Inexplicable calls and a wonky Decision Desk on election night have caused a severe and perhaps fatal rift between Fox and its friends. Loyal viewers are still steaming about what they see as the network’s increasingly left-leaning editorial proclivities. Liberty Nation has observed and written extensively about the Fox slide away from its conservative base. Now that this swing is out in the open, many are surfing for Fox News alternatives.
This fracture in the relationship between conservatives and the network that Rupert Murdoch built has moved from tacit frustration to a full-on fallout. Chris Wallace’s performance as moderator of the first debate had many on the right furious; then, there was Arizona, as well as an early call regarding Democratic pick-ups in Congress when the polls had not even closed in California.
Bret Baier
An innocuous tweet by Fox News head honcho Bret Baier asking people to check out the network’s coverage of the election was ravaged by so many enraged viewers he had to delete it. Michael Savage noted, “as anodyne a tweet that was ever tweeted, and yet, the replies, tens of thousands of them, were (according to my good faith look) withering, brutal, and by a margin of around 100-to-1, if not higher.”
Among the responses widely reported across the conservative news plateau were: “Sorry, Bret. Fox has jumped the shark. We won’t forget,” “nope – done with Fox!” and, a personal favorite, “I’d rather get another vasectomy without anesthesia sir.” Indeed, it does seem like Fox and its faithful viewers are headed for a divorce – not the friendly no-fault kind, but a messy one that gets tangled up in court for years.
So where to go and what to do as you uninstall the Fox app and remove many of its news programs from your DVR? Here is an unscientific look at some of the places conservatives have been checking out on their journey to a more solidly conservative media frontier.
These are presented in no particular order:
NEWSMAX TV – The name NEWSMAX has been flying fast and furious since the dust-up with Fox. Its TV operation seems a bit better than its online presence. Some have complained that NEWSMAX online feels a little like drive-thru junk food. Others worry that NEWSMAX does not operate with standard due diligence in its reportage to be considered credible. However, its TV hosts appear polished, and a cursory viewing of the network is warranted.
OAN – One America News has been at it for some time. It had difficulty breaking into the mainstream market but is popping up on more cable syndicators. OAN certainly has stellar conservative bona fides, but it appears underfunded. Given enough money and upper management that understands polished television, OAN could go far.
LIBERTY NATION ROKU – ROKU channels are great because you can tune in on your own time and view subjects that interest you. It is the best in on-demand television. Want to watch a conservative panel discussion minus the Juan Williamses of the world? All you need to do is pick up your ROKU remote, download the Liberty Nation channel, and click through until you see an entry called The Conservative Five [c5]. Of course, one needs a ROKU device, often an aftermarket purchase. Much like Amazon Fire, it is an excellent video device that has garnered a vast share of the video-streaming marketplace. A ROKU stick runs around $39 and is a cinch to plug in to your television (newer TVs often come with the ROKU already installed). Want to watch a videocast of a podcast instead of the Fox newsroom? How about an interview with Victor Davis Hanson? Or an exposé on George Soros? It is all there for the taking on Liberty Nation’s ROKU channel. Just search for Liberty Nation, download, and go. For those who want to watch what they want, when they want – ROKU cannot be beaten.
RUMBLE – A conservative alternative to YouTube, Rumble is a great platform. Want to watch Dinesh D’Souza or Dan Bongino? Just hop on over to Rumble. It is cleaner and much more user-friendly than YouTube and does not suspend, throttle back, or otherwise censor its content. Recently, Bongino invested in the platform, which tells you all you need to know about its solid conservative leanings.
YouTube – Without a doubt, YouTube has leftist leanings, but it is still the big kahuna of television streaming. Until Rumble came along, it had this market locked up. Most solid conservatives still host their programs on YouTube.
Podcast World – So many podcasts, so little time. The good thing is that many offer videocasts. For instance, Liberty Nation includes videocasts of The Uprising Podcast, The Rabbit Hole Podcast, and Liberty Nation Radio in television form. No Agenda with Adam Curry and John C. Dvorak is immensely popular, as entertaining as it gets, a wild ride, and certainly worth checking out. Of course, there are myriad other conservative podcasts you can tune in to as conservatives heavily populate the podcast world.
Fox Faves
There are still many solidly conservative options on Fox worth watching: Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson, Laura Ingraham, and Judge Jeanine Pirro on the news side, and Stuart Varney, Lou Dobbs, and Maria Bartiromo on the Fox Business Network. For online news, check out Liberty Nation, the Media Research Center’s CNSNews and Newsbusters, and many others you can find on a superb news aggregator called Whatfinger, the number one alternative to Drudge Report. There you can find large and small conservative sites, including the Daily Caller and Breitbart – all of which are bold and unafraid.
So, life does exist beyond the Fox newsroom, and all it takes is a little effort to download, bookmark, and install a few of these alternatives, and you are good to go.
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Read more from Leesa K. Donner.
