Why are you mad at Bob Costas?

It’s been nearly a week since NBC’s Bob Costas addressed the aftermath of the Javon Belcher shooting during the broadcast of the Sunday night game. And today on the TV while I was at the gym, some lady on Fox News was still going on about Costas’ “rant” against gun ownership.

Here’s the deal: I didn’t write about this a week ago because I thought it was stupid. It’s the kind of made-up controversy that too much of the media seems to glom onto because they have too much air-time and blogspace to fill and not enough paid reporters to fill it with actual news. But this incident was especially stupid and made-up because 30 seconds of fact-checking totally kills it… so what kind of agenda-obsessed nut would ignore obvious and easily verifiable facts for eyeballs and page clicks?

This is where, if this were the opening segment of “The Daily Show,” Stewart would pop onscreen the “Fox News: Fair and Balanced” logo and everyone watching would chuckle, not belly-laugh, because that joke’s just way too easy to make.

 

Costas said what he said, and he’s since said that 90 seconds of a halftime show was not the appropriate venue for entering into a debate on guns and crime. But here’s the thing: his actual comments were references to another writer, Jason Whitlock. In fact, Costas’ most pointed statement – “What I believe is, if he (Belcher) didn’t possess/own a gun, he and Kasandra Perkins would both be alive today.” – was a direct quote from Whitlock’s column.

And Costas even SAID that he was quoting Whitlock. Seriously, the detective work it takes to uncover this consists of A) simply Googling the original clip, and B) watching it. Every single news account I read or watched about this “controversy” acknowledged that Costas was quoting Whitlock’s words.

So, why are conservative writers and TV talking heads, to say nothing of the head of the NRA, still bashing Costas?

A few reasons, I think. For starters, if you admit that what Costas said originated with another writer, then you’ll probably notice that that writer writes for Fox Sports, which would interrupt the prevailing conservative narrative that the big bad media elite – in the form of that guy who calls the Olympics, evidently – is out to get them. And since the Fox News audience’s permanent case of butthurt pays its commentators’ salaries, defusing said butthurt isn’t really in their interest.

But mainly, the reason that the country’s most watched news network didn’t perform the most basic act of journalism is that Fox News isn’t really a news network. It’s an agenda-delivery device. And I’m not talking about the “let’s report the news that fits with our viewpoint” selection bias of which other media outlets are guilty. When you’re straight-up ignoring demonstrable facts, you’re not anything remotely resembling a news organization. If she were a real person (vs. a long-gone fictional character), Emily Litella would work for Fox News… except that she’d never get to the “Never mind” part. 

Consuming one’s news from only one outlet is always a bad idea. But watching Fox News for anything other than pure entertainment at this point is just silly. It’s like asking your dog for a weather report. You’ve got just about that level of professionalism, understanding of the issues and accountability.

Now for the rough part… I don’t like the tendency among my fellow liberals to characterize conservatives as less intelligent. It’s inaccurate, it’s unfair and it isn’t very nice. But the reaction to this incident doesn’t make it very easy for me to defend the conservatives and Fox devotees I know, many of whom I care about deeply. I’m sorry – if you heard about this and didn’t bother to seek out the source (the widely available clip from the broadcast), or if you did watch the broadcast and you genuinely agree that Costas went on some anti-gun “rant,” then you have an issue with your critical thinking ability, perhaps colored by your defensiveness over your own attitude toward guns.

If you’re one of the people now pissed off because you think I just insulted you, then you’re exactly the person I need to answer some questions for me:

-          Why are you mad at Bob Costas?

-          Do you understand that a TV sports announcer has zero authority over gun control laws, so even if Costas had gotten on national television and declared that all firearms should be melted down to make sweet water bongs, this is not a thing that would actually happen?

-          Is the reason you’re really so mad at this because deep down you know that more than one American was watching Costas at home and nodding because they agree with him, and that those Americans vote?

-          Why aren’t you mad at Jason Whitlock?

For the record, I give zero f---s how many firearms you keep in your home, because it’s your home and I’m sure you’re very responsible. But I do want you to ask yourself why you get so overwrought – I mean, trying to take a man’s job – when someone suggests that not all gun owners are as responsible as you are.

(That and – please do yourself a favor and stop watching Fox News, unless you have the benefit of a  mythical Costas water bong beforehand.)