I'm defining "center" in terms of the American electorate. Clearly, CNN and the old-line networks are well to the left of center and Fox is pretty close to it, judging by the ratings.

I don't doubt, either, that there's plenty of power in owning a media outlet and that the politicians want to get the best possible treatment. I disagree, though, that Murdock or anyone else has the power to anoint winners. If he does, he's being a little too stingy with it given the closeness of the last two presidential elections.

LOL!!!!

But Fox has become what Murdoch's tabloid "The Sun" is in the UK. You can't win the big election without their endorsement anymore. Why do you think the Clintons have been sucking up to Murdoch so much?

Murdoch did it for Thatcher (multiples), Major and then switched teams and did it for Blair (multiples) and can do it for anyone else he sees fit. The Sun will back Cameron next time out - sorry Brown, you're roasted.

The McCain/Gulliani ticket may well be headed for a fait accomplis but they're well behind on Murdoch-smoozing. If they don't catch up, the GOP will lose in '08, no matter what else happens.

Regards, C

Its flagship news show, Special Report with Brit Hume, is quite good. It's morning show is awful but not because it's propaganda but because the hosts suck. The thing with Shepard Smith is pretty lame, although it's more tabloidy than GOP propaganda. (At least it was when last I saw it, which was well over a year ago.)

Its talk shows are a mixed bag, although none my cup of tea. O'Reilly is a pseudo-populist windbag, Van Susteren is a lawyer-cum-gossip-show-host, and Hannity is, well, Hannity. But those are opinionated yell-fests not much different from what one might find on the competition. Certainly, they're no worse than Hardball or Joe Scarborough or Keith Olbermann.

Well, one would expect that of the Republicans. It's their free-market improvement on Pravda.

But your first point doesn't pass the laugh test. Fox News is all about electing Republicans, and I really don't think you should put your (ample) credibility on the line by pretending otherwise. I spend plenty of time trapped in public places where Fox is blaring, and it's a joke.

First, I'd say Fox News and Air America are hardly comparable. One's a news outlet that merely leans further to the center than its competition while the other is a network that makes no bones about being a liberal propaganda machine aiming at electing Democrats.

Second, Fox is a profitable business and, indeed, the number one cable news network. Air America has been a dismal failure.

(Never heard it, actually, & never had any reason to believe I was missing anything.)

They're not journalists.

John R. Lott Jr., the dean's visiting professor at SUNY-Binghamton, served as an unpaid expert witness for the plaintiffs in the McCain-Feingold case.Bradley A. Smith, chairman of the Center for Competitive Politics, is a law professor at Capital University Law School and a former chairman of the Federal Election Commission.

Otherwise, I've dubbed their argument "absurd," although acknowledging that the problems they point out vis-a-vis CFR have merit.

Here's my proposal for campaign finance reform:

1. Eliminate all contribution limits
2. Re-instate and reupholster the fairness doctrine.
3. Make it illegal for broadcast media (at least) to take money for political advertising.

TV could show as much political advertising as they wished but they'd need to give equivalent time in equivalent slots to opposing candidates. And they couldn't take money for it.

since politicians need to raise tons of cash

So how about we fix the original problem, then we won't need to worry about campaign finance laws.

I do believe those partisan hacks journalists just made an argument for saying FoxNews is a scam so that Rupert Murdoch can get around campaign finance rules. (Mind you, we Brits are used to it - his newspapers have endorsed every successful candidate for PM since at least 1979. No Murdoch, no victory.) The real beauty of it is...it makes profits that can then be pumped into even more campaigning! Genius. Why didn't Air America think of that?

Regards, C