Mark Impomeni

Contributor

Fox Will Not Cover Obama News Conference

Posted:

04/27/09

Filed Under:Barack Obama, Media, Obama Administration

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It was bound to happen sooner or later. And with President Obama requesting time in prime-time for the third month in a row, for little to no newsworthy reason, the Fox Broadcasting Company has become the first network to forgo covering an Obama new conference. In a statement released today, Fox said that it would air regularly scheduled programming instead.

"The Fox Broadcasting Company will not air the Presidential News Conference on Wednesday, April 29 at 8:00 PM. Fox's sister networks, Fox News Channel and the Fox Business Network will air the press conference in its entirety. Fox will be alerting viewers with an on-screen graphic at the top of the 8:00 PM (ET) hour that the press conference is available on Fox News Channel and the Fox Business Network."

Broadcast networks and news networks are not required to cover presidential events. They decide to do so based on the inherent news value in the event and weigh that against their business interest in airing commercial programming. Doubtless, however, some will see Fox's decision as politically motivated. But that argument is belied by the fact that Fox News will be covering the event. And there is very recent precedent for networks declining a presidential request. The networks collectively decided not to honor a request for prime-time coverage by President Bush, for a speech on the very important topic of Iraq War strategy.

President Obama's political and media strategy is to try to capitalize on his personal popularity to push through as much of his agenda as possible before the polls come back down to Earth. The risk is that the president will become overexposed to the media, and his appearances will start to lose their buzz. Fox has apparently decided that President Obama has already become old hat. If he keeps up the pace of one prime-time news conference every month, it will not be long before more networks follow suit.

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Mark Impomeni

Mark Impomeni is not a journalist, or a pundit, but a citizen with a keen interest in national issues. Skeptical and argumentative...more

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Comments (518)

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FL VOTER

9:48PM Apr 27th 2009

LOL...would we expect anything less from FOX?

GOD BLESS AMERICA!

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(2)

Will

10:07AM Apr 28th 2009

Yes, we expect Fox to not be part of the Obama fascist propaganda machine. Since he is so tech savy, he can put himself on YouTube so people can listen to the lies at their leisure.

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(6)

john

10:30AM Apr 28th 2009

Thank God for Fox. I cant stand this moron. I voted for positive change not socialism. Obama sucks!!!!

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(4)

RichB

10:56AM Apr 28th 2009

What we have here is a failure to communicate. it's the Fox network that will not cover Chairman (oops, I mean President) Obama's speech. But of course the main stream media just says "Fox" to imply that that bastion of free thought and equal coverage of both side of an issue: I.E. "we report,you decide" vs "we'll tell you what to think"; Fox News is dissing the president

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(-2)

Janie

10:54AM Apr 28th 2009

David, the same can be said about you!!!

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(8)

Papa

10:53AM Apr 28th 2009

Thank God for Fox now when will the in the Soros pocket other networks get the message?

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(6)

douglas

11:55PM Jun 2nd 2009

I think all the news stations should boycott his moronic dribble after what he ALLOWED in downtown Manhattan...BOZO!

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(0)

Danno

11:23AM Apr 28th 2009

David, and you are a "useful idiot" to Obama and his nitwit fascist followers

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(4)

Waldo

12:26PM Apr 28th 2009

Careful: "God Bless America"???? Acording to the CHAIRMAN we are not a CHRISTIAN NATION, just a nation of CITIZENS!!!!! I would be long before the above "God Bless America" will be banned from our vocab.

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(4)

vdog

11:53AM Apr 28th 2009

HATERS!!!! They are just mad because they can NO LONGER PULL THE WOOL OVER THE EYES OF THE PEOPLE!!! DUMBYA WAS A FAILURE AND THEY HELPED GET HIM IN THE WHITEHOUSE AND KISSED HIS BUTT FOR 8 YEARS!!! WHO CARES WHAT THEY DO!!! THEIR VIEWER STATS ARE ON THE DECLINE JUST LIKE THE GOP!!! HAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!

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(-3)

Ricky

11:43AM Apr 28th 2009

Funny how the media didn't point out the lack of coverage of the other big three TV broadcasters when they elected not to cover most of the similar Bush speeches. The only place that you could see them was on Fox and maybe C-Span.

I don't like Bush and I am in the process of switching from Republican to Independent. He didn't watch out for American workers and allowed the BS economic idea of capital over labor to deconstruct the American work force.

