SURVEY: Daily Show/Colbert Viewers Most Knowledgable, Fox News Viewers Rank Lowest
SURVEY: Daily Show/Colbert Viewers Most Knowledgable, Fox News Viewers Rank Lowest
A new study by the Pew Research Study shows that viewers of the Daily Show and the Colbert Report have the highest knowledge of national and international affairs, while Fox News viewers rank nearly dead last:
Despite significant technology shifts, however, Pew found that “today’s citizens are about as able to name their leaders, and are about as aware of major news events, as was the public nearly 20 years ago.”
The results about Fox News echo findings of previous surveys. In 2003, University of Maryland researchers studied the public’s belief in three false claims — that Iraq possessed WMD, that Iraq was involved in 9/11, and that there was international support for the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.
The researchers stated, “The extent of Americans’ misperceptions vary significantly depending on their source of news. Those who receive most of their news from Fox News are more likely than average to have misperceptions.” Fox News viewers were “three times more likely than the next nearest network to hold all three misperceptions.”
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so what happens now, presidential race ads on Comedy Central? hey, if they’re good enough for the Super Bowl…
April 16th, 2007 at 10:01 amThis certainly explains why Fox News viewers vote Republican: they have very little knowledge about U.S. and foreign affairs.
Ignorance is bliss, and Bush’s base.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:02 amSome of us appear to have a different reality then the rest. Group think is devastating and never good except when revenge, mass murder and the like are the intent!
April 16th, 2007 at 10:03 amThis doesn’t surprise me at all. The past year in political discussions with my FNC watching father is a perfect indicator. He will not admit that he is influenced by and gets his news ONLY from FNC. When I told him the Pentagon released a report debunking the Bush administration claims on pre-war Iraq, he scoffed. When I SHOWED him the report, his response was, “Well, let’s say this is true.” No, this is the Pentagon report. Let’s not say it’s true. Let’s acknowledge the truth. We’re not talking GOP bullet points here. This is a factual report that is understood by 99% of the populace.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:04 amI love watching Jon Stewart, but Colbert, not so much.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:04 amSince Gorrendo Revolver dismissed Colbert and Stewart as insignificant, what does that make him.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:07 amI stopped watching TV years ago.
I got tired of the endless feminist propaganda bashing men (misandry) ….
In fact, the TV is used for nothing but propaganda.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:07 amNo shit, Sherlock. I didn’t need a Pew Research Study to tell me that. An ninth grade stoner has more intelligence than a Fox News watcher.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:08 amIsn’t the OReilly factor on Fox News?
Well-informed audiences come from cable (Daily Show/Colbert Report, O’Reilly Factor)
April 16th, 2007 at 10:09 amHate to be a party pooper, but didn’t it also show that viewers/listeners of O’Reilly and Limbaugh had knowledge levels similar to those of Colbert/DS? It seems like format is a more important indicator. Come on guys, let’s not be like the wingnuts and play loose with statistics, or in Franken jargon, no weasels!
April 16th, 2007 at 10:09 amLOL no surprise > FOX viewers are certified brain-dead!
April 16th, 2007 at 10:10 amOf course the Fox News viewers will never see this report.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:10 amJake……….give me a break. Jon Stewart? Is that comment just an attempt to fool people into listening to all your other swill? No cigar. People are a lot smarter on TP that you are…..sorry
April 16th, 2007 at 10:10 amDid we really need a formal study to know that Fox viewers are ignorant?
If you can watch Fox for more than five minutes and not realize that it is total garbage then you really are a dummy.
Fox viewers equal ingnorant voters.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:10 amJon Stewart is grand ….watching Colbert attempting to be funny is like watching Will Farrel attempting drama …ugh
April 16th, 2007 at 10:11 amI love watching Jon Stewart, but Colbert, not so much.
Comment by Jake
Of course, the Colbert character is too much like a neocon troll and in its parody is very discomforting for a real troll. So, Colbert is on the Ignore List.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:11 amThe sheeptards need a leader and Faux “news” is full of em.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:12 amDoes anyone have the list of questions?
April 16th, 2007 at 10:14 amMakes sense. As a kid, I started paying attention to politics in order to better understand Mad Magazine.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:17 aminteresting… limpball listeners have the highest percentage of knowledge of u.s. deaths in iraq… that did surprise me…
April 16th, 2007 at 10:18 amtoo bad the daily show kids aren’t aware of those numbers… not really surprising, but their peers are being wasted…
hellinabucket > they asked FOX viewers to show where Iraq is located and they marked the map where Mexico is located > lol.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:18 amThe danger is that honest, legitimate journalism has been bastardized and tainted by the Faux “News” broadcasts. Many people simply assume there is no real news today-that every story has a slant to it, because Faux and Limbaloney and Coulter have repeated that nonsense for years. They accuse the “mainstream media”(read-anything that doesn’t hew neoconservative in its coverage) of slanting the news, when in reality, the only real spin is coming from them.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:19 amDoes anybody on Jake’s childish “ignore list” want to tell me what a lying sack of cowering, war-mongering, neocon Nazi traitor he is.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:21 amWhat an upside-down world … we lefties watch Colbert and Stewart for our news, and FOX for a good laugh (while right-wingers watch it to confirm their beliefs, I guess).
