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Back on May 6, L.A. Times Editor John Carroll used a speech at the University of Orgeon to lambaste Fox News as a polluted journalism source, and its chairman and creative force Roger Ailes as a smear artist "from the netherworld of attack politics." Today, Ailes fired back on the Wall Street Journal op-ed page, demanding an apology and calling Carroll "elite, arrogant, condescending, self-serving, self-righteous, biased and wrong-headed." The Times, he wrote, "is becoming less relevant in people's lives."
Mr. Carroll obviously did not feel particularly restricted by facts, truth or sources. In an effort to use guilt by association, he compared me to Sen. Joseph McCarthy without evidence, sourcing or analysis. An old, cheap trick used by weak writers and thinkers.Mr. Carroll essentially announced that the reason Fox News Channel is the No. 1 cable news network and is gaining viewers is because the American people are stupid and gullible. In addition, he deliberately confused our highly rated news analysis and opinion shows like Bill O'Reilly with our hard news coverage. Mr. Carroll cites not a single example of what he calls "pseudojournalism" from our actual news coverage...
Mr. Carroll wants to talk about Bill O'Reilly only because Bill O'Reilly has criticized John Carroll and the Los Angeles Times for its well-known and admitted biased journalism.Mr. Carroll's pathetic attempt to smear Fox News Channel will only drive his paper's circulation down, as it should. Fox News Channel's audience in Los Angeles is increasing daily. The Los Angeles Times is becoming less relevant in people's lives, so Mr. Carroll is trying to flog health back to a newspaper by attacking television news. Most Americans, of course, get their news from television. In fact, the Fox News Channel today has 53% of the audience share of cable news. CNN and MSNBC divide up the rest. According to Mr. Carroll, that proves most Americans are therefore stupid and gullible. It's that elite, arrogant, condescending, self-serving, self-righteous, biased and wrong-headed view of Americans that causes viewers and readers to distrust media people like John Carroll.
He owes the fine journalists at the Fox News Channel an apology for his insulting comments. However, we will never see that. He treated Fox News Channel worse in his newspaper than he treated the terrorists who recently beheaded an American. But of course, he sees Fox News as more dangerous.
WSJ link via Romenesko, where the letters are a-rollin' in.
Previously on L.A. Observed: Carroll slams Fox in speech, Explosive full text of Carroll talk, Carroll redux