It feels as if every few weeks, something that airs on Fox News fires up the Internet outrage machine—but rarely does the cable news giant give in to that outrage.
Jesse Watters was the latest Fox News personality to take some heat Wednesday after many outlets picked up a segment he did on Monday night on “The O’Reilly Factor” that mocked Asian-Americans and played on offensive stereotypes of Chinese people. Within hours of groups like the Association of Asian-American Journalists demanding an apology, Watters issued a half-hearted mea culpa on Twitter.
The network did not issue a formal apology for the segment, and rarely does so. But what the network and its hosts have apologized for, from particularly egregious factual errors to offensive statements, makes for a colorful list.
Factual errors
Muslim “no-go” zones
Fox News aired several interviews in 2015 about Muslim “no go zones,” areas that non-Muslims are purportedly not allowed to go into, around Europe. Many pointed out that those so-called “no-go” zones are a total myth, and the network apologized.
Black protester shot at Freddie Gray protests
In the unrest following the death of Freddie Gray, Fox News reported that a black man was shot on the streets of Baltimore and that a revolver was found on scene. The police refuted that account, saying that a man was arrested for possessing a handgun but was not shot, so the network apologized.
Shirley Sherrod
Fox News host Bill O’Reilly apologized in 2010 after airing an edited clip of a U.S. Dept. of Agriculture official, who is black, appearing to say she discriminated against a white farmer. Shirley Sherrod used that anecdote in her speech as a teaching moment, but after the edited clip went viral, she was forced to resign. Though Sherrod resigned before O’Reilly aired the edited clip, he said he still should have gotten the whole story.
The infamous Christie/Obama “hug”
A popular jab at New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (R) is that he hugged President Obama when he visited New Jersey after Hurricane Sandy. The men did not actually “hug,” but rather shook hands and put a hand on each others’ backs, prompting Fox News to issue an apology.
Rep. William J. Jefferson
When then Rep. William J. Jefferson (D) was indicted for bribery charges in 2007, Fox News aired a photo of House Judiciary Committee Chairman Rep. John Conyers of Michigan (D). Both men are black and took offense to the action. Fox apologized, according to USA Today.
Jerry Sandusky
When the network airing news about former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky who was convicted of child molestation, it used four different clips of Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels (R), Business Insider reported.
Offensive remarks
Calling Robin Williams a “coward”
Anchor Shepard Smith apologized for calling actor Robin Williams a “coward” after his suicide in 2014. “That goes against everything I am,” Smith said. “If those words, I used so innocently, offended his family, from the bottom of my heart, I could not be more sorry.”
Mocking Facebook’s new gender options
When Facebook announced expanded gender options for users, Fox News host Clayton Morris mocked the change, jokingly saying he was “intersex.” He later apologized and said that comment was “ignorant,” The Huffington Post reported.
“Baby mama” Michelle Obama
The cable giant put its foot in its mouth after airing a chyron that characterized First Lady Michelle Obama as then-Senator Barack Obama’s (D-IL) “baby mama.” “A producer on the program exercised poor judgment in using this chyron during the segment,” a Fox executive said at the time in a statement to Politico.
“Boobs on the ground”
When discussing the United Arab Emirates’ first female fighter pilot, two male co-hosts of “The Five” made sexist jokes about her, asking if when she landed the plane it would be considered “boobs on the ground.” Host Eric Bolling later apologized, calling her a hero.
Mocking Wiccans
Fox News contributor Tucker Carlson made one of the more offbeat apologies after saying Wiccans’ most “sacred day” was Halloween. He later said he should have just “left them alone.”
Fat-shaming Kelly Clarkson
Fox News’ Chris Wallace made comments about singer Kelly Clarkson’s weight following the birth of her child, telling radio host Mike Gallagher that Clarkson “could stay off the deep dish pizza for a little while.” Wallace later apologized in a statement, telling E! News that her talent “should have been the focus of any discussion about her.”
Not treating Donald Trump fairly
Fox News has had a love-hate relationship with Donald Trump. After issuing a statement mocking the GOP nominee for not attending one of its Republican presidential primary debates, Trump fired back at the network, saying he was treated “unfairly” by Fox. He then said that they apologized to him, and Fox issued its own statement that didn’t deny doing so—although it characterized the conversation as “acknowledging his concerns.”
Alleged sexual harassment
Standing in a class all its own is what’s surely the most high-profile complaint ever lodged against Fox News. Weeks after fired anchor Gretchen Carlson filed a sexual harassment suit against then-Fox news boss Roger Ailes earlier this summer, Ailes was forced to resign, and as part of its settlement deal on Aile’s behalf, the network apologized to Carlson for how she’d been treated.
Faux could apologize 24/7 and it would still take them a century to atone for the damage it has done to … (limited bandwidth precludes complete list).
I feel shocked that a segment named after the epic Waterworld would turn out poorly.
Hallow apologies are worse than no apology. At least they keep their integrity intact. Somehow I think integrity means little to people who think like this, though.
It’s like the Washington Times, they only correct when they could be sued and lose the suit.
It’s funny to me that they (right wingers, including the people at FOX “News”) push this idea that not apologizing means you’re strong and expressing regret over something said or have done means you’re weak
BUT
they are always in outrage mode demanding an apology by something they are offended by.
racism,
from Vicki Cowart, President and CEO of Planned Parenthood Rocky
Mountains if the guy that shot up the clinic was NOT an anti-choice
terroist (try to make sense out of that bullshit)
an apology from him
an interview she did with his phony ass surrogate Pastor Burns
and so on.
They want to say what they please, to hell with political correctness until their fee-fees are hurt.
By the way, it’s not Jesse that is the problem here - though he did use bad judgment. It’s FOX - because the bullshit wouldn’t have aired without their approval. They can all screw themselves, as far as I’m concerned.
EDITED to correct spelling errors