April 16th, 2007 at 10:22 amPersonally, though, I find both Colbert’s dead-on aping of modern hypocrisy AND FOX’s distortions more tragic than comic.
Putin moves against Kasparov and the ‘white knight’ revolution
Garry Kasparov detained for protesting. The entire world is headed down the sh*tter when stuff like this becomes the news of the day! I know that the citizens of Russia have the same problem as the citizens in the US…
Militarization, Resources, FEAR
April 16th, 2007 at 10:23 amDoes anyone have the list of questions?
Comment by hellinabucket — April 16, 2007 @ 10:14 am
click on the “study” link at the beginning of the story above…
April 16th, 2007 at 10:24 amWhere is the percentage of Olbermann watchers?
April 16th, 2007 at 10:24 am“… Fox News Viewers Rank Lowest”
April 16th, 2007 at 10:30 amIs that really a surprise to anyone?
JAKE – poster Baboo is on Afghanistan thread talking to YOU, or about you whatever. I don’t think he’s on your ignore list. What are you afraid of.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:30 amWhere is the percentage of Olbermann watchers?
Comment by Proud Dem — April 16, 2007 @ 10:24 am
He doesn’t have enough viewers to count.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:35 amrabid…this study shows it’s all about quality and not quantity of viewers.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:40 amRepublicans and Democrats are equally likely to be represented in the high-knowledge group. But significantly fewer Republicans (26%) than Democrats (31%) fall into the third of the public that knows the least.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:41 amwell… duh!
April 16th, 2007 at 10:42 amrabid…this study shows it’s all about quality and not quantity of viewers.
Comment by Lupeyg2
It was just a joke. However OReilly, who I believe is on the same time as Olbermann did very well here.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:43 amNationwide 35%.
That means some 105 million americans answered at least 15 of the 23 questions. That means that some 195 (65%) million americans dont have a 15/23 = 65% knowledge of world affairs.
But then, US government seems to meddle in other countries business all the time. Do americans really know what their government do? mmmm…
April 16th, 2007 at 10:45 amHowever OReilly, who I believe is on the same time as Olbermann did very well here.
Comment by rabidbunny
No accounting for taste, I guess.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:46 amI take it no one noticed that Rush Limbaugh’s audience and O’Reilly’s audience were also way up there, eh? interesting……………….
CNN was also ranked pretty low…..
now the question is, what did Pew use to rank these….I’ll like to see the questions and answers.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:46 amya mean bumper stickers aren’t news?
April 16th, 2007 at 10:46 amhttp://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070416/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iran_nuclear;_ylt=ArEkapGI0QyqEksTuhau4wWs0NUE
Iran defies sanctions thru increased nuclear armament. bush is slowly in the position to answer the question whether hes sure its been iraQ with WMDS and not iraN.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:50 am#36
now the question is, what did Pew use to rank these….I’ll like to see the questions and answers.
Comment by Captain Kirk — April 16, 2007 @ 10:46 am
Click on the link botard. That is, if you can’t read the top of the chart (which contains the questions-name sunnis, identify Libby, etc. etc.). Are all neocons this dumb? Let me answer myself. Why yes they are.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:58 amIran defies sanctions thru increased nuclear armament. bush is slowly in the position to answer the question whether hes sure its been iraQ with WMDS and not iraN.
You are making a BIG assumption there, ccokz. Nowhere in that article does it say it is increasing nuclear armament. You exemplify the right’s “misuse” of words to make a point. Not good in an argument.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:00 amI stopped watching TV years ago.
I got tired of the endless feminist propaganda bashing men (misandry) ….
In fact, the TV is used for nothing but propaganda.
Comment by jonny
Jonny, you ignorant slut.
I’m not defending television or advertisers, here. I don’t watch television either. Understand that.
The man-bashing you see on the tee vee is created and distributed by ADVERTISERS not feminists.
Most people can tell the difference.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:01 amFrom the article, 10% answered 20 questions out of 26 (3 were not directly related to World affair knowledge). So, some 30 million americans could tell what the US government`s foreign policy is or affects.
No wonder why US government engage in some many conflicts worldwide…cuz US general population doesnt know sh*t.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:05 amNo surprise here. The mission of Fake News is to mislead and activate the hayseeds, bigots and fundamentalists, and this they have accomplished.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:07 amccokz sez:
ccokz, can you please explain to the group the difference between fuel-grade uranium and weapons-grade uranium (assuming, of course, hat your were aware that that there is a difference)?
April 16th, 2007 at 11:10 amNot surprising. When all you watch is government-run media, you won’t be very knowledgeable.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:11 am#42
Fake News is to mislead and activate the hayseeds, bigots and fundamentalists, and this they have accomplished.
