| The petition to Fox News advertisers Progressive, Experian, ADT, Procter & Gamble, Allstate, Dine Brands, Office Depot, Chevrolet and HomeAdvisor reads:
"Stop sponsoring hate. Withdraw your advertising from all Fox News programs." Add your name: |
| Dear Katy, Trump's corruption, racism and anti-immigrant agenda are getting more dangerous every day. But no matter how extreme, Trump knows his hate and greed will always have a platform: Fox News. Hosts and guests on Fox News offer a steady stream of racist rhetoric and paranoid conspiracy theories to keep Trump's approval ratings high among his Republican base. With a perfect feedback loop between Trump and his friends at Fox, it is no surprise that white supremacist violence and unchecked government corruption are on the rise. What's more surprising is that Fox's extremist rhetoric is paid for by seemingly mainstream companies like Progressive Insurance, Office Depot and Chevrolet.1 These companies should not be supporting Fox's hate. By putting the spotlight on advertisers, we can defund Fox News and turn off the firehose of hate and lies. Tell Fox News advertisers: Stop funding hate. Click here to sign the petition. Without help from Fox News – and the advertisers who fund it – Trump could not have executed his midterm election strategy of creating hysteria around a caravan of families seeking asylum. The network systematically drums up xenophobia and racist fears. One guest on Laura Ingraham's show said that the caravan is seeking "the destruction of American society and culture."2 Fox News host Brian Kilmeade asked whether the caravan would bring disease,3 and another host casually asked a Trump official whether the migrants would be shot at.4 Fearmongering leads to violence. The shooter who killed 19 people in a Pittsburgh synagogue said he was motivated to kill because of the congregation's support for immigration.5 His twisted logic depends on believing the kinds of conspiracy theories that Fox News promotes. The network characterizes the caravan as an invasion,6 and promotes the anti-Semitic conspiracy theory that powerful Jewish elites are responsible.7 Fox News has always stood for far-right extremism. But with Trump in power, the network is pumping up the hate and fear to new heights. In today's increasingly toxic media climate, hate crimes are rising, especially against Jews.8 The suspect who sent pipe bombs to the homes of Trump's political opponents unsurprisingly had a Twitter feed full of Fox News clips, and his first target was Jewish philanthropist George Soros, who is frequently demonized by the network.9 Funding Fox News means supporting the intensification of racist violence. Fortunately, companies are already starting to recognize that sponsoring Fox's hate is a losing proposition. A number of companies have left the network or refused to sponsor its most hateful shows.10 The household brands still advertising on Fox News don't want to be associated with the inevitable outcomes of the hate they are funding. If we keep up the pressure, we can push more companies to do the right thing and cut ties with Fox News. Tell Fox News advertisers: Stop funding hate. Click the link below to sign the petition: https://act.credoaction.com/sign/fox-advertisers-2018?t=7&akid=30649%2E12967895%2ERO_Wg0 Thanks for fighting back, Brandy Doyle, Campaign Manager
CREDO Action from Working Assets Add your name: References: - Media Matters Staff, "These are Fox News' leading advertisers," Media Matters for America, Oct. 29, 2018.
- Adam Serwer, "Trump's Caravan Hysteria Led to This," The Atlantic, Oct. 28, 2018.
- Stavros Agorakis, "A Financial Times editor calls for a Fox News advertiser boycott," Vox, Oct. 29, 2018.
- Serwer, "Trump's Caravan Hysteria Led to This."
- Ibid.
- Ibid.
- Ibid.
- Jessica Schneider, "Hate crimes increased by 17% in 2017, FBI report finds," CNN, Nov. 13, 2018.
- Agorakis, "A Financial Times editor calls for a Fox News advertiser boycott."
- Angelo Carusone, "Fox News' ad chief admits that advertisers are leaving. Here's what's going on." Media Matters for America, Oct. 17, 2018.
Photo: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images |
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