The real "fake news"

Every day, the dominoes start to fall more and more regarding Russian interference in our elections, what Trump and his associates may have known about it, and whether or not they may have aided and abetted this attack by a foreign adversary on our fundamental right as a democracy. By all indications, Special Counsel Robert Mueller seems to be heading up what could be the biggest and most important investigation of our lifetimes.

The results up to now: 19 people and three companies have been indicted: four former Trump advisers, 13 Russian nationals, three Russian companies, one California man, and one London-based lawyer. Four of these people have already pleaded guilty. And by all accounts, Mueller seems to be barely getting started.

The stakes could hardly be higher: What Mueller—a decorated war veteran and the former head of the FBI who commands the respect of virtually everybody who’s ever interacted with him—uncovers may well redefine the history of not only the United States but the Western world. Given that our current administration has done virtually nothing to try to secure our next election, and refuses to implement the sanctions on Russia that Congress passed by a collective vote of 517 to 5, it raises the question: Are our laws now useless? Can we still call ourselves a functioning democracy? Can we be assured of having free and fair elections again?

Frankly, there’s never been a news story in our lifetimes of this scope and magnitude. There’s a good possibility, though, that you’re not aware of much—or all—of the above. How is this possible? Simple: If you’re one of the 40 percent of Trump voters who get almost all of their information about the world from Fox News, you’re probably in the dark.

A recent study tested viewers of our country’s major news sources on simple current events questions, and the results weren’t pretty: Viewers who claimed Fox News as their main source of news actually scored lower on the test than people who watched no news whatsoever. Why? It’s fairly simple: While other news outlets are covering urgent breaking news—say, the fact that the White House has allowed a young staffer who failed his security clearance check (because he violently beat two of his ex-wives and lied about it to investigators) to handle the country’s most deeply classified information—Fox News is ignoring the story completely. What are they broadcasting instead? The same phony “Hillary sold our uranium stockpiles to Russia” story that they’ve been pushing for months. It’s catnip for conspiracy theorists, but as far as an actual news story? Better suited for one of those “Aliens Kidnapped My Baby!” supermarket tabloids.

When a young Trump supporter murdered 17 students in Florida on February 14, Fox News devoted far less coverage to both the shooting itself and the aftermath than any other major news organization. Why? They wanted to push out coverage of Mueller’s indictment of 13 Russian nationals for interfering with our election, which they were naive enough to originally think was good news for Trump. (These indictments were good news for Trump in the same way that a man who’s been thrown from the top of a 100-story building thinks it’s good news that, as he passes the 40th floor on his way down, everything’s going very smoothly far.)

Some recent “BREAKING NEWS” stories on Tucker Carlson’s show? WITCHES CAST MONTHLY SPELL ON TRUMP, along with GYPSIES: COMING TO AMERICA?

Nor does Fox News let a little hypocrisy get in their way. When Lebron James had the audacity to criticize Trump, Laura Ingraham mocked him as just another stupid athlete who bounced a ball for his paycheck. Former baseball pitcher Curt Schilling, though? Why, he’s a trusted voice and regular guest on Fox News. When Jennifer Lawrence or George Clooney dare to voice a political opinion, Fox News joins as one to deride them as out-of-touch celebrities who should stick to their day jobs. Then, cue the next guests on Fox News: Noted political theorists Ted Nugent and Kid Rock!

During the lead-up to the election, Fox News proudly paraded 9-year-old Jacob Silva in his MAGA hat talking about Trump’s brilliant border wall and the urgent importance of cutting taxes. But when the students from the Florida school that was attacked on February 14 decided to speak up to the media about gun control? You guessed it: Suddenly, Fox News decides they’re too young to really know what they’re saying and attacks them as liberal plants.

It’s pretty clear: Want to stay inside the safe space and be spoon-fed stories sympathetic to Trump? Keep watching Fox News. Want to have some idea of what’s actually going on in the real world? For that, you’re going to have to change the channel.