South Carolina

Fox News decided to lean into the skid and scare the bejeezus out of its audience with a combination of the longshoreman strike, increased violence in the Middle East and the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. Late in the week Donald J. Trump told multiple lies about the federal response to the hurricane that Fox News hosts were happy to amplify. Sean Hannity mentioned lies about FEMA over 50 times in two days. Greg Gutfeld pretended he was an expert on climate change and a Harris supporter snuck into a Breakfast with Friends segment on Fox & Friends.

Meet the Trump cult in their natural habitat of the Southern diner. Trump spews a bunch of nonsense in a highly edited town hall. Ainsley Earhardt goes on about 'normal Americans" Fox News exploits the murder of a nursing student to smear migrants. Juliet makes fun of Kari Lake at the end of this one and does a quick impression of her mom.

This episode focuses on how Fox News covered the South Carolina primary. There was a great deal of concern by many folks on Fox about Trump's chances in the general election. Is Nikki Haley going rogue? Will Trump be able to get her supporters once she drops out? I do a goofy impression of Judge Jeanine at the end of the episode.

Fear and fanaticism are part of it, explains Ruth Ben-Ghiat: "Accepting the leader's lies and violence ties them to him, making them partners in his crimes and thus vulnerable to being exposed."