NY Times out with a good article on how Fox and other right-wing media have operated during the coronavirus pandemic. The 4 Steps: 1) Blame China, 2) Play Down the Risks, 3) Share Survivor Stories, 4) Blame the Left. Joel Pollak, a writer for Brietbart whose writings on the pandemic have been cited by Sean Hannity, is claiming that the Democrats pushing impeachment helped cause the crisis, because it prevented Trump from being able to prepare for it. As for Fox:
"Hannity and his fans may see criticism of the president as a histrionic meltdown of an anti-Trump mob, but the broadcaster has dialed back some denial. Elsewhere at Fox, Trish Regan, a Fox Business host, left the network after expressing doubt about the severity of the situation.
The criticism seemed to catch Hannity and other pro-Trump personalities at Fox off guard, according to people who work at the network, if only because they did not believe that their remarks on the coronavirus were any different from how they have defended the president as the victim of an orchestrated smear during other crises.
Hannity recently published a timeline of his own comments on the virus, which creates a revisionist impression that he was consistently raising concerns. The examples Hannity cites include his praise of the Trump administration’s response and declarations that the “greatest” and “best” scientists are working on the virus.
And in his interview with the president last week, Hannity cast blame on President Barack Obama for the deaths during the swine flu outbreak of 2009, saying Trump had been “very gracious” by not focusing on his predecessor’s failings, which he accused the news media of ignoring."
Way to go, Fox! Link:
https://www.yahoo.com/news/alarm-denial-blame-pro-trump-185114338.html