Does FoxNews Make You Ignorant and Bigoted?

Good morning!

As many of you probably know, I am not a fan of FoxNews. Well, I despise them actually because of the tactics and outright propaganda they peddle.

That being said, I still read their website. I know.....I'm a hypocrite. That's ok with me. For me, it's like reading content from The Onion or something similar. Most of the content is laughable and puts a smile on my face.

But this morning I found an article that, in my opinion, highlights one of the biggest problems with FoxNews.

What Americans Should Know About Ramadan

This year, Ramadan starts on June 29. Over 1.5 billion Muslims, despite their sectarian differences, will be united to reinvigorate their faith.

In a country where nearly one in four Americans don't want to have a Muslim neighbor and some employers are not eager to recruit them, this poses a problem. Because in July 2014, folks may notice a change in the behavior of their Muslim neighbors and coworkers.

If your neighbor's lights comes on at 3:30 am, rest assured, he is making omelets, not bombs. Ramadan means we eat before the first ray of sunrise and then refrain from eating and drinking till sunset. And no... fasting does not make him a fanatic either; according to a 2013 Pew poll, which surveyed 38,000 Muslims in 39 countries, fasting is observed by 93% of Muslims worldwide.

So relax my fellow Americans. People who flew jet liners into tall buildings are an anathema to my faith. Those espousing violence and hatred are Muslims only in name.

I encourage you to read this short opinion piece in it's entirety. I applaud the authors attempt to educate those that know nothing about Muslim customs and rituals. It is a bit condescending, but good nonetheless.

Now I have to ask: Why was it necessary to write such a piece? Why was this produced specifically for Fox readers? Are FoxNews supporters so ignorant and bigoted to think that just because a Muslim is cooking breakfast early in the morning that he may be making bombs?

I would say the majority of Fox fans are just like you and I; unbiased, intelligent and open-minded. But I also believe that, yes, there are many that are so ignorant that this sort of article is needed.

But I don't think it's because they are unintelligent...I think it's because Fox pedals fear, lies and garbage and serves it to it's patrons. Fox has helped plant the seeds of ignorance and bigotry and it has come to the point where an article like this is needed just to combat that ignorance.

I will conclude by saying that you can always tell what the media thinks about it's viewers/readers by looking at the content they provide.

So what does this article say about Fox fans?

Like the other thread doing the rounds at the moment, the Fox News narrative is all about fear but the demographic it plays to should know better than take their word for a particular world view or event. If Team America had its own news station it would be Fox.

And the continued attack on conservatives begins in 3. . . 2. . .

All silliness aside, it's an opinion piece. Are we going to judge a network based on an opinion piece?

Might as well judge ATS on one thread.

Unless I'm missing something here.

(Will give you time to clarify)

I read, and watch Fox on a fairly regular basis.

...and I'm fairly certain that I'm not all that bigoted. At least where people of differing faiths, skin tones, sexual orientation, and sex are concerned, or anything important like that.

Ignorant? I have my moments. Though I am fairly certain it's not because I watch Fox...?? I don't know everything there is to know about everything, so ignorant goes with the territory, I guess.

So, to answer your question... Nope.

Does watching MSNBC,CNN,CBS,NBC make people sheep-like suckers that swallow the leftist party line whole?

originally posted by: beezzer
And the continued attack on conservatives begins in 3. . . 2. . .

All silliness aside, it's an opinion piece. Are we going to judge a network based on an opinion piece?

Might as well judge ATS on one thread.

Unless I'm missing something here.

(Will give you time to clarify)

At times you can judge both ATS and Fox on either one thread or spin of a news story. The sooner people relinquish their Party hang ups and embrace the politics of being a decent human, the better. I despise all staunchly American Conservative and Democratic rhetoric on this site for the reason that both go at it trying to get one policy up on the other and neither getting anywhere — the same crap is regurgitated year on year.

Maybe, just maybe, they are aware of people like you and put it there in part to troll you?

Believe it or not, but conservatives do have a sense of humor, too, and we are well aware of the negative stereotypes that surround us.

"look at those poor dumb, ol' boys. They don't know that muslims aren't making bombs ..."

originally posted by: seagull
I read, and watch Fox on a fairly regular basis.

...and I'm fairly certain that I'm not all that bigoted. At least where people of differing faiths, skin tones, sexual orientation, and sex are concerned, or anything important like that.

Ignorant? I have my moments. Though I am fairly certain it's not because I watch Fox...?? I don't know everything there is to know about everything, so ignorant goes with the territory, I guess.

So, to answer your question... Nope.

But you don't take what is says verbatim? Those that peddle the crap Fox comes out with as total truth are the ones in question.

a reply to: LarryLove

I don't know. Do you take any of what any source says verbatim these days?

