This bothers me

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press

That would be the first amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Fox News is a "propaganda machine" for the White House and is being used to promote a potential military strike on Iran.

That would be a quote from Senator Bernard Sanders.

The Constitution does prevent Congress from abridging freedom of the press, but it doesn't prohibit any one member of Congress from threatening a media outlet.  To me, the quote does have, as the American Civil Liberties Union likes to say, a "chilling effect" on free speech.  Unfortunately, I haven't seen the ACLU react to a U.S. Senator's attack on a  media company. 

I can't recall a member of Congress singling out a media company for a specific attack like this.  Joe McCarthy did it, unsuccessfully, to Edward R. Murrow, but that was a long time ago.

Read the article, then watch the video.  I have no problem with slick videos that try to make a point.  Michael Moore does it all the time, and very successfully (from a commercial point of view).  But Senator Sanders is, well, a U.S. Senator and should be much more careful about who he attacks and how he attacks them.

The Freeps has an AP article on the same subject today, which is not on their website, but it is here--and the headline of the story is very revealing: Senator and filmmaker take on Fox News.

The AP story, which could have been titled  Fair and Balanced? has this comment on the objectivity of the video attack.

One media observer said the video lacked balance and journalistic credibility.

"They are accusing others of doing what they have done, which is to stitch together multiple snippets of video and very short sound bites to make an ideological argument," said Bob Steele, the Nelson Poynter Scholar for Journalism Values at the Poynter Institute school for journalists in St. Petersburg, Fla.

Senator Sanders ought to remember that he is, after all, a U.S. Senator and not a political gadfly like he used to be.

Comments

[Charity]

I had that same reaction when I saw the story in the Free Press this morning.

[Lazarus Long]

Bernie.....He has managed to get himself into the big leagues but still acts like a street thug activist. I guess he still is trying to get used to wearing a suit and a tie.

[David Bumgardner]

Sen. Sanders can make comments regarding Fox news with immunity. One wonders how he has missed ever listening to PBS? We the people pay in part for that opinion whether we agree or not. Fox, though often strident, is free and gives another viewpoint. Sen. Sanders has always had difficulty with beliefs and opinions other than his own. It formed and developed his speaking manner.

[oldvter]

What's more discouraging than Bernie's constant but typical antics is the fact that a significant majority (of which I've never been a part) keep re-electing him (and the rest of our DC delegation), reflecting the prevailing mindset here in Vermont. Go figure, we have per capita the highest tax, biggest government, and well known for being most business unfriendly.
But wait! We're always in the top ten for quality of life/places to live -- that is for those that can afford it...which is why Vermont also has a reputation as the playground for the rich and famous.