OT: Fox news vs Canada?

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Saw the teevee today. A person by the name of O'Reilly? is slamming Canada?

Could someone elaborate? I'd like to know what is goin' on.

-D
 
Dave,..i didnt see the show you mentioned,.ive only seen o'reilly once.I wouldnt pay much mind,..fox "news" programes invaribly contain a high crap content.
 
Fox News isn't really a news program. It's more like talk radio with pictures, tailored for a certain segment of the population.

The announcers seem permanently outraged, opinionated, not too intelligent, and they always talk with loud, attitude affected voices.
 
O'Reilly (not to be confused with the excellent computer books) is known for shoving his own views down other's throats, usually by shouting very loudly. I haven't seen much of him myself, but I tend to dislike those unwilling to consider other viewpoints.
 
Consider the source, Dave.

The show probably had a choice between A) making a laughingstock out of a rapper or B) trashing Canada.

Given that rappers have a reputation for taking things personally, self medicating, and carrying guns to boot, there may be one person on the set who felt it less dangerous to trash Canada.
 
Dave Hahn said:
Saw the teevee today. A person by the name of O'Reilly? is slamming Canada?

Could someone elaborate? I'd like to know what is goin' on.

-D

O'Reilly is an arrogant,opinionated, loud-mouthed hypocrite who claims to be independent politically.

He sees himself as an investigative journalist.

Some of his attack pieces are excellent i.e. Nambla,faggot Catholic pedophile Priests,the French, and the extreme left wing Canadian Politicians. He just had to cough up an out of court settlement for pressuring phone sex with an underling. Most of the time he just makes your skin crawl.

:grumpy:
 
Uh, if I may?

The CBC did an hour long hit piece on Fox News, and Bill OReilly. They also attacked their own home grown conservatives, one of which I noticed was a pretty gal whose name and writing I'm completely unfamiliar with.

Tonight O'Reilly had the Canadian Journalist and another Canadian pundit on to examine the situation. They responded to the CBC. Nothing much happened. There wasn't any red meat, or any solid information from either side I could sink my teeth into. I'm sure there are editorials now about it and I can read.

This is in a context of Fox News not allowed in Canada for many years now. In the last few months, Fox is finally in. The Govt has something to do with all this and I don't know the details regarding who decides what gets broadcast or on cable or satelite in Canada. It is not a free market.

When Fox News arrived in the US it took the market away from CNN and MSNBC and anyone else listening. The CBC is understandably concerned the same thing may happen there.

On a personal note, I like O'Reily, but he can be an ass and is not a consistant interviewer.

I also think Fox news is a shock to an entrenched, status quo liberal media.



munk
 
I noticed that canada was called "canuckistan" which was probrably not
fair. I like canada and hope that canada remains canada not US north.
What this american would prefer is maybe a canada with a little more
individual spirit. How can al jazeera be available on satelite and the fox
news channel be shut out? Who advocates the murder of whom? Fox
news (specifically O'reilly) may be obnoxious but at the least they don't
show people's heads being dismembered.
 
fixer27 said:
I noticed that canada was called "canuckistan" which was probrably not
fair. I like canada and hope that canada remains canada not US north.
What this american would prefer is maybe a canada with a little more
individual spirit. How can al jazeera be available on satelite and the fox
news channel be shut out? Who advocates the murder of whom? Fox
news (specifically O'reilly) may be obnoxious but at the least they don't
show people's heads being dismembered.

I think Canada has a lot of individual spirit. With the exception of the gun issue they seem to be a big more libertarian than we are.

If you ever get the chance, go rent the documentary "control room" it is a documentary about Al Jazeera. I always thought of Al Jazeera as kind of the mouthpiece of Al Quaida, but it's not quite that really. They are really more like the Arab Fox News, and they don't really lie, it's more just like Fox where the slant is more pro Arab. Most of the reporters are not fundamentalists or anything, and the whole thing is surprisingly western, but very pro Arab. It's a really cool movie.
 
To go on for a minute, one of the things I have against almost ALL news these days is that there is a blurring between news and opinion.

Many times news stations just put on commentators and they give their comments. Or if they cite something it's taken as gospel. For instance the CBS thing where they rushed to do the story about Bush based on fake documents. Or for instance Rush will say something like "we have reports that" and state some unsubstantiated thing that people will then repeat.

I would really like to see more actual investigative journalisim, again. For instance despite all these imbeds we really don't get a lot of the day to day from the soldiers, and nobody but Al Jazeera is really covering what it's like for the Iraqi civilians. Maybe it's too dangerous to but I'd really like to see a return to actual investigating a story rather than the press just repeating a story they are given.
 
I think that this thread has to potential to seriously divert.

When I heard that Fox News was berratting Canada, I wanted to know why. I wanted to know if we Canadians have done anything to strain our generations long relationship with the US.