Comment by Michael C — April 16, 2007 @ 11:07 am
Exactamundo. Just look at how the msm is now turning it’s attention from Imus to blaming rappers. It reminds me of Faux news during Katrina when that cocksucker O’Lielly was blaming poor people (white and blacks -but mostly blacks) for not getting out of New Orleans in time. Instead of focusing on our own government’s late response to Katrina. Now ain’t that special. You watch the msm spin the whole Imus thing and somehow rappers will get blamed. That or video games. Fuck, I swear to God sometimes I think we live in bizzaro world.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:15 amA new study by the Pew Research Study shows that viewers of the Daily Show and the Colbert Report have the highest knowledge of national and international affairs, while Fox News viewers rank nearly dead last:
That’s not accurate. What the survey found was that of the best informed Americans, those who relied heavily on FOX News were less well-informed than those relying on the Daily Show or Rush Limbaugh. Which doesn’t mean what you want it to mean. They are still better informed than the other 2/3s of Americans who didn’t answer at least 15 questions correctly.
And, interestingly, only FOX News was broken out as a cable news source. It would be fascinating to see how people who watch CNN and MSNBC did.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:18 amFine, TP. Don’t put up my f*cking comment.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:18 amAnd, interestingly, only FOX News was broken out as a cable news source. It would be fascinating to see how people who watch CNN and MSNBC did.
CNN was listed, MSNBC was not.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:23 amI notice that CNN viewers are not that muchbetter thatn Fox Viewers… CNN you used to be so good… better step it up…
April 16th, 2007 at 11:24 am#45 You are wrong. CNN was also looked at or do you also have problems reading charts. CNN did slighlty better than Fox. MSNBC was not mentioned. 3 places up above Fox news is cnn. Put on your reading glasses. Not that CNN is any greater than Fox. The msm in general sucks.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:25 amIt was just a joke. However OReilly, who I believe is on the same time as Olbermann did very well here.
Comment by rabidbunny — April 16, 2007 @ 10:43 am
Why don’t you go thump your bunny chest at Red State or where ever you rabid neocons go to gloat.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:28 amAre all neocons this dumb? Let me answer myself. Why yes they are.
Comment by Topper Harley — April 16, 2007 @ 10:58 am
I believe you speak for ALL OF US. Now maybe Captain Quirk and rabidrummy could go f**k themselves or each other, whatever.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:31 amTrue, CNN was listed. MSNBC was not. Rush Limbaugh was listed. No liberal radio personality was listed. Is it safe to assume that listeners to Limbaugh are so much smarter than Air America listeners? I don’t expect to see that listed here. And FOX News watchers still scored above average compared to other groups. My argument is still accurate: the lede for this post is mischaracterizing the findings of the survey.
The key to this section of the report is that the best informed Americans use, on average, seven sources for news and information. Not one or two.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:32 amWhy don’t you go thump your bunny chest at Red State or where ever you rabid neocons go to gloat.
Comment by Shane
I understand you have a problem with another point of view. That is okay, people that only watch Fox News have the same problem.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:32 amWhen all you watch is government-run media, you won’t be very knowledgeable.
Comment by Shawn — April 16, 2007 @ 11:11 am
Government-run, big business sponsored news compounds the distraction from reality factor of today’s news.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:36 amThis poll is horseshit. Anyone who regularly get their “news” from Rush OxyMoron’s radio show is a retard. I’ve talked to many Rush listeners over the years. Without exception, they are all completely misinformed on just about everything (although without exception, they always believe they’re more informed than anyone else). Many of them I’ve talked to continue to believe that Clinton “murdered Vince Foster.” Indeed, to this day, Rush continues to hint of dark conspiracies in the Foster case. Most Rush listeners believe that WMDs were found in Iraq. They believe Saddam was behind 9/11. They thought it was absolutely hilarious when Rush called then-13-year-old Chelsea Clinton a “dog.” They thought it was a real hoot when Rush mocked and mimicked Michael J. Fox’s Parkinson’s disease symptoms. They are sick, deluded fucks.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:37 amThere seems to be an overestimation of the intellectual/educational capacities of the 30 percent who still support Bush. These are the people who don’t get jokes. These are people who suffer from arrested development – perpetual children in search of a parent figure. It’s no wonder they remain unaware of the world beyond their horizons.
As for Rush Gasbag and B.O. (not so much B.O. – I can’t figure out how he ranked where he did), the relatively intelligent/educated “conservative” movement is gradually distancing themselves from this looser Administration. The smart/learned rat jumps ship before it sinks completely. However, massively inflamed egos and unrealistic estimations of their status in society will never let them learn a lesson from the experience. Middle class “conservative” hatred towards the social programs that made them middle class in the first place is an example of their inability to progress.
That said, it’s still 30%, and that’s dangerous.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:43 amunderstand you have a problem with another point of view. That is okay, people that only watch Fox News have the same problem.
Comment by rabidbunny — April 16, 2007 @ 11:32 am
What you call “point of view” I call “intentional blindness.” And if I believed in the things you believe in I would be posting with like minded folks to try and find a viable presidential candidate.
