— A San Francisco Giants announcer after spotting a multitasking mom juggling a baby and food while her husband snacked. Can someone give her a hand?
Fox: Friend or Foe?
A Network News Plot Twist
What's going on: When news outlets withheld press pool coverage in opposition to President Donald Trump's ban on CNN, MS Now, and Politico, many were surprised to see Fox News among them. The conservative network has long been known for its ties to the GOP and Trump — his daughter-in-law Lara hosts a weekly show, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is a former host. The Obama administration even called it “a wing of the Republican Party.” But in a joint statement with CNN and the three other members of the pool, Fox made its stance clear: “No administration should restrict a news organization because it objects to its reporting.” The message carries even more weight considering that the pool’s current chair is Fox’s Washington bureau chief. The White House Correspondents’ Association, which also condemned the president’s actions, is currently also led by a Fox News correspondent. That show of solidarity should be on full display Thursday when journalists from the three banned outlets are expected to return to work at the White House after a federal judge ordered the president to reinstate their press passes.
Has Fox News changed its tune?: As The New York Times puts it, the network’s position has “confused some liberal Fox critics and caused some heartburn for Trump hard-liners.” (Lobbyist Roger Stone called the conservative outlet “Globalist Deep Staters.”) But the channel’s move could be a strategy to ensure its access to future Democratic presidents. This worry doesn’t come out of nowhere: The Obama administration clashed with Fox News and surveilled its chief Washington correspondent as part of a criminal leak investigation. And while the network’s tone hasn't changed, there’s tension in the Trump/Fox News relationship. The Hill characterizes it as “on-again, off-again,” while a New Yorker headline called it a “love-hate” thing (sounds like a lot of situationships from our 20s). Over the past year, current and former Fox News anchors, including Brett Baier and Gretchen Carlson, have spoken out against Trump’s treatment of journalists. It appears the Fourth Estate stands together, even when its perspectives couldn’t be more different.
