Fox’s media critic shocked by Hegseth’s open suggestion CNN under Ellison will be Trump-friendly
Howie Kurtz: “I sort of can't believe he said the quiet part out loud”
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Fox’s media critic shocked by Hegseth’s open suggestion CNN under Ellison will be Trump-friendly
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From the March 16, 2026, edition of Fox News’ MEDIA BUZZmeter
HOWARD KURTZ (HOST): Here is Pete Hegseth — and I sort of can't believe he said the quiet part out loud here. He made a reference. He was unhappy with CNN. And CNN will soon be part of the empire of David Ellison and his father, Oracle co-founder and billionaire Larry Ellison, along with other parts of Warner Brothers Discovery. And Hegseth, who was criticizing CNN, said, “The sooner David Ellison takes over” — let me just make sure I have this quote right — “The sooner that David Ellison takes over, the better it is.”
So, basically, he's saying that the Trump administration expects CBS to, if not roll over for the president and vice president and their team, but to root for them. And that's not the job of journalists.
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Oh, here it is: “The sooner David Ellison takes over that network, the better.” That was the second part that I was looking for. “Another headline, war widening.”
Well, what would you call a situation where Israel is attacking Lebanon every day and Hezbollah, which started it, which is just an Iran proxy? And CNN said we stand by our reporting. Look, having lived through the Vietnam War, it's a good thing, it's an important thing when journalists, sometimes risking their lives, point out when things are not going so well.
Now there's no question. Overwhelming military superiority. The United States military has decimated Iran. Nobody is disputing that. But whereas Trump says, “Well, I can end this war at any time.” What constitutes a win? This is what I've talked about and written about, and I talked about this on Friday. And so does Hegseth really think that the press should be a cheerleader?
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Now where's the line between journalists reporting on significant problems in the war effort and journalists just being stenographers and cheerleaders for the Trump administration's war in Iran?