Why are you here? Why do care more about the Republican Party than America? If you weren’t a Bush Hack you’d be trying to improve your party.
Who pays your troll salary?
Go ahead, give us your “point of view” on these questions.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:45 amWhat you call “point of view†I call “intentional blindness.†And if I believed in the things you believe in I would be posting with like minded folks to try and find a viable presidential candidate.
Why are you here? Why do care more about the Republican Party than America? If you weren’t a Bush Hack you’d be trying to improve your party.
Who pays your troll salary?
Go ahead, give us your “point of view†on these questions.
Comment by Shane
As for the viable presidential candidate, I don’t see either side with a viable option. You better get to work on that for the left instead of fighting with trolls.
As for caring about the republican party more than America? Where have I shown that? I would love to see where I have posted anything that is pro Bush or pro republican party.
I don’t get paid any troll salary-I do it for the love of the game.
So continue to keep your blinders on and believe that the left is always correct and the right is always wrong, but we both know you are no better than the Fox News people.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:54 amshane, shane….so much hatred for those that you disagree with….you are the perfect example of what a true extreme liberal is….ignorant, hateful, closed minded, a moron, a fool, hate anyone that disagrees with you, etc, etc.
you are a sad excuse of a human being…..i pity you child, i truly do.
it has to kill you that O’Reilly watchers and Rush LImbaugh listeners are actually pretty well informed individuals, eh?
Now, it makes no sense that Foxnews watchers would score so low, yet O’Reilly watchers, who carries most of Foxnews watchers scored so high. I smell a set up here……
another thing, you extreme wacko liberals might want to look into who watches Foxnews, Independents are a huge part of their audience and there are also quite a few Democrats…..go figure, right extreme wacked out liberals.
April 16th, 2007 at 12:02 pmThis one is way too easy. O’Reilly viewers were comparable to Daily/Colbert. The main audience of all three shows is political junkies, watching the show that matches their views. Obviously, they will know the most about current political events. The average person who wants no more to do with politics than is absolutely necessary will obviously not know as much about it. Lack of interest doesn’t necessarily signify lack of intelligence. As for the overall ranking of Fox News, it was comparable with Network News, Local News and, oddly enough, “Online News Discussion Blogs!”
Hate to be a party pooper, but didn’t it also show that viewers/listeners of O’Reilly and Limbaugh had knowledge levels similar to those of Colbert/DS?…
Comment by Kougar — April 16, 2007 @ 10:09 am
At least there was one fair comment from a progressive.
April 16th, 2007 at 12:05 pmBWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAA!
April 16th, 2007 at 12:07 pmFox News=IDIOTS!!!!
Thanks Katy, I didn’t see that link earlier.
Why should any “News” venue also provide a point of view to the news? If a political ideology is used to filter the news prior to getting it to the masses then it stops becoming news and turns into view points with angle to support one side and attack another.
“Other’s” interests have trumped the american’s right to unbiased information.
April 16th, 2007 at 12:08 pmcc,
good comments and observations…..
so, if we follow what most of the extreme liberals are saying here…..
bloggers=idiots….
including those that come into thinkprogress.org, right? oh, oh…..
and yes, people who only watch local newscasts or morning shows also scored low.
April 16th, 2007 at 12:10 pmBWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAA!
Fox News=IDIOTS!!!!
Comment by whiteyfresh
That says it all for this thread, doesn’t it whitey? :-D
April 16th, 2007 at 12:11 pmCaptain Crock: ” it makes no sense that Foxnews watchers would score so low…”
Oh, come on. During the 2004 election, a number of different polls showed that FOX viewers were much more likely to belive Saddam Hussein was directly involved with the 9-11 attack. The administration usually restricts itself to appearances on FOX. FOX is there to advance the republican agenda according to their own CEO.
Moreover, we see the effects of FOX propaganda every day in the form of misinformed, distorted opinions expressed by people like you.
April 16th, 2007 at 12:12 pmbloggers=idiots….
including those that come into thinkprogress.org, right? oh, oh…..
and yes, people who only watch local newscasts or morning shows also scored low.
Comment by Captain Kirk — April 16, 2007 @ 12:10 pm
I went back and checked my post to be sure, and, nope, I never said or hinted at your bloggers=idiots comment. I merely pointed out that they scored very nearly what Fox viewers did. I never have and never will address anyone in that manner because it would be unkind and would only serve to hamper discussion.
April 16th, 2007 at 12:24 pmAs for the overall ranking of Fox News, it was comparable with Network News, Local News and, oddly enough, “Online News Discussion Blogs!â€
The biggest thing we can get from this is that people that watch OReilly and listen to Limbaugh are much more informed than the people that come to thinkprogress.org or other blogs.
April 16th, 2007 at 12:27 pmOh, come on. During the 2004 election, a number of different polls showed that FOX viewers were much more likely to belive Saddam Hussein was directly involved with the 9-11 attack. The administration usually restricts itself to appearances on FOX. FOX is there to advance the republican agenda according to their own CEO.
No different that the NY Times.
