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Fox & Frenemies
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On the morning of Friday, March 21, Chris Wallace woke up at his home in Washington, D.C., grabbed some fruit and yogurt, and turned on the Fox News early show, Fox & Friends.
Steve Doocy, Gretchen Carlson and Brian Kilmeade were talking about Barack Obama’s recent characterization of his grandmother on a Philadelphia radio show: She was a “typical white person, who, if she sees somebody on the street that she doesn’t know, there’s a reaction that’s been bred into our experiences that don’t go away and that sometimes comes out in the wrong way.”
“Can you say ‘typical white person’ if you’re white?” asked Mr. Doocy. Of course not, noted Ms. Carlson. There’s no way that Senator Hillary Clinton could use the phrase “typical black person,” they noted. “So there is a certain double standard in society,” said Ms. Carlson. And also: “I sort of take offense at that line: ‘typical white.’”
Mr. Wallace was getting a little bit annoyed.
“I didn’t think it was fair. I didn’t think it allowed Obama to make his point,” Mr. Wallace later told The Observer in a telephone interview. “I thought it made it sound like he was just engaging in a racial stereotype, which I think he was. But it was in an interview, not in a speech. I thought that as he went on and finished the thought over the next sentence or two, he softened that kind of harsh phrase. And saying, listen, a typical white person who has grown up and had a certain set of experiences, and reacts in that way. I thought he was softening it. I didn’t think we were providing the full context of what he was saying.”
After breakfast, Mr. Wallace went to work and began his usual Friday routine, patching into sister programs to promote the lineup of guests he is expecting on the next broadcast of Fox News Sunday.
Between “hits” with affiliates around the country, he kept an eye on the Friends. “Typical white person,” “typical white person,” “typical white person,” he heard over and over again.
“I think I was especially disturbed by the fact that the clip as they played it—which cut off after ‘typical white person’ without Obama’s elaboration—did not do justice to his explanation,” he said.
Soon it would be time for him to pop in on Fox & Friends to do his shtick; he made a snap decision.
“Hey, listen, I love you guys but I want to take you to task, if I may, respectfully, for a moment,” said Mr. Wallace on air. “I have been watching the show since six o’clock this morning when I got up, and it seems to me that two hours of Obama bashing on this ‘typical white person’ remark is somewhat excessive, and frankly, I think you’re somewhat distorting what Obama had to say.”
Over the years, Mr. Wallace’s brusque manner has raised the hackles of many a subject. According to Time magazine, Mr. Wallace, during a press conference in March 1987, asked Ronald Reagan a particularly tough question about Israel’s involvement in arms sales to Iran. Famously, in September 2006, during an interview with President Bill Clinton, Mr. Wallace referenced the reporting in Lawrence Wright’s Pulitzer Prize-winning The Looming Tower, and asked Mr. Clinton, “Why didn’t you do more to put bin Laden and Al Qaeda out of business when you were president?” A red-faced Mr. Clinton responded, in part, by accusing Mr. Wallace of a “conservative hit job.” This past November, during an interview on his Sunday show, Mr. Wallace asked Fred Thompson, then a presidential candidate, about all the “buzz” about his “disappointing” campaign. A visibly angry Mr. Thompson responded by accusing Fox News of being biased against him.
Back in the studio, the members of the Fox & Friends crew seemed similarly miffed to find themselves on the receiving end of their colleague’s bluntness. (Mr. Wallace is the son of Captain Confrontation himself, CBS’s Mike Wallace.) In response, Mr. Doocy and company defended their analysis. Mr. Wallace stuck to his point. “I still love you,” Mr. Wallace said in conclusion. “Yup, okay,” replied Mr. Doocy. “An odd way of showing it.”
On Monday afternoon—with clips of the confrontation having seemingly ricocheted to every far-flung corner of the Web and with everyone from official Obama bloggers to MSNBC’s Chris Matthews rushing to pat Mr. Wallace on the back—NYTV caught up with Mr. Wallace via phone. The longtime newsman said that in retrospect he had mixed feelings about making the remarks.
“I didn’t have any second thoughts about the substance because I still believe what I said was right,” said Mr. Wallace. “But after the fact, you do think to yourself—on a professional level with colleagues I very much like and respect—should I have done that off camera?” Next Page >
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I heard the exchange between Mr. Wallace and Fox/Friends, and I thought Mr. Wallace handled the situation well. He was respectful and apologetic with his critisism.
Recently I found myself making a broad generalization about something, and someone disagreed with me. It caused me to rethink my assessment. Confrontation sharpens the mind.
