The Cable Gamer asked a Beltway-oriented Republican friend of hers whether he thought that Fox News was in the tank for Rudy Giuliani, as Judith Regan alleges in her spectactular lawsuit against the News Corp., which, of course, owns Fox News.
"Don't be silly," my Beltway Republican Friend told me, "everybody knows that Rupert Murdoch is for Hillary Clinton, not Rudy." And he pointed me to today's edition of The New York Post, which features two headlines, one reading, "Comeback Clinton Scores Big Win," and the other, "Hill Hammers 'Mud' Brothers." Now my BRF might be overstating things a bit, given that the NYP also recently editorialized, more negatively, "Hillary in the Headlights."
Of course, it is true that both Murdoch and News Corp #2 Peter Chernin have participated in pro-Hillary campaign events, although as I recall, Murdoch's support was only for her re-election to the Senate last year, not necessarily the presidency.
But of course, the News Corporation is a big company, with lots of different fiefdoms. And so just because The New York Post goes one way, or both ways, that doesn't mean that other operatting units haven't made their own distinct choices.
So back to Fox News. What's it's stance in the GOP primary? The Cable Gamer is going to do some more digging on this matter, because it it is a pretty interesting question, given FNC's influence on the presidential race, especially on the GOP side. (Although once again, if Fox were so all-powerful in Republican circles, why did Mitt Romney refuse to appear in the next FNC debate?)
in the meantime, though, these data on GOP guest appearances on Fox News are interesting, courtesy of TV Newser:
When you look at the year-to-date figures, things change. Giuliani is the fifth most-booked GOP candidate on FNC.
• Tom Tancredo (candidacy declared April 2, 2007). Appearances on FNC year to date: 36.
• Mike Huckabee (candidacy declared Jan. 28, 2007). Appearances on FNC year to date: 33.
• Sen. John McCain (candidacy declared April 25, 2007). Appearances on FNC year to date: 24.
• Mitt Romney (candidacy declared Feb. 13, 2007). Appearances on FNC year to date: 24.
• Rudolph Giuliani (statement of candidacy with the FEC, February 5, 2007). Appearances on FNC year to date: 20.
• Fred Thompson (candidacy declared Sept. 5, 2007). Appearances on FNC year to date: 14.
• Ron Paul (candidacy declared March 12, 2007). Appearances on FNC year to date: 12.
Sorry Judith: If Giuliani is #5 on the list, with barely more than half as many on-air gigs as Tom Tancredo, it's hard to argue that FNC
