"Fox & Friends" has shifted in subtle -- but unmistakeable -- ways since the election to prop up President Donald Trump.
Trump has always been on friendly terms with the show, which he frequently called in for interviews as a candidate, and he praises and thanks the show's hosts on Twitter from the White House -- but a new Vox analysis shows how the Fox News program has served the president's agenda.
"The show’s hosts were always good at making Trump feel like they were on his side, but once he won the presidency, 'Fox & Friends' ramped up this rhetoric, whether consciously or not," writes Vox reporter Alvin Chang. "They started using 'we' statements with a lot more frequency, hinting that his goals and his identity were somehow tied to theirs."
The transcript analysis found that "Fox & Friends" hosts advise the president on air more frequently since the election -- with a 50-percent jump in imperative statements.
This has been accompanied by hosts assuring guests and viewers about future events, Vox reported, with a massive spike in predictions that something in particular is "going to" happen.
Those shifts have essentially turned the program into a "brainstorming session" with the president, Vox found.
"It seems as though the show's primary goal is no longer to talk to an audience — but rather to talk to the president," Chang wrote.
"'Fox & Friends' is a show about how Trump could best fare given the circumstances, but it’s done under the guise of news coverage," he added. "It creates enemies and allies based on this framing, and it chalks up wins and losses based on these goals."
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