Jason Rosenbaum

Obama Going To “Take On Fox” With No Editing [UPDATED]
by Jason Rosenbaum  ::  Filed Under Elections 2008  ::  April 25th, 2008 @ 5:04 pm EST

Barack Obama caused a lot of trepidation in the progressive movement the other day by deciding to go on Fox News Sunday. After shutting out Fox News for so long, Obama’s change of heart is worrisome.

Of course, Fox wasted no time in stepping up the attacks:

Don’t you love that “24? type music? And Chris Wallace wastes no time smearing him even before he shows up.

For accepting the interview, Fox’s Chris Wallace promptly implies Obama is lazy:

Wallace said if Obama had won Pennsylvania, he may not have accepted the invitation.

“If he had won he’d probably on a Caribbean island this weekend.”

The Obama Watch has officially ended and I hope he has a really, really fun time. I’m sure it’ll be fair and balanced just like their treatment has been of him all along.

This morning, a senior Obama advisor tried to reassure those of us who think Fox should not be legitimized as a real news source by telling TPM:

We are clear-eyed about Fox’s role in the dissemination and amplification of Republican talking points this election. They have been the tip of the spear when it comes to repeatedly broadcasting some of the most specious of rumors about Obama. He is going on their Sunday show to take Fox on, not because we have any illusion about their motives or politics in this election.

But it gets even better. Sam Graham-Felsen, Obama’s campaign blogger, has confirmed that Fox will air the interview in its entirety - no fancy editing allowed.

This is good news. If Obama does indeed stand up to Fox’s persistent misinformation and smear attacks, Fox will air those attacks unedited. (Did the Obama campaign insist on the full interview? It would be something worth asking.)

Given the information we’ve gotten about this interview so far, Obama should be held to the standard he has set for himself through his spokespeople. I expect Obama to “take on Fox” in a dramatic way this weekend, given that the Obama campaign is supposedly “clear-eyed about Fox’s role in the dissemination and amplification of Republican talking points this election.”

I, for one, am extremely interested in how Obama will take Fox on. Mentioning the Pentagon Pundits scandal would be a great start. Or he could follow the examples of Barney Frank, Chris Dodd, or even Lee Camp. Whatever form it takes, given the hype around this appearance, it better be big.

Update:

I want to be a little clearer about this. Did the Obama campaign insist on this interview airing unedited? I would hope so, and I hope someone from the campaign will get in touch with me to confirm.

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DISCUSSION

4 RESPONSES to “Obama Going To “Take On Fox” With No Editing [UPDATED]”

Linda Clark says  ::  April 27th, 2008 @ 4:55 pm EST

O my God! All join in with wellness wishes, prayers, whatever.

Reply to Linda Clark  ::  Click to quote this comment
a.m. schmitz says  ::  April 28th, 2008 @ 1:54 pm EST

If its a no ‘edit’ session i see no problem for obama..he dosnt need a tele promter to speak like those fools..aint much dirt they can bring up on this guy except his skin color.thats about as shallow i expect the questions to be..all it will do is spike foxs rateings for about an hour..

Reply to a.m. schmitz  ::  Click to quote this comment

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