Fox News’ Chris Wallace unloads to The Politico about the Democratic presidential candidates’ refusal to appear on debates moderated by his network:
“Just imagine if the Republicans, under pressure from right-to-life groups, refused to appear on CNN or MSNBC. I think there would be holy unshirted hell. I think there would be such talk about these people being captives of the extreme right wing and why are they afraid to answer questions. And I think the absence of that is very telling.
“At this point, it has become kind of a loyalty test inside the Democratic Party, … pandering to the far-left-wing. And we live with it.”
Conservatives make this analogy frequently, but most efforts to measure bias have shown that Fox News tilts right to a far greater degree than its rivals tilt left. And most impartial cable viewers would likely agree.
Mr. Wallace’s argument may succeed at making Fox News appear to be a victim of left-wing extremism. But it doesn’t bear much relation to reality.