It's a mistake, no matter the source.

a reply to: sheepslayer247

Fox News is devoid of reality and perspective. I can explain. Lying about facts and / or actively being misleading at the rate they do in order to support false opinions creates a false perspective.

I have watched Fox News. I am a smart guy, but it takes me a lot of time to counter-argue every mistake they make in one segment. I find argumentative fallacies all over the place.

Imagine having this crap run in the background of your house. You wouldn't be able to deprogram yourself fast enough.

originally posted by: LarryLove

At times you can judge both ATS and Fox on either one thread or spin of a news story. The sooner people relinquish their Party hang ups and embrace the politics of being a decent human, the better.

I think most people would define themselves as decent human beings.

I despise all staunchly American Conservative and Democratic rhetoric on this site for the reason that both go at it trying to get one policy up on the other and neither getting anywhere — the same crap is regurgitated year on year.

While true, I don't think you'll ever eliminate opinion from the human psyche.

From the OP's source

I urge you, during this Ramadan, to get to know real Muslims. We will laugh; we will play. We'll serve you food, any time of the day.

Damn Fox News! *shakes fist*

Trying to bridge gaps and offer understanding across cultures!

a reply to: ketsuko

Of course I don't. I take my news feeds from multiple sources before forming my own opinion. And there is the problem: too few people question what they are told and are happy to parade someone else's opinion as their fact. Time and again you see ATS members trawl the Fox archive of spurious stories to announce their fact without actually questioning what they are told to begin with.

I see Fox news bashed over and over, now I don't read their website although I just looked at it now to see what the fuss is about. Just looked like any other news site reporting on things. a lot of AP articles. Didn't strike me as particularly biased.

I didn't look at the opinion stuff since I would expect that to be pretty biased, as it is opinion and all. The left leaning sites have biased opinions too.

I don't watch the fox news channel either, but we do have two stations locally on tv that are fox. Their news seems just like the other major network channels, with the possible exception they get a little more local in focus.

The radio station I listen to has fox network news every hour, and seems to be very unbiased.

I don't know, are people watching things like Fox and Friends expecting it to be a straight news show? are they expecting the other opinion based shows on the fox network to be unbiased?

Is rachel maddow unbiased? Is CNN and its shows? Is the opinion section of the new york times unbiased?

I guess the thought I have is if you're going to take the time to watch or read opinion, you have to be ready for opinions you may not like. Don't want someones opinion? don't ask.

Want something to go away? Stop buying it.

a reply to: darkbake

DEMS SCARED TO VOTE? Election-year fears bring chamber's work to a halt

This is a random article. Just from the title I am going to tell you that the article is blatantly biased and should not be on a serious news site, I'm sorry. It's an opinion piece, not news, which in a serious news station would belong next to an opinion piece with the opposing viewpoint.

I can tell you that the Republicans in congress have been refusing to work with Obama out of principle as well.

Fox News is not news, it is propaganda and has the quality of a tabloid. I would recommend the BBC.

originally posted by: LarryLove
a reply to: ketsuko

Of course I don't. I take my news feeds from multiple sources before forming my own opinion. And there is the problem: too few people question what they are told and are happy to parade someone else's opinion as their fact. Time and again you see ATS members trawl the Fox archive of spurious stories to announce their fact without actually questioning what they are told to begin with.

We can also see that with the global-climate crowd.

Fox nor conservatives have an exclusive on that.

originally posted by: beezzer
And the continued attack on conservatives begins in 3. . . 2. . .

All silliness aside, it's an opinion piece. Are we going to judge a network based on an opinion piece?

Might as well judge ATS on one thread.

Unless I'm missing something here.

(Will give you time to clarify)

So an attack on FoxNews is an attack on conservatives? Bit short-sighted to state that all conservatives are like the paid shills at Fox.

a reply to: beezzer

But most people's actions are usually counter to how they would like to be perceived. I include myself — in the sense that I would like to think I am a good human but on occasion my actions tell a different story. What is the real me?

The argument is about how people take someone else's opinion and parades it as fact. That bothers me and time and again, members continue on this course without harnessing their natural right to critically think.

a reply to: darkbake
Well maybe the Democrats should recruit the same Black Panther thugs that were intimidating voters at the polls to straighten out Republican lawmakers.

originally posted by: beezzer

originally posted by: LarryLove
a reply to: ketsuko

Of course I don't. I take my news feeds from multiple sources before forming my own opinion. And there is the problem: too few people question what they are told and are happy to parade someone else's opinion as their fact. Time and again you see ATS members trawl the Fox archive of spurious stories to announce their fact without actually questioning what they are told to begin with.

We can also see that with the global-climate crowd.

Fox nor conservatives have an exclusive on that.

And you see it with the anti-Obama crowd, universal health care supporters and opponents, pro- and anti-gun advocates …