Those who claimed to be surprised by the storming of the Capitol by Trump’s far-right supporters would do well to watch the excellent series “Loudest Voice” on ERTFLIX (one of ERT’s best picks). H loudest voice tells his story Roger Ailes , who transformed the Fox News (owned by Rupert Murdoch) into one of the most powerful and influential media networks in history, reinforcing racist views, waging an extreme campaign against Barack Obama (among other things, he labeled him a communist…) and contributing to the creation of anti-Muslim hysteria in the wake of 9/11. Interestingly, he was ousted following allegations of sexual harassment against him by a female TV host, which led many other women who had suffered terribly at the hands of Ailes to speak out…

The Fox News with the Roger Ailes As director, he chose populist journalists and attractive women to staff his shows; he made sure there were no people of color in front of the cameras; did not hesitate to broadcast harrowing scenes (such as the free fall to their deaths of civilians who jumped from the burning Twin Towers), invested in reinforcing extreme conservative ideas to foster notions of «superiority,» and did not hesitate to deliberately broadcast lies (e.g., regarding Saddam Hussein’s possession of weapons of mass destruction) to foster hatred and pave the way for the invasion of Iraq. He also paved the way for the Trump era by fostering all the elements that constituted the essence of «Trumpism.» Even the slogan «Make America Great Again» was first used by Ailes in a speech he gave in Warren, Ohio.

Here, it is worth «turning our attention» to our own country and looking for similarities and differences: At a time when the Roger Ailes When FOX launched (October 1996) in Greece, there were still media outlets trying to maintain their independence (I am not referring to the political leanings that all media outlets have, but to their integration into a strictly controlled propaganda machine). Gradually, many media outlets came under the control of financial tycoons, particularly television stations. Ailes’s «formulas» are also being adopted, sometimes verbatim, sometimes adapted. Extreme populist rhetoric, sexism, and the incitement of hatred toward various «enemies» (immigrants, Roma, anarchists, students, civil servants, etc.) are prominent features in many programs. Especially when it comes to the far right, the media in our country bear a huge responsibility. The «Golden Dawn thugs» who «watch over the old ladies when they go to ATMs,» the pogroms against immigrants, racism, sexism, and jingoism were broadcast and supported by television channels as well as a segment of the media. The murder of Pavlos Fyssas and the massive public outcry forced them into a «partial retreat.» We saw the same logic at the rallies against the Prespa Agreement and in other instances. Fortunately, there were also voices that not only distanced themselves but also exposed the far-right «agenda.».

The problem is that the Roger Ailes He died in 2017, but his legacy lives on and continues to have political repercussions. The silver lining (as far as the U.S. is concerned) is that the major television networks seem to have decided that it is not in their best interest to amplify such extreme views, because the «monster» they create becomes uncontrollable and dangerous. So, a few days after the election, they cut the live feed of Donald Trump’s remarks (who was still the U.S. president…) because they judged that the 45th U.S. president was deliberately misinforming viewers. MSNBC was the first to cut the live broadcast, followed by NBC News and ABC News, while CNN anchor Jake Tapper countered Trump immediately afterward: «What a sad night for America, when it sees its president (…) falsely accusing people of trying to steal the election, attacking our democracy with lies.».

In our country, the following types of news coverage Roger Ailes They continue. The channels are discredited, but they are still very powerful because there is no «rival force» nor any social backlash… Of course, there is also the obvious responsibility of a segment of the political world that uses the divisive rhetoric promoted by the networks. Every FOX needs its Trump, and every form of Trumpism needs TV channels to broadcast it…

(P.S. Be sure to check out *The Loudest Voice* on ERTFLIX. Watch it with your kids and talk about it with them…).