and promoting bigotry towards trans people, combed through every academic paper attributed to Gay to find anything to make her look bad.
Rufo and others skillfully planned their take down of the Harvard president. New plagiarism allegations slowly leaked out over a series of days so they appeared like an avalanche of accusations.
Although Gay will remain at Harvard as a professor she resigned from her role as president. Fox News hosts took her resignation as more evidence that her hiring was really just another example of DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion), the new boogey man on the right.
“It was racism that got you the job, right? Any white person had her pedigree. They wouldn't be running a school of fish. And this is the problem with DEI and ESG is that everything that it infects, it destroys, whether it's academia, corporations, the military,” said Gutfeld.
I just want to point out Gutfeld’s use of the term ESG is incorrect in this context. ESG stands for environmental, social, and corporate governance. It’s s a set of considerations that some investors use when they decide to buy stock or bonds in a company.
“If you designate a small group out of a larger general population as the preferred hire, you force every recruiter to go to that select group and the supply cannot meet the demand. It's a math problem. So you end up being forced to hire what's left. Even if that person is not qualified or even competent, it's a it's mathematical racism. And you choose an inept candidate over somebody else who's far better because they don't fit the right color. That choice, however, makes it harder for places like Harvard and any company to fire somebody, even if they are ripe for firing.
And you? It's funny, it really isn't Gay’s fault because the system awarded her into a slot that was beyond her current capabilities because of her skin color. If you make a deal with the DEI devil, you're going to die with the accusation of racism. So, everybody made this bed. I love the fact that they all have to sleep in it,” said Gutfeld.
Plenty of pundits and various academics have weighed in over the reasons why Gay was targeted as harshly as she was. Her race and gender most likely played a role as right-wing pundits seem to especially target women of color in positions of power.
Most PhD students are overworked and stressed to their breaking point. Gay made mistakes by not properly attributing citations to some of her sources. The leadership of Harvard should have done its due diligence to make sure Gay hadn’t accidentally or intentionally committed plagiarism before hiring her for a high-profile position.
What makes this case so incredibly unfortunate is comments like Gutfeld’s will be applied to accomplished women of color in academia who have stellar records and no evidence of making errors with citations.
Alan Dershowitz Makes a Crazy Leap about Epstein and Hamas
Fox News hosts celebrated the fact that Bill Clinton’s name appeared 50 times in the court documents released about a defamation case that involved the sex offender and human trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.
The same Fox News personalities downplayed that Donald J. Trump was also brought up in the documents. Alan Dershowitz, a frequent guest on Fox News, was mentioned 137 times throughout the defamation suit.
Dershowitz was not only Epstein’s lawyer he also counted him as a close friend and made several visits to his Florida mansion and private island.
According to reporting by Slate, the court documents also included sworn testimony from separate Epstein household employees that allege Dershowitz came pretty often to Epstein’s Florida mansion and got massages, and was present there “alone…in the presence of young girls.”
Also for a bit of additional context Dershowitz called ‘statutory rape’ an outdated concept in an op-ed for the Los Angeles Times in 1997 and then doubled down on the same topic on Twitter (now known as X) in 2019.
Dershowitz has denied knowing about any of Epstein’s criminal activity.
Virgina Giuffre, one of the women who was sexually abused by Epstein when she was a minor, accused Dershowitz of sexually abusing her. She later retracted her statements saying she might have been mistaken when she identified him.
Dershowitz approached his role in the scandal with a strange argument against what he called ‘radical feminists,’ the MeToo movement against sexual violence and Hamas.
“I represented some of the worst people in the world and continue to do so. That's my life. And of course, I represented Epstein. Now, at one point I do want to make is that I understand that all the feminist groups and radicals and think this is the worst thing in the world that anybody ever had any contact with. Jeffrey Epstein. Where are all those radical feminists when it comes to the Hamas rapes of young Jewish girls, sexual abuse, beheadings? They are quiet. They are silent. The incredible hypocrisy of the MeToo movement. MeToo. Except if you're a Jew. If I want to have a list of all the radical feminist who are pushing hard and I understand that to get all these names revealed, and I want to know how many of them have ever actually condemned Hamas for the rapes that we now know occurred and the murders that occurred. How many have been silenced and how many, like the National Lawyers Guild, have actually approved of what Hamas did. So let's put this in context,” said Dershowitz.
His argument makes absolutely no sense as a vicious attack on women in Israel is not remotely related to a wealthy sexual predator exploiting and trafficking minor aged girls.
Dershowitz was Epstein’s attorney when he was accused of soliciting prostitution from a minor under the age of 18. He helped Epstein get the sweetheart plea deal that saved him from a federal prosecution and allowed him a daytime work release and a short jail sentence.
The Border Wall Doesn’t Work - We Need More Border Wall!
The hosts at Fox News continue to push for more miles of a wall or barrier at the Southern border even as they show examples of migrants repelling over the wall with ropes or easily walking through gaps in the way without much effort.
On Friday on “Fox & Friends,” Brian Kilmeade featured footage of migrants illegally entering the U.S, through a gap in the border wall.
