Before you go around saying, “Does America really need another right-wing network besides Fox News?,” remind yourself that Fox News is not actually leaning as far as it could into the cultural fringe. That’s where Right Network, the new Comcast-based channel, comes in. (Updated: Or not.)
It’s a most amusing move, because as Comcast devours NBC Universal’s television programming, it will also acquire MSNBC, America’s Leading Liberal Network. Which means it’s set to profit, with advertising and cable carrier fees, from America’s polarizing political camps. Win win, yes?
It would be a fair assessment, based on this promo video from Broadgay Kelsey Grammer, that this is really the Tea Party Network.
And have you seen their trailer? All this attention has been paid to Oprah launching her own network, and right beneath your feet comes something more terrifying than a 24/7 Jerry Falwell network. Which we will totally be watching. This summer.
How about we take this to the next level?
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UPDATE: Politico‘s Michael Calderone relays a Comcast statement saying it has not partnered with, invested in, or agreed to distribute the network.
[C&L]
Mike L.
Ok I had to laugh at how many black ppl were shown in the third video for their advertisement.
I was not happy with Kelsey Grammar saying that there is nothing right about anyone wearing speedos. Well Mr. Grammar maybe there is nothing right about YOU wearing a speedo but leave the cute guys in the beaches be. Also I love grown man tickle fights sir, you probably think it’s “GAY!”
Mike L.
@Mike L.: ANd by laughing at the number of black ppl in the third vid I laughed at how ironic and unauthentic that was. Like as if half of conservatives are all black and the other are white LOLZ right.
Symonds
I too am a black American who enjoys rocking out on my electric guitar after coming home from my job at NASA! The Republican party is just my style!
…sheesh
More seriously- ‘right ideas’? That’s just creepy. A whole channel devoted to filtering out perspectives that tea partiers don’t agree with.
delurker again
Yeah, it looks like the TP is getting prickly and defensive about the lack of color in their movement.
An Other Greek
I would argue that MSNBC is nowhere near as far to the left as FOX is to the right…
It is a loosing argument, when even here at Queerty, we begin the debate or the analysis by considering/accepting MSNBC as a “liberal” channel.
IMHO, MSNBC is slightly left of center, and marginally representative of true liberal values, and at that,
——ALWAYS———,
through a corporatist lens.
I would LOVE to see a true liberal network, as far to the left as FOX is to the right…!
It would then be hilarious to see a truly crazy liberal network, as Comcast is proposing for the right wingers…
Meanwhile we settle with GE’s MSNBC as the liberal alternative.
And the debate gets skewed to the right before it even begins…
————————————————————
Caine
I swear to god…This is getting ridiculous.
A permanent move to Sweden or Norway is beginning to look more appealing everyday.
Jaroslaw
Amen #6! Wish I could move too. Well, there was a fab letter about the T-Party in my local Sunday paper – the writer wanted to know where all these lovely “patriots” were when Bush/Cheney were lying through their teeth to get us into Iraq (causing untold billions, deaths, dismemberments etc). Another writer wanted to know when these anti-everything people will be paying taxes on their employer-paid health benefits (which is only fair since they don’t like government handouts)
Anyway, I think a more right network will be great. The majority of the country, I think, is sane and will only be more repulsed by conservative dogma, agenda etc. I hope. 🙁
Joe Bua
I’m somewhat bothered by this obviously, but mostly I encourage as many players in the right wing political TV game as they can fit.
They’ll fracture the audience, hurt Murdoch, and in the effort to define themselves as different than Fox Noise they will pick fights, which is nothing but good for people of good will who watch the news for the facts and don’t tune into TV channels for validation of their bigotry.
Oh, and Kelsey Grammer is a douchebag. Imagine, all those years he benefitted by all those gay writers putting words in Frasier Crane’s mouth and now he turns against all those people because he’s now rich and doesn’t like to pay taxes on that money.
It’s okay, with his wife being in the new Bravo Real Housewives of Bev Hills we should find out more about Kelsey’s life than he probably wants us to know. And I’ll be riffing on those themes the second they hit the air.