Thank God for Fox News.
Hey. If Wallace ever does get Mr. Wonderful to come on his show, He should ask him this; Why would you write a book about your BUM of an old man? HE, ran off on you and your Mother. Typical Black man. Why a book about him, yet Granma, the loving white woman, who raised you, loved, cared for you, and sacrificed for you, all she gets is a nice shove under the bus? I'll tell you why. Cause he's a BUM. Just like his old man. He's a typical Black guy. Ask him THAT, Chrissy.
Wow, what a racist this guy is. And he's apparently proud to be a biggot because he posted his full name. What a bum.
Bill, the previous poster was using what's called a "rhetorical argument": if Obama can call his grandmother a "typical white person" for what *she* did, logic requires he call his father a "typical black person" for what *he* did. (And quite frankly, considering 60% of African-American babies are born to unmarried women, it could be argued that walking out on your children is indeed "typical" among black men.)
Most upsetting about this non-flap is that the self-appointed mediators of world events take themsleves so seriously. Unfortunately, most generate more wind than substance on matters about which they know little, and too often become, first, part of the story, and later, all of the story. This "story" is about what a candidate meant, not what television personalitiies thought he meant. If the candidate's intention was his own version of racial stereotyping, let the public make that judgemeant. If not, I suggest folks are wise enough to come to that conclusion. I suggest getting back to the "original" and reporting more, allows viewers to form their own opinions. It is always dangerous if one believes one's own propaganda, and I suggest Mr. Wallace, Mr. Matthews, Mr. O'reilly, and the many lesser lights that occupy cable news chairs and and couches rely on personality to mask superficiality. Perhaps it is time to return to "hard" news.
fox utterly failed in this election time....if u want u can still improve....if u want
Mike Wallace is goofy for this; but he's still more objective than his lunatic father, who is currently drooling on himself in some old folks home in New York City.
Ramon, it's foolish to state "And quite frankly, considering 60% of African-American babies are born to unmarried women, it could be argued that walking out on your children is indeed "typical" among black men. Just because a child is born out of wedlock does not mean that the father is not actively involved in the child's life. and, if you and Mr. Pennell up there had actually READ the book, you'd know that it's not about his father, that's just the title.
Just as I was beginning to believe there actually WAS real independent thought on FoxNews - Chris Wallace moderates his comments about the Obama lashing from those cretins on F n F.
Chris - please don't back down. Hold your ground. They are race baiters, we know it and you saw it and said it. Bravo! You have a serious career in front of you when you show cajones like that. YOU, SIR, ARE THE MAN!
No, it should not have been said off-camera.
And to Roger Ailes - why don't you just fire him for stepping outside the News Corp. editorial line? 'We report - you decide.' What a friggin' joke.
Insubordination indeed! Give Chris his due - he spoke honestly, stuck a fork up your ass and won my admiration.
Oh? Will this have an affect on CW's future contract negotiations?
Chris - you will thrive on being your own man. Stick with it dude and we will stick with you.
Today - I have a whole new regard for you and what you say.
TS
I was surprised the first time I saw Chris Wallace on Fox News. I was sure his father had to be disappointed to see his son on such a third-rate channel consorting with obvious hacks. So, it was a pleasant surprise to see him speaking the truth on Fox since the truth and Fox are only passing acquaintances. I was not surprised to see that the bosses at Fox were unhappy that one of their own had the nerve to tell the truth. Happily for his father, he had a chance to be proud of his child. Maybe genes will out.
I'm a lonely old woman who has nothing better to do than post inane comments on this board, and watch Matlock.
Please disregard all my posts. Whoops, time for Wheel of Fortune.
Fox is the only channel where you will find unbiased news, not distorted by jack anuses who call themselves journalists.
The statement made by Obama is Imprtant. If Hillary had said that about "Typical Black Person" the media would be all over her. I also have a funny feeling that Sharpton and Jackson would be coming around make it a racial issue. No doubt in my mind. Please America do your research of Mr. Obama before you vote. We want our country back. Remember 911--We must never forget. Remember that this man wants to be our President. He had made a comment that we are only watching 30 seconds of this man sermon. That's all I needed. He let his feeling about this Country well known. Isn't he lucky that he is able to make such statements. In another country he would be thrown out of the country.
Chris Wallace has just as much right as any other viewer to express his opinion on what he sees on televison. So, why not call in and comment?
We should expect and welcome criticism and comments from the public as well as from our colleagues,its a valuable reality check for all of us who work in the media.