“This exclusive video Migrants illegally crossing into the US through a ride through a gap in the border wall in luck fell Arizona. At one point you could even see a suspected smuggler poke through the wall to pull out a camera. This comes just days after the Biden administration reopened the legal port of entry in Lukeville.”
How This Exact Scenario Was Explained by the PBS NewsHour.
On Wednesday December 27, the NewsHour invited Elliot Spagat of the Associated Press to discuss what he had witnessed at the southern border.
“It's the border crossing, a duty-free shop and the restaurant. And there's really very few agents around, but lots of people. I saw lots probably more from Senegal than any other country. Lots from Ghana, Guinea, I'm sorry, Mexico, of course, Guatemala. And they're sawing through the walls. The smugglers are on the Mexican side there. They're using construction grade tools. These are columns that were built during the final days of the Trump administration.
They cut through and swing the columns back and forth so people can just walk through. Young people, toddlers, older people, it's very easy to get through. And they walk for hours looking for Border Patrol agents who are nowhere to be found. This this could probably be stopped by Border Patrol agents, but they just don't have enough there. They're busy processing.
Commissioner Miller said he wants Mexico to step more. These are step up more. There are these breaches and there were hundreds of them that they have been welded shut. But the dates were marked when they had been fixed and hundreds of them over a 30-mile stretch. And Commissioner Miller said, you know, we need Mexico to step up to do more to stop people from breaching these walls. The wall on the Mexican side.”
Trump and the Supreme Court Deciding if He’s on the Ballot in Colorado.
On Thursday on “Hannity,” one of Trump’s attorneys Alina Habba made a remark that implied that Justice Cavanaugh would be more likely to help Trump in the Supreme Court since Trump had fought for his appointment.
“I'm concerned this is this He has never been charged for due process. Still, I would like to think exists in this country. I think it should be a slam dunk in the Supreme Court. I have faith in them. You know, people like Kavanaugh, who the president fought for, who the president went through hell to get into place. He'll step up,” said Habba.
She seemed to catch herself and try to soften what she was saying.
“Those people will step up not because they're pro-Trump, but because they're pro-law, because they're pro-fairness. And the law on this is very clear.”
On Friday the Supreme Court agreed to hear a case challenging Donald J. Trump’s eligibility for president in Colorado. The justices will review, on an expedited basis a December ruling by the Colorado Supreme Court that found the former president was disqualified to run for president in that state under the 14th amendment due to his participation in the insurrection on Jan. 6th at the U.S. Capitol.
Breakfast With Friends Gets a Taste of Crazy in Dallas, TX
“Fox & Friends,” loves to interview geriatric Fox fans in diners across the country. Lately producers have sent the newest member of the cast, Lawrence Jones, to locations of the ‘Eggs Up’ chain of bland strip mall diners in various cities.
Jones introduces himself and then runs around to random tables with his microphone to interview anyone willing to appear on camera. The guests know they will be on Fox News and often fill the restaurants at 4:00 - 5:00 a.m. to appear live at 6:00 a.m. for the east coast audience.
On Friday, when reporting from Dallas, Texas, Lawrence picked a lively table.
A woman with a neatly styled gray bob sat across from her husband and boldly declared her hatred for President Biden.
“Joe Bite Me is the problem. He should not be in the White House. He did not win the election. I believe that with my whole heart. And until we get him out and Trump in office, our America is at risk of not being in America anymore. And it breaks my heart,” said the woman.
“Wow. Such a passionate point of view. A lot of people agree with you as well,” answered Jones.
He then turned to her husband who accused Gov. Abbott of being weak on immigration and the southern border. His wife interrupted and then promoted a number of conspiracy theories.
“Lawrence we are making the cartels rich. They are terrorists. They are getting rich off of Joe Biden's or Joe Bite Me policies, they he is probably getting his pot pockets padded as well, just like he's getting money from China and all these other countries. It is not right until we all stand up and do something about it. It's going to continue. And I went we had a protest at the Capitol back in the summer about the border and child trafficking. And I went to that and there were very few people there. And the people that were there were just taking pictures to put on Facebook. I was passionate. I was yelling and telling our officials what should be done. And I had the police watching me while I was out,” said the woman.
“And there's a lot of people that support the position,” answered Jones.
Stories Fox News Ignored
Every week I compare the hours that I watch on Fox News to five hours of the PBS NewsHour. The following is a list of stories PBS included that Fox News did not.
Climate disasters
Parts of Australia have been hit by torrential downpours as two months of rain fell in just three days. Flooding has extended from southwest New South Wales state into Northeast Victoria.
Extremely cold temperatures have blanketed much of Scandinavia as temperatures have dropped to -40 degrees Fahrenheit in Sweden, the lowest recorded reading in 25 years.
Updates in the war in Ukraine
Russian forces pummeled Ukraine with a record 90 drones on New Year’s day. Putin blamed it on Ukraine’s attack of a border city.
Russian officials also said Ukraine had hit parts of the Russian-occupied Donetsk region killing four and wounding 13.
Ukraine and Russia completed the biggest prisoner exchange since the war started. The United Arab Emirates helped broker the deal. The Ukrainians received 230 soldiers while the Russians recovered 248.
