Fox News Sunday - Chris Wallace interviews Jon Stewart

[Going Commando]

Call it the Charlie Sheen effect?

Maybe I'm more cynical about FOX News than you in terms of its purpose. It just feels too much like an insincere circus to me. I don't even think they take themselves seriously. I think their only real motivation is maintaining their death grip on the share of the market that is the dogmatic right viewership.

[JimboDaMan]

Depends. I know after I finish a story and send it to the producer, they often make edits without seeking my opinion or approval. Often, it's done for time constraints. Sometimes, it's done for technical reasons (like bad sound quality). Now, Wallace is big enough that if he wants he probably can review and demand that stuff be put back in, but it's pretty common for the producers and editors to create the final cut without the reporter/interviewer being in the room. I know there have been times where I was very upset at some of the cuts of my own pieces.

I dunno. Maybe with the working stiffs that's how it works. But Wallace is a name, a face, an image. It's likely that Fox has him on for a specific reason, as a credible counterbalance to the Beckish stuff. And then, in an interview all about bias and credibility, they make edits that directly undercut Wallace's credibility? I'm wondering after these antics if Wallace can't get final approval, how long could he last at Fox letting them consume his reputation.

For the record, it was a fascinating interview and I was surprised how long the sparring went on. And then Fox managed to confirm my doubts about them by cutting out the parts they couldn't defend.