Jon Stewart sees a good bit of projection in Fox News' coverage of the Ferguson protests


In the Fox News universe, the people protesting the grand jury verdict in Ferguson, Missouri, aren't motivated by longstanding racial injustice and the all-too-common shooting of black youths by police, Jon Stewart explained on Monday night's Daily Show. No, the rioters (and peaceful protesters) are being duped into anger and action by "racial arsonists" (and "race hustlers," "race grievance industry leaders," and "racial racketeers").
Sean Hannity says the instigators are President Obama, Attorney General Eric Holder, and Al Sharpton. ("Be honest my friend," Stewart taunted. "Are those the three people responsible, or did you just name the only three black guys you could think of?") But the underlying narrative at FNC is the same regardless: Blacks have a "victim mentality." Stewart obviously savored this bit:
A gentleman on Fox News said that black people have been convinced by a network of shrewd propagandists that they are somehow victims, and that it's wrong to agitate a population — to scare them — utilizing all the tools of modern communication (graphics, music, etc.), to stoke these people into a resentful frenzy. Fox News feels that's just damaging to this great nation, and tears at our very fabric. [Stewart]
If you somehow don't see where this is going, The Daily Show has a nice Fox News highlight reel. "It almost makes you think that the crime they're really upset about over there isn't race pimping or race arson," Stewart concluded: "It's race plagiarism." Whether or not that actually makes sense, it's a pretty memorable turn of phrase. --Peter Weber
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Gabbard fires intelligence chiefs after Venezuela report
speed read Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has fired the top two officials leading the National Intelligence Council
-
Trump vows to lift Syria sanctions
speed read The move would help the new government stabilize the country following years of civil war
-
Senate rejects Trump's Library of Congress takeover
speed read Congress resisted the president's attempts to control 'the legislative branch's premier research body'
-
Hamas frees US hostage in deal sidelining Israel
speed read Edan Alexander, a 21-year-old soldier, was the final living US citizen held by the militant group
-
White Afrikaners land in US as Trump-declared refugees
speed read An exception was made to Trump's near-total ban on admitting refugees for the white South Africans
-
Qatar luxury jet gift clouds Trump trip to Mideast
speed read Qatar is said to be presenting Trump with a $400 million plane, which would be among the biggest foreign gifts ever received by the US government
-
Trump taps Fox News' Pirro for DC attorney post
speed read The president has named Fox News host Jeanine Pirro to be the top federal prosecutor for Washington, replacing acting US Attorney Ed Martin
-
Trump, UK's Starmer outline first post-tariff deal
speed read President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Kier Starmer struck a 'historic' agreement to eliminate some of the former's imposed tariffs