Vinny
I find myself leaning more to the right these days, as the current administration has so far left a sour taste in my mouth. I watch fox News and would be the first to admit that it leans heavily to the right. I dont think we need a network that will try to lean even more in that direction. at the same time, who cares? We can just choose not to watch it, the way I refuse to watch certain channels for my own personal reasons. thats the beauty of this country, and what we are getting away from because everyone gets so offended at every little thing. you can just watch something else. I happen to think CNN is a little too liberal for my liking, so i just dont watch it. I like that we have all these choices, and not just one standard news channel like they do in Iran or in North Korea.
Are there flaws with the Tea Party’s logic? Of course. Just like there are obvious flaws in liberal logic. But thats what makes us human, we all have our own opinions and I enjoy debating them when its kept respectful. Let the really really right wing have their news channel. I am sure that there will eventually be an extreme left one that has Nancy Pelosi on all the time.
delurker again
@Vinny: It’s sounds like you are pretty far to the right to begin with. Why even go along with the pretense that you are above when you pretty clearly have teabagger sympathies?
Brian
At least it’s nice to know that there is a new home for all that unused stock footage out there.
tjr101
Everytime I read something like this I say thank goodness for demographics. The Teapartiers are not a diverse group and they don’t represent America and they never will, which is why they are really acting up in the age of Obama.
Let them have their channel so the rest of America can sit back and watch the crazyness. More entertainment!
fredo777
Figures Joe The Plumber’s dumb ass would make an appearance.
James L.
The second trailer feels like a random collection of stock footage. Did anyone notice the ‘cool’ business people with the orange iBook from 1999? Near the end when they start showing images of the right wingers who will be on the network it looks like they got pictures of Newt Gingrich and Michael Steele straight from Google Images and found a clip of Fraiser on YouTube.
Is this fake?
Baxter
@delurker again: I never understood why white people who oppose Obama’s policies are considered racist, but the 95% of blacks who opposed McCain were not.
fredo777
@Baxter: hmmm…sounds like something a racist would say.
hmmmm… >_>
Devon
So basically someone watched that SNL sketch about The Sarah Palin Network and thought “Gee, that sounds like a good idea.”
adman
This is fascinating, really. I mean with the mendacity here who can tell if Kelsey even means what he says or not? That’s the thing that strikes me about teabaggers in general, they are trying to cast themselves as somehow oppressed people. Somehow by doing so, they have struck on the idea of vaudevillian imagery and story lines, like the “good old days”.
I mean is there such thing as white people putting on “whiteface” and coming out about their struggles as whites from a distanced perspective? It’s crazy, when you start to lie, and can’t stop; nobody believes you, sure. So, you take advantage of the cognitive dissonance and act like the lies are “entertainment”? I am still trying to wrap my brain around this one! In some ways propaganda in America is really trance inducing, I have to admit. Albeit in a horrifying way.
Frozen North
This is perfect. This network would naturally push Fox more to the right, which would elicit a similar defensive reaction in the new network.
They can out-“right” each other in a death spiral to crazy town.
detroitmak
They launch this crap but they wont launch Al Jazeera English… Fuck them!
Qjersey
Yep, true to form, telling the rest of us what is right. I’ll name my dog whatever I want, in fact, my next dog will be called TeaBagger
Shawn
Love the old stock footage – anyone else notice the guy with the laptop was at an iBook from about a decade ago?
Leif
@Mike L.: Unless we’re talking about the Europeans on the beach in Hollywood, FL, then yup, it’s pretty gay.
Leif
@Caine: Please do
Leif
Sorry, didn’t realize my audience. Look, when it comes to media, if it’s your bias being expressed, odds are you won’t think they’re going far enough. If you were to poll FNC viewers, I’d bet that most of them would see the network as too neutral. Remember FOX’s motto, “Number 1 in cable news”, well if there were a few more right leaning networks they couldn’t claim that. In the end all a new right-wing network offers is a way to drain from of the popularity of the ONLY right-leaning network. Maybe liberals ought to welcome this more diluting network. As a Libertarian, I literally can’t figure out why we all can’t just get along… Guess it’s just twisted priorities.