April 16th, 2007 at 12:32 pmrapidbunny: “No different that the NY Times.”
The NYT and the Washington Post were some of the strongest proponents of the administration’s illegal war in Iraq. Read Gene Lyon’s “Fools for Scandal.” It’s all about how the NYT invented the phony “Whitewater scandal.” In addition, please review the performance of the NYT during the 2000 election. They pounded Gore mercilessly. Made up stories about him. Invented slurs that live on today even though they were completely untrue.
My point is that the NYT is definitely NOT pushing a Democratic agenda, but Rupert Murdock actually admitted publically that he was pushing a Repub. agenda.
April 16th, 2007 at 12:40 pmI don’t get paid any troll salary-I do it for the love of the game.
Comment by rabidbunny — April 16, 2007 @ 11:54 am
Just the way we love bantering with you. It’s like target practice for us.
I’m glad you’re happy with your Republican presidential candidates. I wouldn’t want you to change a thing. Or are you trying to say you’re an independent like the rest of the trolls?
April 16th, 2007 at 12:43 pmComment by Captain Kirk — April 16, 2007 @ 12:02 pm
I am a PROUD EXTREME LIBERAL. Want to make something of it.
I hate that you Republicans have tried to destroy every thing that this country has stood for to make money for the elite 1% of the population. So either your a 1%er or you’re an idiot. Which is it?
Oh and I’m still waiting, like 3 weeks, for that info on your military service. Maybe Jake can give you pointers on how to steal some other vets bio.
Lots of people disagree with me. In fact another poster said you weren’t fit to sleep with the pigs and I said you were. And we agreed to disagree.
Again, that military info or an admission that you lied would be great.
April 16th, 2007 at 12:51 pmI’m glad you’re happy with your Republican presidential candidates. I wouldn’t want you to change a thing. Or are you trying to say you’re an independent like the rest of the trolls?
Do you even read what people post? Here is what I said:
As for the viable presidential candidate, I don’t see either side with a viable option
Please learn to comprehend, it will make you look that much better.
April 16th, 2007 at 12:54 pmMy point is that the NYT is definitely NOT pushing a Democratic agenda, but Rupert Murdock actually admitted publically that he was pushing a Repub. agenda.
Perhaps not a democratic agenda, but certainly a liberal agenda.
April 16th, 2007 at 1:05 pmScary that viewers of O’Reilly’s show tended to score pretty high too. I guess it’s the “always tuned to Fox” that don’t score as well as the “only tune to O’Reilly” foxers. Sort of interesting seeing that difference. O’s fans really do pay attention, at least, to the misinformation his mouth spews… Scary.
April 16th, 2007 at 1:05 pmEAT MY SHORTS!!!
April 16th, 2007 at 1:06 pmDID YOU SPOT THE LIE?
The title says “Fox News Viewers Rank Lowest”. However, there are two groups ranked lower in the High Knowledge group. They only ranked lowest in the Identify Liggy group.
Also, ranking only slightly better is the Online News Discussion Blog group.
This shows one of the main problems in politics. Leftist, liberals or progressive voters will read this article and say Fox viewers are stupid, which is something they already believe. Right-wing, conservatives will spot the lie and hate the leftist, liberal, progressives for lying.
Check the facts, discuss, disagree and try to figure out what is best for America. It is neither the Republicans or the Democrats. Don’t be a pawn for the politicians, bloggers or media outlets who play on your fears, prejudices, ignorance and emotions.
April 16th, 2007 at 1:17 pm@ 73, The survey measured comprehension, so “misinformation†wouldn’t have hurt O’reilly’s numbers in this poll. #10 said it dead on, this is about format. Traditional news formats are watched by idgets, but to turn this into a fox news bashfest and to interpret the statistics like the article and the VAST majority of these comments are is BULLSHIT. I’m not a republican, I bash misleading propaganda whether it is from Fox News or Think Progress. If you all really want progress you wouldn’t put up with an article that conveniently leaves so much out of the interpretation.
April 16th, 2007 at 1:21 pmPablo,
sadly enough, most of the extreme liberal wackos that post here just need and want confirmation that they are good, honest people and not wacked out fools that believe anything that is told to them that paints conservatives, republicans, and foxnews as evil.
April 16th, 2007 at 1:43 pmStewart and Cobert are on COMEDY central…COMEDY…GOD help ( Oh my god he said GOD) you get news from a COMEDY show. Maybe congress should make laws from the Letterman’s top ten list or Leno’s Stupid signs bit. O.K. what’s their favorite joke…George Bush is Stupid…HA HA HA O.K. if he’s so Stupid, explain to me how he got better scores in college then John Kerry…what does that make John Kerry? For years and years the media has been controlled by the left wing look it up. You don’t have to be a FOX viewer to know that. 80% of all news people ( newspaper and TV ) VOTE Democratic. Fox news comes along and gives BOTH sides and everyone calls them shills for the Republican party…Now who’s not being fair? If you watch the shows they always LOAD the liberals 3 to 1 on all TV talk shows.. I watch Fox news , PBS and Comedy Central..I’d go head to head with any Stewart or Cobert viewer of any news topic. Those shows TRASH BUSH 99% of the time and throw a Hillary joke in 10% …and that’s why you LOVE them. Stewart has 10 writers pumping out ‘HIP’ jokes that you won’t remember next week while O’Reilly is getting laws passed to get Child predators PUT AWAY. If I’m dumb for watching that …then I guess I’m dumb. Oh and by the way I didn’t see OPRAH or the View on that list….hum…..
