The hosts of "Fox and Friends" were widely ridiculed on Monday morning for their interview with Senate candidate Sharron Angle in which probing -- or, more importantly, factually-based -- questions seemed to be sorely lacking.
Notably, the hosts stated as fact that Angle was a newcomer to the political scene (she's not) and had earned the endorsement of Sarah Palin (she hasn't). It was enough to cause some quizzical and critical takes from the Nevada press, including the local Fox affiliate, which wondered why the network had done such little preparation for the interview (Palin actually gave a "shout-out" to the defeated candidate in the race, Sue Lowden).
Now the Democratic National Committee is also weighing in -- though not by calling out the show's hosts for their softball questions but by slamming Angle herself for misleading viewers by not correcting the record.
"She may think it serves her to be less than straight, but Angle left the wrong impression with Nevada's Fox News viewers. Sarah Palin didn't endorse her. And why would she? Not even someone as far out of the mainstream as Sarah Palin shares Sharron Angle's belief that we should kill Medicare and Social Security and reinstate the prohibition of alcohol," said DNC National Press Secretary Hari Sevugan.
Angle, of course, has some responsibility to make sure her interviewers are providing the correct information -- though the job of ensuring factual accuracy really does belong to the interviewer.
Ironically, the Tea Party candidate went on "Fox and Friends" because it represented a soft landing after what has been a shaky general election campaign rollout so far. But the meekness of the questions may have drawn more negative attention than had she not appeared on the program at all.
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
Already contributed? Log in to hide these messages.