I don't like Obama because he is taking what will amount to 150K of our future earnings and giving it to who? Why Big Business of course. After all, they need more bonuses. What is our benefit for all that 150K he is stealing from us and our children?

If you qualify for all of the subsidies that will be provided to American workers, you might get 15K in benefits returned back. Let's see, me and my family gives the Obamanomics clowns ten dollars and they give us one dollar back. How could anyone get luckier?

Whether Republican or Democrats, let's keep giving to big rich white bastards so that we can get the scraps.

Am I upset? YOU DAMN BETCHA!!!

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(-1)

Tim

5:32PM Apr 28th 2009

Fascist? Please define fascist...

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(-1)

Bill

12:59PM Apr 28th 2009

It's about time someone shut that USURPER WINDBAG off. I hope the CW does the same thing. We know though that nbc will never shut their messiah off.

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(6)

Gertrude Cayton

1:11PM Apr 28th 2009

It looks like Barrack Hussein is like the Pied Piper of Hamlin, his followes are morons never to return to reality, right now he is the golden boy of the media, give it time and the truth will come out, I live in Illinois and have lived with the crooked and corrupt Chicago politicans, and that's were Obama's suport came from to start with. Their golden boy becoming president, what more can you wish.

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(2)

Rick

1:27PM Apr 28th 2009

FLVOTER,
The fox news network is covering it in full, I think that is who your implying in your post. I would think with your keen reading skills you honed in our great liberal public school program you could have understood that!! I guess a sheep will always be a sheep!

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(2)

carmen

1:43PM Apr 28th 2009

Don't you even read the article? This is not the first time a network declined to cover a presidential news conference. It used to be 1 news conference a quarter at most. This guy would be on weekly if he thought he could get away with it. He wants to tell everyone how the US government will own 50% of GM, the UAW will own 39% of GM and the bondholders (which are lenders who expect payment), NOT stockholders (who assume risk) will own 10%. Can't wait to hear what other companies he will dictate to and take over. God help us all.

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(3)

AJ S

2:45PM Apr 28th 2009

YOU APPARENTLY THINK JUST LIKE GOOD OLE' REV. WRIGHT AND OBAMA. YOU DON'T MEAN GOD BLESS AMERICA YOU MEAN GOD DAMN AMERCIA. THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA HAS TOTALLY LOST MY FAITH IN TELLING THE TRUTH. JUST LIKE DAVE LETTERMAN. DO YOU EVER SEE HIM MAKE FUN OF OBAMA? HELL NO, BECAUSE HE'S AN ASS LIKE THE REST OF THE FAR LEFTYS THAT JUST CAN'T SEE PAST WHAT HE IS DOING TO OUR WONDERFUL COUNTRY. OBAMA IS SOOOOOOOOOOO STUCK ON HISSELF ALONG WITH ALL THE CELEBRITIES OUT THERE WHO USE THEIR CELEBRITY TO JAM HIS CHANGE OF COMMUNISM DOWN OUR THROATS FOR OUR WONDERFUL COUNTRY. SO FL VOTER, WHY DON'T YOU TAKE YOUR STUPID IDEAS AND JUMP INTO THE ALTANTIC OCEAN AND TAKE THE OTHER NUT CASES WITH YOU AND MAYBE TAKE ACORN ALSO. BET YOU WOULD SEE A DIFFERENT OUTCOME IN 2012 IF ACORN WAS BANNED AND TOTALY OUT OF THE PICTURE. YOU ARE ALL THE BIGGEST FOOLS, YOU JUST DON'T KNOW IT YET.

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(4)

Cube

10:01PM Apr 27th 2009

It's about time they stopped preempting Idol.

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(6)

Sue

1:54PM Apr 28th 2009

LOL. Actually, Idol wouldn't be pre-empted unless Obama's speech ran overtime, but your point is well taken. My entire life I've felt it was unfair to be force-fed politics by all the major stations. How about CHOOSING to watch, instead of having no choice? Yes, I know with cable and Dish and whatever else, there are more options, but what about people who don't get those services? It may seem like a little thing, but it's an annoyance---whether it was Bush or Obama. How did all you Dems like having no choice when it was Bush? I rest my case.

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(3)

bonbon

8:46PM May 1st 2009

careful Sue,

Cube is a Big ZERO (Obama) supportor

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(1)

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