April 16th, 2007 at 1:46 pmSounds like more garbage liberal propaganda to me.
April 16th, 2007 at 2:03 pmWOW, I guess they really pegged me!
Since I watch, read or listen to 13 of the 16 sources listed, I see no real results, including the two headliners.
Come on, do they really think ‘educated’ people get there information strictly from one source.
For those that bash the other side, are you bashing because you know for a fact what is being put out by the opposition’s source, or are you blissfully ignorant. If you are not ignorant, then you must be watching the other side as well…which puts you into that category as well. If you are ignorant, the shut-up, because you make yourself sound stupid defending something you do not know to be fact.
The 23 questions can be easily skewed based on whatever criteria the surveyor sees fit, even if they are not intentionally skewing the questions, they are basing them on what they feel people should know about politics and not everyone thinks within a 23 question world.
Surveys like this are a waste of money and intended for propaganda by one side or the other. They are, at best, biased and divisive. They serve no function but for one side to beat their chest in victory and scream we’re better because of one section or two of the results. And, it seems, to me, that the chest beaters in this case are the liberal left, who by their very definition are the more ‘open-minded’ people. It seems clear that those claiming a victory based on a portion of a survey are pointed the finger at the closed-minded segment. Be careful, because if you don’t observe the survey as a whole, then you are acting closed-minded…and pointing the finger at a reflection.
April 16th, 2007 at 2:03 pmWow! 52% of the viewers know of Vladimir Putin. I bow down to the superior intellect of the Daily Show viewer.
April 16th, 2007 at 2:11 pmWhile all the congratulatory back slapping is going on, did you notice that the article spun the Fox News items to make a point, but missed certain other points, like:
- people who watched MSM news OTHER than Fox news were just as uneducated as those who watched Fox news?
- people who read online news dicsuccion blogs (like this one!) were even less knowledgable than those who watched Fox News ;)
- people who watched O’Reilly were comparatively as smart as those who watched the Daily Show (in fact, they knew MORE about Iraq and Putin, and just as much about Scooter Libby) – only a 3% difference – (I wonder what the margin of error was on this poll – 3%? ;)
- people who listen to Rush Limbaugh knew heads and shoulders more than ANYONE about Iraq, with only the NewsHour in second place – Daily Show watchers, when measured on their knowledge of Iraq, actually fell into the second tier
April 16th, 2007 at 2:23 pm#18 justjohn
April 16th, 2007 at 2:26 pmYou have sent me down memory lane. I started reading MAD many, many years ago, as a kid, and I found myself to be more informed about current events than my sisters. BTW, that remains true today.
I have always had respect for wit and sarcasm, because it takes someone with intelligence to be effectively satirical.
Too bad they misspelled the word “Knowledgeable” in the title of this article.
April 16th, 2007 at 2:46 pmTo Rick Heg. While I think the survey and article are a ridiculous waste of time, there are a few items you are terribly wrong about. First, Bush’s Yale grades being better than Kerry’s is nonsense you probably learned on FOX. George Bush IS stupid, and the more he speaks the more jokes can be made about his stupidity. And since he’s president and is required to speak publicly from time to time the jokes will always be fresh. Now if you look at the overall IQs in blue and red states, the blue overwhelmingly come out ahead. More educated people tend to vote democratic. Look that up. The “liberal” media doesn’t exist anymore, if it ever did. Corporate ownership of the media has made that particular point moot. And again, Bush happens to be the WORST President in any of our lifetimes, thereby giving the comedy shows plenty of fodder on a daily basis. Hence, “The Daily Show”. The Sunday morning interview shows have been interviewing more republicans than democrats for the past 5 years. Get your facts straight before making your slanted anecdotal observations. Bill O’Reilly is a joke, he just doesn’t know it. Apparently, neither do you.
April 16th, 2007 at 3:11 pm“Too bad they misspelled the word “Knowledgeable†in the title of this article.”
Too true..
April 16th, 2007 at 3:40 pmOn a sad note: in a Feb 2006 poll of our troops in Iraq, 85% said the U.S. mission is mainly “to retaliate for Saddam’s role in the 9-11 attacks.â€
They got this idea because Fox, CBS, NBC, ABC, and CNN all implied/let it be said that Iraq had a role in 9-11—-which is totally false.
Maybe intelligent people got fed up with CNN and went to Stewart & Colbert.
