Be fair and balanced; listen to both sides

Joe Doll, Henderson

Friday, April 17, 2009 | 2:03 a.m.

I just had to chime in on the all the Fox News criticism. I rotate among what I consider the Big Three cable networks — CNN, Fox and MSNBC.

I will concede that Fox does lean right with Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck and Bill O’Reilly. But none of my fellow letter writers will ever convince me that Wolf Blitzer, Keith Olbermann, Rachel Maddow and Chris Matthews are not left-leaning commentators on their respective networks.

If all of you Fox critics believe the other two networks cited here are “fair and balanced,” then you are just drinking left-wing Kool Aid, as opposed to right-wing Kool Aid.

Let’s all get a grip here. In America it is possible to agree on facts, agree on the priority of the facts, and still draw different conclusions. It is nice to find a news media outlet with editorial positions with which you can agree, but there is a danger in limiting news and commentary to only one or two of the same sources.

We have to listen and argue our points reasonably. If all we do is shout, then there can be no conversation and, at the end of the day, no conversions, no changed minds and no true consensus. Whether I agree or not, conservative views deserve and need an outlet.

We are actually blessed here in Southern Nevada; we have two newspapers, delivered together with totally different editorial philosophies. Read them both, it’s fun!