See the Proof That Joe Lieberman Is a Terrorist

Posted by ZP Heller, Brave New Films at 12:41 PM on July 2, 2008.

Did that headline grab your attention? It's exactly the kind of slimy trick FOX News played when anchor E.D. Hill began her show America's Pulse with the teaser: "A fist bump? A pound? A terrorist fist jab? The gesture everyone seems to interpret differently."

Well, by FOX's own insane equation (fist bump + slanderous spin = terrorist threat), Sen. Joe Lieberman is a terrorist. After all, Lieberman can be seen in this video giving a fist bump to someone at what looks to be a golf game, judging by Lieberman's polo shirt and khaki pants.

Do we really believe that Joe Lieberman is a terrorist? Of course not! But if we were loyal FOX News viewers (perish the thought), we would have come away from Hill's show thinking that Obama was a terrorist over the innocent hand gesture he gave his wife upon clinching the Democratic nomination. And then we would believe that Lieberman, along with all of the people seen here in Media Matters' gallery of fist bumps, were terrorists as well.

We created this little spoof to highlight the dangers of FOX's slander. What's it going to take for FOX to be held to a higher standard of accuracy, or any standard for that matter?

It's not as though FOX learned its lesson over the "terrorist fist jab" fiasco. They may have canceled Hill's show, but she's still with the network (and as FOX Attacks' Jonathan Kim noted, there were other issues at play). No, FOX went right back to its old insulting antics and scare tactics. In the last few weeks alone, they have referred to Michelle Obama as "Obama's baby mama"; falsely claimed Iranian missiles could hit the U.S.; convinced a Tennessee Democrat that Obama was "terrorist-connected"; and erased McCain saying "he really didn't love America," then un-doctored the transcript to make it seem as though nothing was amiss. Clearly, it is up to us to hold FOX accountable.

One of the saddest parts of all of this is that FOX tainted a truly genuine moment in which a presidential candidate was making history in our country. Obama's fist bump epitomized his whole campaign message of change, or as the Washington Post called it, “the first bump heard ‘round the world.'” But thanks to FOX's smears, Obama is now reluctant to use that signature gesture. Yesterday, CNN reported that Obama refused to bump fists with a boy in Ohio, saying, "If I start that ..." His voice trailed off, but it was proof of just how toxic FOX can be.

Tagged as: terrorism, joe lieberman, fox news, barack obama, pound, fist bump, terrorist fist jab

ZP Heller is the editorial director of Brave New Films. He has written for The American Prospect, AlterNet, The Philadelphia Inquirer, and The Huffington Post, covering everything from politics to pop culture.