April 16th, 2007 at 3:43 pmThe notion of Limbaugh and O’Reilly’s audience doing as well as Daily Show or NPR’s audience made me wonder, until I realized the flaw in the study. It doesn’t differentiate between those who got 15 right or those who got 20 or 23. That would be like a test where everyone who got a D or better was lumped in together, not differentiating between the D and A students. The actual average scores would be more useful. Also, how much crossover was there? Would a Daily Show watcher who listened to NPR be lumped in with one or both?
And why were Air America listeners left out?
April 16th, 2007 at 4:16 pmactually, I believe knowledgable is an accepted spelling, even though it is wrong. Irregardless, I rule.
April 16th, 2007 at 4:18 pmAnd why were Air America listeners left out?
Maybe cause they couldn’t find any? LOL.
April 16th, 2007 at 4:23 pm“Remember Remember The 11th of September”
9/11/06: Arizona State University
On the 5th year anniversary of the September 11th attacks, TandemCreations.org captures the perception of an affected generation. Hear our voices, feelings, and thoughts about the most altering day in our lives.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3550893372762423070&q=tandemcreations&hl=en
April 16th, 2007 at 4:32 pmBoth Rush and O’reily’s audiences did fairly well. Maybe we really shouldn’t gloat.
April 16th, 2007 at 4:36 pm#10 may have it right: it’s more format than content. Stewart has often said that it’s not that he and his staff “give” news, which is what is often implied by findings such as these. It’s that the audience who find his show funny enough to keep watching must already come armed with a certain amount of information. The writers forge the show from that assumed knowledge base. There’s a fair amount of that going on with Rush and BOR, too. NPR/PBS, despite being non-pundit oriented, assume knowledge in the same way.
However, one niggling little point re the percentage of Rush listeners who “know” about “Iraq” being so high at 70 percent. Notice that the question is about US deaths. If you look to the left re the same audience on their knowledge about Sunnis, the figure drops to 40 percent. The two questions are both more or less about Iraq. Apparently Rush’s audience knows that we’re fighting and dying, but necessarily the why and the who of it.
April 16th, 2007 at 6:34 pmInstead of comparing Fox viewers [channel] to Daily Show [program] viewers, it would be more appropriate to compare channel to channel – all Fox news viewers to all Comedy Central viewers.
When comparing program to program, O’Reilly viewers did quite well – better on some questions. Watching either of the shows is an indicator that you are interested in politics. Watching Fox News (or Local News) is not.
April 16th, 2007 at 7:31 pmYep. My father again said last week that the media doesn’t show the good things happening in Iraq, like school openings.
And again, I fell into the trap and started arguing with the fool…
April 16th, 2007 at 9:01 pmlooks great!! http://photo2text.com/
April 17th, 2007 at 3:02 amMaybe you shouldn’t ?
They ranked at the top of the list. The “we” you are referring to ranked 3rd last, one spot above Fox news viewers.
Yeah let’s wonder if gloating over those results is appropriate. LMAO.
April 17th, 2007 at 6:29 amWell that, plus the ever unreliable Nico is probably getting some retraining on news items it’s not helpful to draw attention to.
I mean damn. How’s the stupid on this guy. And yet another post from him with a lie in the title. Outstanding work, LMAO.
April 17th, 2007 at 6:52 amIn fact, this last claim is not false. Many countries supported the invasion, e.g. the United Kingdom, Spain, Holland and Poland.
April 17th, 2007 at 6:57 amIn addition, Max, depending on what timeframe is in the public’s mind, Saddam definitely had WMD (just ask the Khurds). It is also possible that Iraq possessed WMD immediately before the current war and was involved in 9/11 (at least as “possible” as Bush planting WTC demolitions himself ; )
April 17th, 2007 at 8:14 amThat explains why my other wise intelligent parents have no clue what going on in the world today. They idolize Fox.
April 17th, 2007 at 1:32 pmHoly crap. You people are dumber than you sound.
April 17th, 2007 at 1:41 pmOh, one more thing: “those who speak most of progress measure it by quantity and not by quality.” Think Progress? You mean, Think Permissiveness, don’t you?
April 17th, 2007 at 2:46 pmI agree that Fox waters down the news and that they also have a conservative political agenda. However, I don’t mean to point this out, but isn’t Knowledgable supposed to be spelled Knowledgeable with an e after the g?
April 20th, 2007 at 12:42 pmThe Left thinks everyone who disagrees with them is stupid and like all arogant people they keep underestimating their political opponents, and they wonder why they keep losing elections.
April 25th, 2007 at 9:41 amApparently the Right Wing is stupid and/or dishonest. The Pew report talks about how, overall, knowledge levels are similar to 20 years ago regardless of format, but that Fox listeners are most misinformed. But what do Right Wing posters get from that finding? That Fox listeners are equally well informed. Go check the source: http://people-press.org/reports/display.php3?ReportID=319
April 25th, 2007 at 12:11 pmThe truly sad thing here is that so many Americans are so uninformed about the events unfolding around them. While Fox News certainly deserves a lot of blame, the fact is that all the major media outlets fail to do any real journalism anymore. How the hell does Anna Nicole, American Idol, etc make their way onto a “newscast” in the first place? No wonder only 32% of the people polled know who a Sunni is. The only real news outlet that can hold their head up is PBS. However, their ratings are way below the other networks because they are not sensational enough in their coverage. Therefore, the real culprit in our collective ignorance is US!