I hear alot of us versus them today. I heard how a protest in Canada got uncharacteristically violent when President Bush visited. I see pictures on the Internet where people are holding up signs apologizing and accepting apologizes. I listen to people who say they don't hate America, just the 50% who are seriously deluded. I see allies who once fought together slinging insults. I hear how some of my friends feel alienated because they belong to a certain religion. I see the same political divisions that are happening in the US occuring in Canada. And worst of all, I see dispicable fear mongering.

Is this going to get worse or better and will those voices who preach division (regardless of the side) continue on?

Dave would like to know.
 
Dave,

I wouldn't accept the position of the media to represent the majority of people in the USA. Take the last election for example.
I'll be daring and say that the folks on this forum better represent the heartlands of America.

As for the politics, the only thing I know, and I heard briefly, is that the US govt passed some kind of trade restriction that was, in itself, deemed "illegal" by the WTO. Not that I am a big fan of the WTO, but I am a big fan of all you friendly Canadians! In response, Canada was making some trade restrictions or barriers of their own. I don't remember any of the details.
 
Hey Lion's,

the trade issue is an old one. mad cow, soft wood lumber exports, car parts, it's old and it's been ongoing. quibbling about trade is the norm and i've learned about it since i was in highschool.

It would be like bringing up illegal immigration into the US as a new issue but putting a different spin on it.
 
The trade issue probably is an old one. I believe you. In general, I haven't made it a point to keep up with much of the news.

My grandfather always said it best, "It was going on before you got here, and it will be going on after you leave"
 
I don't think much has changed, if anything, regarding US citizens perception of Canada. People like Canada. I lived about 5o miles south of Canada and the ranchers and farmers did not make a lot of distinction between the two nations before 9-11.

Canada is next to a Giant and talks about the Giant a lot. Canada has been with us in 99 percent of all trouble. That's not bad for a friend, though I fear we are losing our friend as perceptual differrences continue to grow.

I've never heard Al Jazeer compared to Fox News before. It is not a valid, or realistic comparison in any way, be you Left, Right, or inbetween. Al Jazeer had station managers arrested for being in link with Al Queda. Al Jazeer dutifully runs any beheading film from Al Queda. Al Jazeer is pretty insane, though if they are more insane than other Arab stations I do not know. It was widely believed in the Arab world that the US itself, the CIA, blew the twin towers up. This belief was shared by their news outlets. After Bin Laden admitted he was responsible, I haven't seen any follow up about middle eastern opinion dynamics.

Fox news, if it is biased, is no more so than ABC, CBS, or NBC; it just runs a slightly different course to the right. Critics are confusing news commentary programming with the actual news coverage from Fox. A great deal of Fox is commentary.

OReily is pure commentary.


munk
 
Hahn is right; the trade issue has been THE topic since I was a kid between the US and Canada. ONe of my US vehicles was made in Canada, and another made in Mexico. The one made in Canada was better.

The medicine debate is relatively new.

Canada has swung to the left, and followed European opinion poll dynamics.
It will be interesting to see in the coming years whether or not the US will follow with such things as the Death Penalty and Gay Marriage. (ending one and beginning another)


I wouldn't want to live in a world where Canada was not our friend.


munk
 
Canada has better beer & babes. Nice scenery, nice folks.

Sorry about the buying power of their dollar...

Hmmm, the socialism & gambling thing tho... poor people don't need to throw their checks into slot machines.... and a waiting list for surgery you need?

I still love Canada. Not moving there tho.


Ad Astra
 
Even if I try, I find that I can't watch Fox news. The last time I watched, there was a conversation between a couple of their "news" people discussing Al Jazeera. They didn't like the Arab coverage of the war in Iraq, and wondered about whether we should just bomb Al Jazeera.
How is that for "freedom of the press"???????
I don't especially care for Al Jazeera, but since when do we advocate killing people in other countries who say things that we don't like?
I can think of a few cases where people might think something like this, but do not want to see people on television advocating killing.
If we go down that road, we won't have any allies anywhere.
 
Arty, I don't blame you a bit for that concern. I vaguely remember the conversation you alluded to. Al Jazeer was helping the Terrorists in Iraq, either directly or indirectly, costing US lives, and someone wondered if we shouldn't just take out their ability to broadcast.

anyway, I respect your concern. I think you raise an interesting question.
There is no doubt that we handled post War Germany in WWll much differently than today we handle post war Iraq. The first was far less civilized, and even brutal and murderous. The second is with gloves. Had this been Germany, we'd have arrested the people in Al Jazeer Iraq and blown up the transimtter. And the French? The French would have had them all shot.

Arty, it makes me think, despite all of our pain, is it possible the world has gotten better? That in general more human rights are respected?



munk
 
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