Time To Shut Down the Fox Propaganda Machine

The Federal Communications Commission should shut down Fox “News.” I put news in quotes because it’s really not a news station, but rather a right-wing mouthpiece.

In a country that values free speech, I think that everyone has the right to speak their mind. But even free speech has its limits.

You cannot yell “fire” in a crowded movie theater and cause people to trample one another trying to escape. Likewise, Fox should not be allowed to spread disinformation about COVID-19 to the detriment of Americans. Fox on-air personalities and staff were mandated to receive the vaccine. Yet its newscasters encourage people to not get vaccinated or wear masks, and they criticize people who actually try and make it safer for the rest of us during this pandemic.

In 2014, Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine and took Crimea. He’s now placed 100,000 of his troops on Ukraine’s border and will probably invade what is a peaceful neighbor. Putin, who was a KGB officer under the Soviet Union, wants Russia to go back to the Cold War days and retake the territory it previously gave up. He has sowed disinformation to impact the elections of various countries, including the United States.

Ronald Reagan called the Soviet Union the “evil empire.” Donald Trump, on the other hand, received funding for his businesses from Russia that was stashed in German banks. (U.S. banks would not lend to Trump because he’s seen as a financial risk.) So, as a result of his dependency on Russian money and his desire to build a Trump Tower in Moscow, Trump pretty much kissed Putin’s butt. Fox News, taking its cue from our 45th president, is now a strong supporter of Putin, and announcers like Tucker Carlson are giving the Russian leader their fawning support.

This is against American interest. During the 1950s, especially during the McCarthy years, Carlson would have been investigated and labeled a communist sympathizer. No news organization would have hired him and none would have kept him on the air. Fox’s position is, to state it plainly, unpatriotic.

America has traditionally supported countries with democratically elected governments. We did not support and applaud communist dictatorships. Trump loves dictators because he wants to be one. Trump did not want a limit to his power in the White House and railed against the judiciary and legislative branches because they were checks and balances on his power. He admires dictators like Putin and North Korea’s Kim Jong-un, because they rule their countries with impunity. Trump hates the underpinnings of our democracy, three separate but co-equal branches.

Fox supports the insurrectionists and has gone so far as to claim Jan. 6 didn’t even happen. This type of misinformation has not been seen since Hitler’s propaganda machine. Remember: The insurrectionists tried to overturn a democratically elected president who won the majority of the popular vote and the electoral college.

Since the time of George Washington, this country has always enjoyed a peaceful transfer of power. That is, until Trump and his allies tried to overturn the election so that he could continue to reign. Not govern – reign.

Fox is now supporting the Canadian trucker strike – a strike that’s taking a toll on the U.S. Automotive industry and other businesses – and encouraging a similar movement in this country. We’re weathering inflation here, and the free flow of goods is critical in pushing it back and maintaining jobs.

It is estimated that as of last week, $51 million in autoworker wages have been lost due to the trucker strike, because

parts needed for car manufacturers are not passing through the U.S.-Canadian border. Why is Fox pushing for a strike here? Because the Canadian government maintains strict COVID-19 protocols. These restrictions have suppressed Canada’s death toll; the entire country’s numbers are far lower than the state of Florida’s alone. In other words, restrictions saved lives and Fox’s idiocy is literally life-threatening.

I had hoped that the numerous lawsuits against Fox would eventually drive it out of business, but lawsuits aren’t having an impact because Fox continues to spew falsehoods and racist comments, sowing dissension across this country.

It is time to shut Fox down, so it can no longer broadcast lies.

Reginald J. Clyne is a Miami trial lawyer who has practiced in some of the largest law firms in the United States. Clyne has been in practice since 1987 and tries cases in both state and federal court. He has lived in Africa, Brazil, Honduras and Nicaragua.