Watching Fox Makes You Stupid

Class! Let us consider two documents. First this memo from Fox News Washington managing editor Bill Sammon:

From: Sammon, Bill
To: 169 -SPECIAL REPORT; 036 -FOX.WHU; 054 -FNSunday; 030 -Root (FoxNews.Com); 050 -Senior Producers; 051 -Producers; 069 -Politics; 005 -Washington
Cc: Clemente, Michael; Stack, John; Wallace, Jay; Smith, Sean
Sent: Tue Dec 08 12:49:51 2009
Subject: Given the controversy over the veracity of climate change data…

…we should refrain from asserting that the planet has warmed (or cooled) in any given period without IMMEDIATELY pointing out that such theories are based upon data that critics have called into question. It is not our place as journalists to assert such notions as facts, especially as this debate intensifies.

Second, this excerpt from a World Public Opinion.org study, "Misinformation and the 2010 Electorate." It shows the percent of respondents who--falsely!--believe that most scientists think climate change is not occurring or are split on the matter, grouped by how often they consume news from various sources:

Those best informed on the subject are those who never watch Fox; those worst informed are those who watch Fox the most. Moral: Don't watch Fox. Class dismissed.

--Paul Rauber