If you have 15 minutes, do yourself a favor and read the exposé of Roger Ailes, the chairman of Fox News in Rolling Stone. I had heard a good deal of the information before, but the story has been well researched and documented and weaved into a full picture of the man, his mindset and the ideology that drives the network.
Once, after observing a dark-skinned man in what Ailes perceived to be Muslim garb, he put Fox News on lockdown. “What the hell!” Ailes shouted. “This guy could be bombing me!” The suspected terrorist turned out to be a janitor. “Roger tore up the whole floor,” recalls a source close to Ailes. “He has a personal paranoia about people who are Muslim – which is consistent with the ideology of his network.”
As I read it, I am struck by the intractable nature of the problem. I don’t see a way to counter the guy or his message. I have a feeling of doom as the noise machine seems impervious so long as Ailes decides to stay on. The only bright spot I see is the guy is old and out of shape.
The article even has a Christine O’Donnell quote:
During her Senate race in Delaware, Tea Party darling Christine O’Donnell bragged, “I’ve got Sean Hannity in my back pocket, and I can go on his show and raise money.”
What a world.