Fox Joins GOP In Disappearing Overwhelming Support For Birth Control Rule From Religious Groups

Fox has been working hard lately to manufacture tension between religious groups and President Obama over the administration's rule providing access to birth control insurance. However, following the White House's announcement of an accommodation for religiously-affiliated employers with objections to the rule, Catholic Hospitals, Colleges, and Charities came out in support of the president on the birth control compromise. A wide range of Catholic, evangelical and mainline faith leaders also agree with the birth control rule as do the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, Sisters of Mercy, and NETWORK. So, you would think Fox would move on to a new topic.

Alas, Fox, with the help of the Republican Party, is still making the same arguments. In order to do so, Fox and the GOP are pretending that there is no religious support for Obama's birth control policy.

Today Fox's “straight news” division covered a House Oversight and Government Reform hearing on “Lines Crossed: Separation of Church and State. Has the Obama administration Trampled on Freedom of Religion and Freedom of Conscience?” The hearing, chaired by Congressman Darrell Issa (R-CA), featured witnesses who oppose mandatory insurance coverage for birth control. However, the committee refused to allow supporters of the birth control policy to have their say. The hearing consisted of nine witnesses who opposed the birth control policy, but only gave Democrats one witness to tell the other side. Moreover, Issa rejected the witness the Democrats chose and made it impossible for two other Democratic witnesses to appear.

And Fox's “straight news” division coverage of the hearing was as diligent as Issa at ignoring religious support for the birth control rule. Fox News' America Live host Megyn Kelly showed clips of the hearing and said: “you've got a lot of Catholic and other religious leaders who are still saying 'you didn't get it done Mr. President. You should have talked to us beforehand.' ” She, like the House GOP, failed to mention a single religious group that has come out in support of the birth control rule. Nor did she mention the fact that most Americans and Catholics support the birth control rule as well.