On Election Night 2020, Fox News scooped the competition when its decision desk, under editor Chris Stirewalt, called Arizona for Democratic now-President Joe Biden — a bombshell that confirmed how much of a swing state Arizona, once a deep red hotbed of conservatism, has evolved. Other media outlets subsequently confirmed Fox News’ reporting.
Fox’s decision desk was ahead of other media outlets when it came to Arizona, and Political Editor Stirewalt was the person who, more than anyone, Fox News had to thank. But instead of giving Stirewalt a promotion, they fired him.
Stirewalt candidly addresses his termination in his new book, “Broken News: Why the Media Rage Machine Divides America and How to Fight Back,” which has an August 23 release date on Amazon.
According to a book excerpt published in the New York Times, Stirewalt is vehemently critical of Fox News for promoting conspiracy theories in the weeks following the 2020 election.
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In his memoir, Stirewalt alleged the network is playing a key role in the radicalization of the U.S. right, accusing it of spreading "black-helicopter-level paranoia and hatred."
He writes that during Trump's term in office, the network fed viewers what they wanted to hear, provoking the firestorm of criticism he encountered from Republicans after the Arizona call.
Stirewalt also specifically accuses his former employer of telling far-right viewers what they want to hear — regardless of whether it is factual.
"Even in the four years since the previous presidential election, Fox viewers had become even more accustomed to flattery and less willing to hear news that challenged their expectations," Stirewalt pens. "Me serving up green beans to viewers who had been spoon-fed ice cream sundaes for years came as a terrible shock to their systems.”
Stirewalt, in “Broken News,” writes, “Tucker Carlson is rich and famous. Yet he regularly rails about the 'big, legacy media outlets.' Guests denounce the 'corporate media' on his show, and Fox's CEO calls Carlson 'brave' for discussing controversial topics. Yet somehow, nobody even giggles. It does not take any kind of journalistic courage to pump out night after night exactly what your audience wants to hear.”
Former President Donald Trump and many other Republicans angrily railed against Fox News for calling Arizona for Biden, claiming that Arizona was stolen from him because of widespread voter fraud — a false claim that has been debunked time and time again.
Fox News has denied that Stirewalt was fired for offending Trump and his supporters; they characterized the termination as a matter of corporate restructuring.
“A network representative told Insider in January 2021 that Stirewalt had parted company with them as part of a restructuring process," the New York Times reported.
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