Moscow said its forces shot down 12 missiles fired at Belgorod and occupied Crimea. According to Russian forces Ukraine shelling killed 25 people in the same region last weekend.
There is new evidence that Russia is using missiles it purchased from North Korea against Ukrainian forces.
A court in Bangladesh convicted Muhammad Yunus, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, of violating labor laws at his nonprofit telecom company. He was sentenced to six months in jail. His supporters say the case is politically motivated. Yunus gained recognition for promoting micro-loans to fight poverty.
The U.S. Department of Transportation is investigating frequent flyer mile and loyalty programs to evaluate whether airlines practice deceptive or unfair tactics.
PBS produced a follow up segment about migrant children illegally working in dangerous industries inside the U.S. such as meat packing and roofing. Most industries rely on private auditing which is not catching most violations.
Israel’s Supreme Court rejected a key part of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s attempts to limit the power of the courts. The planned changes sparked months of massive protests across the country with many critics saying the changes were meant to protect Netanyahu from ongoing corruption charges.
PBS produced a segment about doctors trying to unionize at a large Midwestern health provider due to what they say is a diminished quality of care for patients.
In 2023 NASA was able to capture the most detailed images yet from the James Webb Space Telescope. The year also marked the 25th anniversary of the global partnership to send astronauts to orbit Earth.
Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the main opposition party in South Korea, was stabbed in the neck by an unidentified man last week. Jae-myung is expected to make a full recovery. His attacker was arrested while police search for a motive for the attack.
Dr. Sidney Wolfe, a healthcare reformer and consumer advocate, died of brain cancer. He ran the advocacy group Health Research Group which was focused on exposing ineffective, dangerous and overpriced drugs. He was 86 years old.
A double bombing in Iran killed at least 84 people and wounded more than 200 at ceremony to honor a top military commander who died in a U.S. drone strike in Iraq in 2020. Members of the Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack.
Bomb threats in several states forced the evacuations of state capitol buildings across the country. Officials in Connecticut, Maine, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, and Hawaii, among others, confirmed receiving e-mail warnings. No bombs or explosives were found by police.
Robert Kennedy Jr. officially filed enough signatures to make the 2024 presidential ballot in Utah. It is the first state he has qualified so far. Kennedy is running as an independent.
Junior doctors in the U.K. walked picket lines for six days last week. It was the longest walkout in the history of the National Health Service. The doctors are striking over low pay and the high cost of living.
New gun safety laws are taking effect in California, Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota and Washington this year. The new laws are aimed at preventing gun violence.
PBS produced a segment about amateur citizen investigators known as ‘sedition hunters’ who have helped the FBI track down and identify the more than 1200 people charged in the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol. (I started my career in journalism as an amateur investigator of the Proud Boys)
Maurice Hines, a legendary tap dancer and choreographer, has died at the age of 80. He gained fame as a child dancing in Harlem with his brother Gregory as one half of the Hines brothers. They were featured on Broadway and in film and television. One of their best known performances was in Francis Ford Coppola’s film “The Cotton Club.”
A U.S. drone strike in Iraq killed a top commander of an Iranian-backed militia. The strike followed a series of attacks on U.S. troops in Iraq and Syria since the start of the Israel-Hamas war.
The Iraqi prime minister announced he is launching a process to shut down the U.S.-led coalition in the country fighting ISIS. The announcement calls for a committee, including U.S. representatives, to begin making the arrangements. There are currently 2,500 American troops in Iraq.
According to a new 156-page report by House Democrats,"White House for Sale: How Princes, Prime Ministers, and Premiers Paid Off President Trump," Donald J. Trump’s businesses received $7.8 million from foreign governments and government-backed entities from 20 countries while he was in the White House. The majority of foreign payments included in the report came from the Chinese government and two state-owned entities. The lawmakers allege the payments violate the Constitution's Foreign Emoluments Clause.
Prices have risen in Europe after seven months of declines. Inflation in the Eurozone rose to 2.9% in December up from 2.4% in November which could prompt the European Central Bank to delay cutting interest rates.
Randy Roedema, a former Aurora, Colorado police officer was convicted in the killing of Elijah McClain and sentenced to 14 months in jail. McClain, a 23-year-old Black man, died in 2019 after being stopped by police for “looking sketchy.” After a brief struggle officers put him in a choke hold and paramedics gave him an overdose of the sedative ketamine. He had a cardiac arrest on the way to the hospital and died days later.
The FDA gave the go-ahead for the state of Florida to import prescription drugs from Canada. The Canadian government is concerned about shortages as the country already grapples with supply chain issues.
Nearly 80% of Louisiana remains in a severe drought which could cause a massive shortage of crawfish along with higher prices as the crustaceans struggle to thrive in extreme heat and dry conditions. Crawfish farmers could lose as much as $140 million in revenue.
Wayne LaPierre, the longtime leader of the NRA (National Rifle Association) is stepping down after more than three decades. His resignation came just before a civil corruption trial is set to begin in New York State. LaPierre allegedly spent millions on lavish trips, private jets, and expensive suits.