SOCIAL SCIENCES

The Fox Effect

How Roger Ailes Turned a Network into a Propaganda Machine
by Ari Rabin-Havt
Brock, David & Ari Rabin-Havt. The Fox Effect: How Roger Ailes Turned a Network into a Propaganda Machine. Anchor: Random. 2012. c.336p. illus. ISBN 9780307279583. pap. $15. COMM
COPY ISBN
This exposé of Fox News comes out just in time for the 2012 presidential election campaign. Both high-level officers of the progressive watchdog group Media Matters, Brock (founder and CEO) and Rabin-Havt (vice president, research and communication) trace Roger Ailes's career from his work as a political media consultant to President Nixon to his shaping of Fox News into a conservative political force. His influence and the slant of the network are clearly demonstrated with a detailed analysis of the content of news programs, along with transcripts of leaked memoranda from network executives. For example, in Brock and Rabin-Havt's examination of Fox's coverage of the Tea Party movement, it becomes evident that the network played a major role in the party's creation. The authors' message is that objectivity can no longer be assumed to be a value held by news media organizations, and consumers should be on the alert for slanted coverage.
VERDICT Liberals and media scholars already suspicious of Fox will appreciate this exposure of conservative bias. Fans of Fox will dismiss it as propaganda. General readers may be overwhelmed by the detail.
Reviewed by Judy Solberg, Seattle Univ. Lib. , Mar 01, 2012
Comment Policy:
  • Be respectful, and do not attack the author, people mentioned in the article, or other commenters. Take on the idea, not the messenger.
  • Don't use obscene, profane, or vulgar language.
  • Stay on point. Comments that stray from the topic at hand may be deleted.
  • Comments may be republished in print, online, or other forms of media.
  • If you see something objectionable, please let us know. Once a comment has been flagged, a staff member will investigate.

RELATED 

NONFICTION

The Church of Stop Shopping and Religious Activism: Combatting Consumerism and Climate Change Through Performance
by González, George
NONFICTION

Not My Type: Automating Sexual Racism in Online Dating
by Williams, Apryl
NONFICTION

When We Sold God’s Eye: Diamonds, Murder, and a Clash of Worlds in the Amazon
by Cuadros, Alex
NONFICTION

Blood and Lightning: On Becoming a Tattooer
by Kiskaddon, Dustin
REFERENCE

The Transgender Encyclopedia
by Pickett, Brent L.
NONFICTION

Southern by the Grace of God: Religion, Race, and Civil Rights in Hollywood’s American South
by Hunt, Megan
More
ALREADY A SUBSCRIBER?

We are currently offering this content for free. Sign up now to activate your personal profile, where you can save articles for future viewing

ALREADY A SUBSCRIBER?