The truth about the Fox News Tea Parties


Top Blog Post

  • 04/15/2009 - 12:07

    "Astro Turf." Fake grassroots. It’s what you get when big business and rich zealots hire pricey consultants to manufacture public outrage. With big budgets, limitless manpower, sophisticated targeting, and a sympathetic media channel, it's not difficult to generate anger. And that’s exactly what’s going on with today’s tea parties

    Whether these so-called tea parties originated as grassroots events or not, they have become nothing more than Astroturf outrage generated by Fox News and corporate-financed consultants. $aveTheRich.com is dedicated to documenting these efforts, so we created a clearinghouse of information to expose the truth behind the so-called “Tax Day Tea Parties” being held around the country. And so far, the tell-tale signs of Astro Turf are everywhere:

Recent News Stories

Greta Van Susteren

Sean Hannity 'On the Record' on the Anti-Tax Tea Party Protests

Excerpt: 

VAN SUSTEREN: Hi, Sean. I know you're going to Atlanta. Why Atlanta? Why that tea party?

SEAN HANNITY, HOST, "HANNITY": You know, I -- well, first of all, I lived in Atlanta, Greta, for four years, so that might have a little something to do with it. But you know, look, it's just one of a lot that are happening around the country. What's interesting to me is that these have been happening organically. It's really a grass-roots type of effort, and the mainstream media hasn't covered it.

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Critiquing the Press

Excerpt: 

Howard Kurtz: Well, the Fox folks leading the tea party charge are Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, Neil Cavuto and Greta Van Susteren -- all commentators who are paid for their opinions. It makes me a bit uncomfortable the way the channel has turned these April 15 protests into something of a crusade, complete with the drumbeat of advance publicity and the above-named hosts planning to attend various tea parties. But it's not fair to say that Fox's reporters are jumping on this bandwagon, although we'll see how much coverage it gets on Thursday.

On your other question, if Gingrich has criticized Obama on family values, I don't recall hearing it.

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