Fox News ups war of words with CNN: ‘This guy has a screw loose!’

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Earlier this week, a CNN reporter made a series of very pointed allegations about a peer at Fox News and an over-hyped report that took a simple facilities tour and turned it into Libyan forces using journalists as “human shields.”

“Wolf, this [human shields] allegation is outrageous and it’s absolutely hypocritical,” reporter Nic Robertson told CNN host Wolf Blitzer on Monday. “When you come to somewhere like Libya, you expect lies and deceit from a dictatorship here. You don’t expect it from the other journalists.”

Even though criticism of the report itself appeared valid, Fox News isn’t taking the slap at their reportage lying down.

Fox News reporter Steve Harrigan even went so far as to suggest his critic “has a screw loose” and did not understand his working conditions.

“I can stand outside my balcony and report what I see,” Harrigan told Huffington Post. “I can talk to people about what they see. [...] But for someone to say I’m lazy who doesn’t know me, who’s not in our working condition, who doesn’t know our schedule. [...] This guy has a screw loose!”

Similarly, Fox News anchor Jennifer Griffin gave an interview to Mediabistro in an attempt to explain her side in the “human shields” report debacle.

Fox News claims their source on the story was the British military, and that the presence of reporters is what stopped the launch of file Tomahawk missiles during recent bombardments on the oil-rich nation.

Reached by Huffington Post writer Jack Mirkinson, CNN refused to comment on the rhetorical flare-up.

The video below is from CNN, broadcast Monday, March 21, 2011.

Updated from an original version for clarity.