April 26th, 2007 at 2:19 amI love how the left likes to throw bombs at Fox News, yet no one can point to a single instance of falsehood or misrepresentation in Fox News’ reporting. If you can point to such instances, I will entertain them now. Ready…go.
April 26th, 2007 at 9:22 pmRyan,
You wanted a single instance of Fox News’ misrepresentation. Here’s more than one: http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=A3BD2524FE99BD4D
Enjoy.
April 29th, 2007 at 2:30 amNice collection of videos…all from the same contributor whose very name (LiberalViewer) exposes an obvious liberal agenda. I could create a comparable collection of videos from NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN, MSNBC and any other news outlets. This liberalviewer guy, like a good little liberal, does a good job of creating the appearance of impropriety in his collection of personally produced exposes that collectively carry about as much weight as…say…a hot air balloon in space.
Give me a break. That’s the best you could come up with? You’re just proving my two points for me:
1- You can’t point to any substantial evidence of Fox New misrepresenting or falsifying the news.
2- Liberals, in general, are amazingly stupid, as embodied both by this collection of videos and by the fact that not only do you buy this guy’s “truth,” as obvious as his agenda is, but you actually use it as your sole reference.
Pretty weak, dude.
April 29th, 2007 at 9:02 pmSadly it seems as though all you did before making comments was to look at the name of the person who made a list of youtube videos instead of actually watching them. If you don’t have time to watch them all, then I suggest you watch this particular one:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGqPxn7njqM&feature=PlayList&p=A3BD2524FE99BD4D&index=5
Before you make any more generalizations that make you seem ignorant, know that I also watched that episode of Colbert Report and saw the Fox news recap of that event as well. I can’t understand why LiberalViewer’s agenda has anything to do with his arguments. Clear your mind of any predisposed judgments and you’ll see that this is one instance of Fox News misrepresenting actual events.
By the way, while NBC, CNN, CBS, etc. do make mistakes, there’s a reason why no one can make a collection of videos of their misrepresentations.
April 30th, 2007 at 1:53 amWay to jump to conclusions…again. Just like your buddy LiberalViewer (or is that actually you under a different name?).
In fact, I did watch those videos…every one of them, regardless of the contributor, including the Colbert Report one, which I think is maybe the weakest one of the bunch. There was nothing sinister about the editing. It hardly changed anything. Any discerning viewer would understand that 1) Colbert is a comedy show, like The Daily Show, and can’t be expected to report anything trustworthy, so it really doesn’t matter what any candidate/politician says on that show, and 2) Fox News wasn’t trying to vilify the guy over his comments; the reporter was simply incredulous that any candidate/politician would go along with such stupid jokes at all. Wilson was even giggling about it. Even with the full version, however, it doesn’t make the Congressman look very smart, and the Fox News setup says it all: (paraphrasing) “look what this guy is willing to say since he is not contested in the race.” Nothing wrong with that. If he were contested in the race, do you think the Congressman would have gone along with the joke no matter what? Not if he’s a smart politician. Opponents would absolutely pounce on such comments (which, honestly, I would think an over-reactionary strategy considering the venue, but that’s politics).
You’re grasping at straws, man (lady?). If this is the best you can come up with, you’ve got nothing.
As for the other “mainstream” news organizations, just because no one has created their own collection of videos using their reporting doesn’t mean it can’t be done. Believe me, I watch them all, and I could absolutely condemn them with such a collection. But unlike LiberalViewer, I don’t have time to pursue personal vendettas and fantasies of YouTube celebrity. Besides, if I did produce a similar collection, someone might mistake me for someone with an agenda.
April 30th, 2007 at 10:46 amJust for kicks, here’s on for you, straight from the report, none of my own comments, editing or theatrics attached.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxAiY34bCMc
April 30th, 2007 at 10:58 amI scored 96%. I got 9 out of 9 of the questions. I was hoping for more difficult questions. I can’t imagine a Fox News or Limbaugh listener NOT knowing the answers to these questions because they have all been covered countless times. I do not watch The Daily Show or Colbert, although I have seen a show or two…enough to know that it is difficult to discern what is the truth and what they are just ridiculing. I can see how their listeners would know the answer to these very easy questions, but what they know is only the joke associated with them…hardly the real facts about these people or issues. I am primarily a Fox News watcher and a Limbaugh listener now because I have found the other networks, cable channels, newspapers, etc. horribly biased against conservatives, especially conservative Christians. I have yet to find Fox News…or Rush Limbaugh for that matter….deliberately misconstruing information in order to affect public opinion. When they err, they admit it….in contrast to the way Dan Rather failed to own up to his manipulated news story about Pres. Bush’s military service, for example. Anyway, this poll/survey says very little about how informed people are because of which outlet they choose for getting news.
May 19th, 2007 at 5:12 pm