Bernie Sanders did it. So did Amy Klobuchar. Pete Buttigieg and Kirsten Gillibrand will do it soon.
They are all Democratic presidential hopefuls who have either appeared or will appear on Fox News in town hall events. But don’t expect to see Elizabeth Warren on Fox News. The senator from Massachusetts fired off a series of tweets Tuesday slamming Fox News as a “hate-for-profit racket that gives a megaphone to racists and conspiracists.”
She also tweeted:
“I’ve done 57 media avails and 131 interviews, taking over 1,100 questions from press just since January. Fox News is welcome to come to my events just like any other outlet. But a Fox News town hall adds money to the hate-for-profit machine. To which I say: hard pass.”
A Warren aide told CNN’s MJ Lee, “We’re not giving them 60 minutes of her time for an exclusive major TV event so they can market it to their advertisers.”
Whether or not to appear on Fox News is a tough call for Democrats. There’s no denying that the network, particularly early in the morning and during primetime, leans right and regularly slams Democrats. For someone like Warren, who is often attacked there, going on Fox News might seem like a waste of time. Based on her tweets, it would appear that she could not, in good conscience, appear on Fox News.
Yet, going on Fox News is a chance for Democrats to get their message directly to viewers without that message going through the spin cycle of the network’s hosts. It’s unfiltered access to millions of viewers who are engaged politically. And it is a chance to perhaps sway some viewers who are either undecided or no longer support President Donald Trump.
But this isn’t about winning the presidential election. First things first: she has to win the Democratic nomination. Not appearing on Fox News likely won’t impact Warren’s chances of ultimately winning the nomination.
In fact, most Democrats likely don’t care whether she appears on Fox News or not and many will probably applaud her stance against a network they feel is biased against them.
