MeidasTouch has Fox News running scared

| 10:00 pm EDT June 8, 2021
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MeidasTouch, a liberal Political Action Committee, has been creating ads for airing on Fox News. They placed an ad with Fox News that featured law enforcement members as they tried to stop the January 6 insurrection at the Capitol Building. But Fox News declined to broadcast the ad on Sunday, without comment.

Usually Fox News gets back to MeidasTouch to recommend edits, in order to air their ads. But this time, there was no comment to MeidasTouch or to media that asked them questions.

“We couldn’t have fathomed in our wildest imaginations that even a Fox News would reject an ad that simply condemns the insurrection, and condemns people who support the insurrection,” said Ben Meiselas, one of the co-founders of MeidasTouch, the liberal Political Action Committee that created the 60-second ad. “What Fox has really become is a fascist echo chamber gatekeeper for their base.”

Brett and Jordan, Ben’s two brothers, said they placed the ad buy as they have done before, but were informed on Friday by telephone that Fox News would not air the ad and didn’t give any reason. Broadcast and cable networks may refuse to air ads by political campaigns and advocacy groups. A Fox News spokeswoman did not respond to a request for comment on Saturday.

The commercial includes law enforcement officers testifying in Congress and talking to the media about their experiences in the insurrection.

“It’s been very difficult seeing elected officials and other individuals whitewash the events of that day or downplay what happened,” DC Metropolitan Police Officer Michael Fanone says in a clip from a CNN interview as images of House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and other GOP elected officials are shown on screen.

The ad ends with block letters that say “The GOP Betrayed America. We Will Never Forget. Perhaps Fox News does not want to air ads that contradict their broadcast analysts’ positions on the January 6 insurrection.