Criminal Behavior

Think Progress has discovered Fox News' rhetorical strategy in covering the PlameGate affair:

Conservative defenders of Karl Rove and Scooter Libby have settled on their No. 1 talking point: the grand jury investigation into the CIA leak scandal represents the “criminalization of politics.”

In other words, they say, the outing of a covert CIA agent in a time of war to punish a whistleblower is just everyday “politics” — nothing out of the ordinary, certainly nothing criminal.

Perhaps you've heard this term floating in the media ether recently. Well, it seems to only be coming from Fox, and more specifically from Fox talking heads:

To spread this talking point across the nation, the right has received a major assist from Fox News. According to a database search, every single television reference to the CIA leak scandal as the “criminalization of politics” in the last 30 days has been on Fox. Even more stunning: on every occassion, the phrase was introduced into the segment by a Fox News anchor or correspondent, never by a guest.

Now that's fair and balanced. Be sure to check out their QuickTime video compendium of Fox talking heads.