Oh boy, Fox News again. Last Thursday Donna and I drove to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base so she could renew her military identification card. The pass & ID office was packed, and Fox News was playing on the TV in the waiting room.
Yes, military members skew conservative. Yes, many of my colleagues feel Fox News is “their” network, or at least more on their side than the others. I get that. But I wonder how many of my fellow servicemen and women see the naked partisanship of Fox News, not merely in its editorial and commentary segments but in its “straight” news reporting as well.
When I express my concerns to military fans of Fox News, most react in one of two ways: they either deny any bias exists or they embrace it as a necessary counterbalance to other, more liberal news sources. Very few think it’s a matter of concern.
The thing I find most problematic about Fox News, in a military context, is its open hostility toward President Obama and members of his administration. A steady diet of Fox News, to the exclusion of all other news sources, can’t help but foment disrespect toward the commander in chief, which is antithetical to the mission and the core values of military service.
Many years ago the Department of Defense issued guidance on what could be shown on public area televisions in military facilities. When it came to news, the guidance called for the selection of neutral, non-partisan news channels. At the time that meant CNN. Granted, CNN is a far different news network today, but it is still arguably closer to neutral in its editorial outlook than Fox News or MSNBC.
I don’t doubt the individual military services have their own regulations, supplementing DoD guidance. And I’m certain airing Fox News in military waiting rooms violates those regulations.
As I did once before, I’m writing a letter to the DMAFB commander to express my concern and ask that he direct units under his command to stop allowing the airing of Fox News or other partisan news channels on public area TVs. I still believe letters … on paper, sent via snail mail … are the way to go with complaints or suggestions you want taken seriously.
The last time I wrote the base commander about this, even though he didn’t answer my letter, something must have happened, because afterward waiting room TVs on base were set to CNN, and they stayed that way for a few years. Now that Fox News is creeping back in, it’s time for another letter.
A while back I was having a Twitter conversation/argument with someone from Oathkeepers. My question for him was about Chain of Command. He evaded answering that question. Like “Who’s your commanding officer?”, not answering. He seemed to not understand the idea that the CoC leads all the way up to CIVILIAN authorities, which are VOTED into office. It was aggravating. I told him I didn’t need or want his protection. When I hear disprespect of the President, this is what I worry about. I didn’t vote for Bush, but my kids never knew that. I just referred to him as The President of our great country.