Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin has signed a multi-year deal with FOX News to serve as a contributor across all FOX News platforms, announced Bill Shine, Executive Vice President of Programming.
In making the announcement, Shine said, “Governor Palin has captivated everyone on both sides of the political spectrum and we are excited to add her dynamic voice to the FOX News lineup.” As a contributor, Palin will provide political commentary and analysis for FOX News Channel (FNC), FOX Business Network (FBN), FOXNews.com, and FOX News-produced special event political programming for FOX Broadcasting.
In addition, she will host periodic episodes of FNC’s “Real American Stories,” a series exploring inspirational real-life tales of overcoming adversity throughout the American landscape that will debut in 2010.
Palin added, “I am thrilled to be joining the great talent and management team at FOX News. It’s wonderful to be part of a place that so values fair and balanced news.”
Personally, I do not think this was such a wise decision, and it has nothing to do with her capability to be a news analyst. I’m sure she’ll be very competent. It’s all really predicated on her political aspirations. If she’s planning to run for national office again, I predict the mainstream media will be taking this opportunity to start stocking their arsenal. They’re going to pick apart for her every single word in a way no other public figure gets analyzed. (Remember when Going Rogue came out? Associated Press had 11 authors write up a fact check “news story.”) It’s going to be an endless hunt to paint her as stupid on the one hand and extremist on the other. Remember: Only conservatives—especially female or minority conservatives—get to be under the media microscope, warts and all.
I’m also worried about the association with Fox News. It makes no difference if FNC really is more fair and balanced than the mainstream media. It’s the latter that dominates and controls the public mentality, and I have enough Kool-Aid drinking MSM-watching, NY-Times-reading liberal/Democrat friends who are simply convinced that FNC is nothing but a fringe extreme right-wing outfit and a propaganda arm of the Republican Party (as claimed Obama's former Mao-worshiping Whatever Czar Anita Dunn). I’m afraid if Sarah runs again on the national ticket in 2012, this connection will come back to bite her in the butt (cute as it is).
What do you think?
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