Former Fox News politics editor Chris Stirewalt criticized the network’s election coverage in his upcoming book, The Guardian reports.
Stirewalt, who was fired after a controversial but correct 2020 election night call that Joe Biden won Arizona, accusing Fox News of stoking “black-helicopter-level paranoia and hatred.”
Stirewalt trashed the network’s coverage, arguing it had nothing to do with ideology but rather a thirst for ratings and profits.
“Even in the four years since the previous presidential election, Fox viewers had become even more accustomed to flattery and less willing to hear news that challenged their expectation,” he wrote.
Stirewalt particularly took aim at host Tucker Carlson for simply repeating things that his viewers already believe.
“It does not take any kind of journalistic courage to pump out night after night exactly what your audience wants to hear,” he wrote.
Stirewalt sore over Arizona call:
Stirewalt repeatedly defended the network’s election night call in Arizona.
The former editor wrote that the call “came as a terrible shock” to Fox News viewers, who he said were not provided accurate coverage about Trump’s struggles in the presidential race.
It was, he wrote, like “serving up green beans to viewers who had been spoon-fed ice-cream sundaes for years.”
Fox pushes back:
Fox News disputed that Stirewalt’s firing was linked to the Arizona call.
A spokesperson said the firing was simply part of a larger company restructuring.
The network noted that the employee actually in charge of making the call in Arizona still remains at the company.
“Chris Stirewalt’s endless attempts at regaining relevance know no bounds,” the statement said.
