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President Donald Trump frequently rants against mainstream news outlets, dismissing unflattering reports as "fake news," but the Republican-leaning Fox News Network usually escapes this ire.
Not this time.
While Fox News remains the President's favorite network thanks to far-right hosts like Tucker Carlson and Sean Hannity, Trump took to Twitter to rail against Fox's weekend coverage, shaming the network for using a recent New York Times report on detention center conditions as a source.
Read the rant below:
Watching @FoxNews weekend anchors is worse than watching low ratings Fake News @CNN, or Lyin’ Brian Williams (remem… https://t.co/tskklUGIeJ— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump)1562543418.0
.....Comcast (NBC/MSNBC) Trump haters, who do whatever Brian & Steve tell them to do. Like CNN, NBC is also way dow… https://t.co/eRMsyITdxG— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump)1562543419.0
...a “source” of information (ask the Times what they paid for the Boston Globe, & what they sold it for (lost 1.5… https://t.co/3h7PxewU3u— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump)1562543419.0
There's a lot to unpack here.
Trump claims in his tweet that the New York Times report on detention centers was "unsourced," claiming that the New York Times—which has operated as a source of information since since 1851—couldn't be trusted.
Responding to an earlier Trump rant about the same report, the Times laid out its sources for building the piece.
@realDonaldTrump @nytimes We are confident in the accuracy of our reporting on the U.S. Border Patrol's detention c… https://t.co/U51Ud2eGFU— NYTimes Communications (@NYTimes Communications)1562533712.0
Trump's claims that the New York Times, the Fox weekend anchors, Bryan Williams, and others were lying rang with hypocrisy, considering Trump himself has told over 10,000 lies since his inauguration.
People were quick to point this out.
@realDonaldTrump @FoxNews @CNN Remember when you made up that phony bone spurs story to avoid serving?— John Carpender (@John Carpender)1562598702.0
@realDonaldTrump @FoxNews @CNN Oh Donald, I am so glad you brought up the issue of lying. Like millions of American… https://t.co/HgajGWhoFD— Mary Scully (@Mary Scully)1562595193.0
@realDonaldTrump @FoxNews @CNN Remember when you lied and said Mexico would pay for the wall? Remember when you li… https://t.co/UlhXsiQNec— Brenda MoreAls (@Brenda MoreAls)1562601607.0
@realDonaldTrump @FoxNews @CNN Brian Williams lied but not anything like you do.— Doc Slater (@Doc Slater)1562601364.0
@realDonaldTrump @FoxNews @CNN You’re calling someone else a liar— Brandi Holsinger (@Brandi Holsinger)1562601765.0
@realDonaldTrump @FoxNews @CNN Pretty rich, you calling someone a liar.— Darrell McCaslin #ImpeachtheOrangeIdiot (@Darrell McCaslin #ImpeachtheOrangeIdiot)1562596562.0
Some theorized that the coverage of the Times report wasn't the only point in Fox's coverage that led to Trump souring on the network.
Like maybe this Fox foible (check out our further coverage here).
@realDonaldTrump @FoxNews @CNN Trump must be mad people were yelling “F**k Trump!” live on Fox News while covering… https://t.co/LEsxG0hPDd— Eugene Gu, MD (@Eugene Gu, MD)1562544184.0
@HoarseWisperer @realDonaldTrump @FoxNews @CNN I guess Fox reported on the Epstein story.— Chick N Bell 🐤🔔 (@Chick N Bell 🐤🔔)1562549498.0
Well, this is awkward.
The book The Fox Effect: How Roger Ailes Turned a Network into a Propaganda Machine, available here, gives insight into the Fox effect.
"Based on the meticulous research of the news watchdog organization Media Matters for America, David Brock and Ari Rabin-Havt show how Fox News, under its president Roger Ailes, changed from a right-leaning news network into a partisan advocate for the Republican Party."