I’ve had enough.

I am an American living in Thailand and I simply can no longer watch the only American news channel the television company I have offers.

As a studied poet I know the way language can be used and altered to maximize impact. I know the way all news can be presented with bias and opinion (and I’m seasoned enough to know that this isn’t always a bad thing). Here’s a brief primer on this topic by Rachel Maddow:

However – whether it’s coverage of the anniversary of 9-11 or of a Pennsylvania storm, coverage of NASA’s Mark Kelly landing safely from space while his wife Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords watches or a nutrition special – I no longer trust Fox News. At all. If I want to watch American news on television I am forced to turn to news channels based in England or Australia or France or places throughout Asia. Forced because truth and accuracy actually matter to me.

Comedy Central’s Jon Stewart has called Fox News a, “relentless agenda-driven 24 hour news opinion propaganda delivery system” and has even said that Fox News media viewers are the most consistently misinformed. Why should you believe a comedian? You shouldn’t. You should believe someone who checks facts and you should realize that throughout history the best comedy is the comedy that exposes the truths we’ve failed to see. Fox News is all-too-often consistently pro-Christian and seemingly anti-every-other-religion despite the fact that Christians are likely the cause of more murder than members of any other religious ideology. Here’s a fact: part of the reason the Christian faith spread and is so powerful is because Christians have murdered thousands upon thousands of non-believers throughout history. Once again, Jon Stewart, a comedian, calls Fox out on this. See here.

Repetition is a literary tool that can manipulate an audience. As such, the famous Fox News slogan of “Fair & Balanced” continues to brainwash newcomers while allowing victims to remain loyal. Here is snapshot of the top rated definition for the term on Urban Dictionary:

I am not so much making a grand statement by pointing out the absurdities of Fox News as I am finally throwing my hat into the ring and encouraging others who agree but sit in quiet desperation to do the same. See below for a brief list of places who strive to support truth. I’ve boycotted Fox News. There are so many brilliant minds out there who will share their negative opinion about Fox News through conversation but have yet to take the time to write about it. Writing about it is equally important although even that isn’t enough. It’s the same concept as courageous CNN anchor Don Lemon addressed about his coming out. The more who come out the easier it is for others to do the same. (Note to Fox News viewers who might be reading this: There is nothing wrong with being gay.) In this fast-paced Twitter-world of rapid information and lack of reading it is not enough for us writers just to write. We must act.

Here is Keith Olbermann speaking about Rush Limbaugh, Bill O’Reilly and Glenn Beck:

The list of outspoken people commenting on the negatives of Fox News could go on forever. From former Presidents to Roger Ebert who said: “Fox is not objective. Fox is a Republican propaganda machine.” It seems like there have been countless times where I’ve visited the Fox News site and clicked on a story only to be redirected to a URL for an obviously spun story. Not to mention the time when @FoxNewsPolitics was “hacked” and claimed Obama had been shot dead. Or the birth certificate nonsense. Or the continued use of Obama’s middle name of Hussein to conjure fear in their brainwashed base. Or the rants against Planned Parenthood and well-respected unions and sex education and rationality.

For years I’ve tried to ignore the respected public figures, organizations, comedians and modern-day heroes who have been outspoken against Fox News. For years I’ve sought to find my own truth. I have. And I believe Fox News is – as countless others before me have said – distorting America through distorting news. But this distortion is coupled with their sheer power (in my case: to be the sole American news station on many cable providers outside of America) and it is for this reason that I believe Fox News is seriously crippling America’s reputation abroad. If foreigners want to watch American news they often turn to Fox News. And, especially if they come from a place where news is actually news, they are going to turn to it with relatively trusting minds. People “blast” Fox News by saying it is right-wing ideology but it’s far worse. Maybe right-wing idiotology rings truer. The garbage they often present doesn’t deserve to have three letters of the word idea attached to it.

Here is Bill Maher addressing some of the craziness:

As far as opinions go and because Fox is allowed to express theirs repeatedly under the banner of “News,” here’s mine: Because of the tremendously wide reach Fox News has and because it directly states, expands or insinuates stereotypes and untruths:

I believe Fox News is the single most dangerous and devisive television program not just in America, but in the world. Members of my own family believe some of the crud spewing from their propaganda machine – that Muslims are primarily bad or that gays and abortion are sinful or that Obama is going to take their guns or is racist or is going to take away social security for disabled people. This stuff influences voters and just as Fox News is crushing our reputation abroad these voters are crushing our country from within. Even relatively minor issues like the death of one of the greatest writers our country has even seen is butchered and warped:

We’ll never have perfect politicians or perfect news programs or perfect political parties or perfect anything. But deception, like murder, has its degrees. And I’ve had enough.