Showdown Author David Corn Blasts Fox News’ Bret Baier Fact Check #Fail

One of the revelations from David Corn‘s new book Showdown that’s making waves is the fact that President Obama blamed Fox News for diminishing his support among white males. On Monday, Fox News’ Bret Baier attempted a brief “fact check” of the book’s premise that “fed by Fox News, they hear Obama is a Muslim 24/7, and it begins to seep in.”, concluding “For the record, we found no examples of a host saying President Obama is a Muslim.”

Today, Corn points out the obvious sleight of hand in that statement, and shares his thoughts on Baier with Mediaite.

From Mother Jones:

Many media outfits focused on a nugget in the book reporting that, during a December 2010 meeting with labor officials, President Barack Obama complained that he was “losing white males,” partly due to cultural issues (gun rights, gay rights, and race), and noted, “Fed by Fox News, they hear Obama is a Muslim 24/7, and it begins to seep in.”

Baier, a Fox News anchor, took exception to this. On air he proclaimed, “For the record, we found no examples of a host saying President Obama is a Muslim.”

Note the sly use of the word “host.” Whether or not he or any other “host” has uttered the direct statement “Obama is a Muslim,” his network has advanced that notion repeatedly.

Corn posts, as one example, this clip from Hannity, in which a guest makes the suggestion that President Obama is a Secret Muslim, and Sean Hannity doesn’t push back:

Corn presents several other examples, along with a link to some fairly exhaustive research by Media Matters, but really, Baier’s careful phrasing kind of says it all.

Corn told me, via email, that he was disappointed in Baier. “”I’ve always liked and respected Bret. It’s too bad he felt forced to defend his network, which has given a platform to the Obama-Muslim crowd.”

This is an opinion piece. The views expressed in this article are those of just the author.