Critics Blast Fox News' Ideologically Driven Censorship of Ron Paul

Posted by Matt Corley, Think Progress at 2:22 PM on January 4, 2008.

This isn’t the first time conservatives who disagree with Paul’s politics have denied him a forum.

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Critics Blast Fox News’s ‘Ideological’ ‘Censorship’ For Banning Ron Paul From NH Debate

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Last week, Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) revealed that Fox News is excluding him and Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA) from their New Hampshire debate on Sunday, arguing that "it had limited space in its studio -- a souped-up bus."

The AP did not specify "what types of polls" Fox was relying on "and if there had to be consistent double-digit results." As Josh Marshall has noted, Paul is beating Thompson by an average of 5 points in New Hampshire polls. Additionally, Paul raised nearly $20 million in the last quarter of 2007 -- roughly the same amount as Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL).

Bill O'Reilly defended Fox's decision on Wednesday, saying he'd "do the same thing." He also revealed that the decision was based on "national poll numbers." Watch the video to your right.

Though O'Reilly noted that "both Paul and Hunter will appear on January 10th in the Fox-sponsored South Carolina debate," the decision to include Thompson rather than Paul in the New Hampshire debate is drawing particular criticism. Conservatives and pundits say it appears as though Fox is censoring Paul:

"Fox News itself apparently wants to limit the GOP discussion to variations on a neocon theme of perpetual war for perpetual big government." [Conservative author Richard Viguerie]

"It raises the possibility that this is an ideological decision." [Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania]

"The Paul snub exposes censorship of competitive voices." [Libertarian Party director Shane Cory]

"The pivotal debates before the first statewide vote in the 2008 election cycle is not the time to be voting people off the island, no matter how much they may want a more free-wheeling exchange," [New Hampshire Republican State Chairman Fergus Cullen]

This isn't the first time conservatives who disagree with Paul's politics have denied him a forum. In October, the popular conservative blog RedState banned Paul's supporters from discussing Paul in "any way shape, form or fashion."

Tagged as: fox news, paul

Matt Corley is a Research Associate for The Progress Report and ThinkProgress.org at the Center for American Progress.

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That is due to the fact PAUL IS A MISOGYNIST WHITE SUPREMACIST CALLING CARD [Report this comment] Posted by: Turiye on Jan 5, 2008 12:50 AM Current rating: 2 [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] nfe [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5] » RE: That is due .... Posted by: LPM » I wish Paul were not virulently anti-choice. His website is alarming on the subject. Posted by: Beck » RE: That is due .... Posted by: Luther Blissett » RE: That is due to the fact PAUL IS A MISOGYNIST WHITE SUPREMACIST CALLING CARD Posted by: LetsSaveDemocracy Newsflash [Report this comment] Posted by: handygeek on Jan 5, 2008 6:46 AM Current rating: 5 [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] In case you folks didn't realize, Bush has been laying the groundwork for sometime to overturn Roe vs. Wade. Its going to happen no matter what any other president might want. There needs to be a constitutional amendment in place to protect women before this attrocity happens. I don't see much being organized to see that through. I don't like Paul's position on this issue. However, he is a strong proponent of individual rights. So, I'm sure he would side with women if pushed by the choice movement. He believes that life begins at conception. Fine. But that does not mean that they have legal rights. There should be an amendment stating that rights are instilled only at birth. When a person has been deemed as born, they have rights. [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5] » RE: Newsflash Posted by: handygeek You'll still be shopping at Wal Mart [Report this comment] Posted by: robmikejas on Jan 5, 2008 9:25 AM Current rating: 3 [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] You'll still be shopping at Wal Mart [Report this comment] [Ignore this user] Posted by: robmikejas on Jan 5, 2008 9:17 AM Current rating: Not yet rated [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] after this sham of an election is over, you'll still be feeding the corporate machine that is Washington DC. All politics are corporate/media determined or even pre determined. Your vote is only as good as forwarding of American corporate needs...not your own needs. Clinton? Obama? Huckabee? McCain? the media builds and tears down these people to varying degrees every day, leaving you with the impression that who you vote for is your choice. Truth is, your vote is bought and paid for by corporate money and media malfesance. No radically anti- corporate candidate can ever win an American election. Not possible. The morals of self governance so beautifully built into our constitution are redacted and unimportant to the real powers in this country. I wish it were different but the truth is self evident, that all people are definitely not created equal, treated equally or even considered at all. We are in the last days of a once great experiment, how exactly it will end is not known but one could surmise a totally repressed gang of humans walking in circles and wondering how the fuck we got to this point. [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5] Bill Moyers Interviews Ron Paul [Report this comment] Posted by: left_libertarian on Jan 5, 2008 3:22 PM Current rating: Not yet rated [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/01042008/watch2.html [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5] The PROGRESSIVE case for supporting Paul..... [Report this comment] Posted by: James W. Harris on Jan 5, 2008 6:19 PM Current rating: 5 [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] One of the best articles I've ever seen on whether liberals, leftists and progressives should consider supporting Ron Paul -- or instead denounce him as a dangerous nut -- is in this short article at the highly-regarded left-wing Web site COUNTERPUNCH. http://www.counterpunch.org/taylor01022008.html Entitled "The Left and Ron Paul," it is MUST READING for those interested in this topic. The article is by lefty political scientist Jeff Taylor. His book Where Did the Party Go?: William Jennings Bryan, Hubert Humphrey, and the Jeffersonian Legacy was published last year by University of Missouri Press. He contributed a chapter to the book A Dime's Worth of Difference (Cockburn and St. Clair, eds.). [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5] Money Talks [Report this comment] Posted by: lnardozi on Jan 6, 2008 5:28 PM Current rating: Not yet rated [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] When you're filling your car with $3 gas and buying some $2.65 a dozen eggs, remember who is running on stopping deficit spending. The war for oil is what caused prices for anything that eats grain to skyrocket. When THOSE prices rise, the fresh fruit seller raises his prices again, now you have some nice $5 a pound grapes in the market. Laugh all you want, it's YOUR money being spent. YOU'RE the one going to pay $250 a week for groceries. Still think Ron Paul sounds like a bad idea? He's the ONLY candidate, Republican or Democrat that is running on reducing your cost of living. Maybe you have plenty money. Me, I'm not so rich. [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]

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» RE: That is due .... Posted by: LPM

» I wish Paul were not virulently anti-choice. His website is alarming on the subject. Posted by: Beck

» RE: That is due .... Posted by: Luther Blissett

» RE: That is due to the fact PAUL IS A MISOGYNIST WHITE SUPREMACIST CALLING CARD Posted by: LetsSaveDemocracy

» RE: Newsflash Posted by: handygeek

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» RE: That is due .... Posted by: LPM

» I wish Paul were not virulently anti-choice. His website is alarming on the subject. Posted by: Beck

» RE: That is due .... Posted by: Luther Blissett

» RE: That is due to the fact PAUL IS A MISOGYNIST WHITE SUPREMACIST CALLING CARD Posted by: LetsSaveDemocracy

» RE: Newsflash Posted by: handygeek