Study Confirms Watching Fox News makes you stupid.

[Locutus]

A new survey of American voters shows that Fox News viewers are significantly more misinformed than consumers of news from other sources.

December 15, 2010

Yet another study has been released proving that watching Fox News is detrimental to your intelligence. World Public Opinion, a project managed by the Program on International Policy Attitudes at the University of Maryland, conducted a survey of American voters that shows that Fox News viewers are significantly more misinformed than consumers of news from other sources. What's more, the study shows that greater exposure to Fox News increases misinformation.

So the more you watch, the less you know. Or to be precise, the more you think you know that is actually false. This study corroborates a previous PIPA study that focused on the Iraq war with similar results. And there was an NBC/Wall Street Journal poll that demonstrated the break with reality on the part of Fox viewers with regard to health care. The body of evidence that Fox News is nothing but a propaganda machine dedicated to lies is growing by the day.

In eight of the nine questions below, Fox News placed first in the percentage of those who were misinformed (they placed second in the question on TARP). That's a pretty high batting average for journalistic fraud. Here is a list of what Fox News viewers believe that just aint so:

91 percent believe the stimulus legislation lost jobs
72 percent believe the health reform law will increase the deficit
72 percent believe the economy is getting worse
60 percent believe climate change is not occurring
49 percent believe income taxes have gone up
63 percent believe the stimulus legislation did not include any tax cuts
56 percent believe Obama initiated the GM/Chrysler bailout
38 percent believe that most Republicans opposed TARP
63 percent believe Obama was not born in the U.S. (or that it is unclear)

The conclusion is inescapable. Fox News is deliberately misinforming its viewers and it is doing so for a reason. Every issue above is one in which the Republican Party had a vested interest. The GOP benefited from the ignorance that Fox News helped to proliferate. The results were apparent in the election last month as voters based their decisions on demonstrably false information fed to them by Fox News.

By the way, the rest of the media was not blameless. CNN and the broadcast network news operations fared only slightly better in many cases. Even MSNBC, which had the best record of accurately informing viewers, has a ways to go before it can brag about it.

The conclusions in this study need to be disseminated as broadly as possible. Fox's competitors need to report these results and produce ad campaigns featuring them. Newspapers and magazines need to publish the study across the country. This is big news and it is critical that the nation be advised that a major news enterprise is poisoning their minds.

This is not an isolated review of Fox's performance. It has been corroborated time and time again. The fact that Fox News is so blatantly dishonest, and the effects of that dishonesty have become ingrained in an electorate that has been been purposefully deceived, needs to be made known to every American. Our democracy cannot function if voters are making choices based on lies. We have the evidence that Fox is tilting the scales and we must now make certain its corporate owners do not get away with it.

[Locutus]

Link to the survey

[The Troll]

 
  Proven, you just can't fix stupid. 

[me]

Gee, supported by Rockefeller and the Tides foundation, hum, could it be a bit biased maybe?? 

[The Troll]

Gee, supported by Rockefeller and the Tides foundation, hum, could it be a bit biased maybe??

   I might believe that if it didn't come from someone who watches and thinks Glen Beck is so great and a brain.  Right? 

[me]

Didn't come from Beck came from the article.  Click "about us" and scroll down.

Supporters

WPO is made possible by the generous support of:
Rockefeller Foundation
Rockefeller Brothers Fund
Tides Foundation
Ford Foundation
German Marshall Fund of the United States
Compton Foundation
Carnegie Corporation
Benton Foundation
Ben and Jerry's Foundation
University of Maryland Foundation
Circle Foundation
JEHT Foundation
Stanley Foundation
Ploughshares Fund
Calvert Foundation
Secure World Foundation
Oak Foundation
United States Institute of Peace

[Exterminator]

Gee, supported by Rockefeller and the Tides foundation, hum, could it be a bit biased maybe??

Who wants to see my best surprised look that the most clueless wonder on the forum doesn't understand the meaning of corroborated?

[Palehorse]

 

[me]

Ah gee ex, I'm sorry.  I can explain it to you. 

Who wants to see my best surprised look that the most clueless wonder on the forum doesn't understand the meaning of corroborated?

[The Troll]

Ah gee ex, I'm sorry.  I can explain it to you.

    explaining it to EX.                                

  Now do you understand, EX.