Fox News asked if Carson would run for president earlier this year (Credit: Fox News, screenshot)
Fox News ended its working relationship with Dr. Ben Carson after Carson indicated he is considering a run for president in 2016.
iMediaEthics asked Fox News for comment about the decision to axe Carson’s contributor status. Fox News pointed us to Erik Wemple’s Nov. 7 Washington Post report, “Fox News cuts ties with Ben Carson.”
According to that story, “The Fox News spokeswoman says that Carson understood the network’s reasons for terminating his contributor status and that the two parted amicably.”
ABC News reported that Carson “will air an hour-long ad introducing himself to the American people this weekend,” according to an “aide to Carson.”
The ad is described by ABC News as a documentary, “A Breath of Fresh Air: A New Prescription for America,” and was paid for by Carson’s business manager Armstrong Williams, according to the Washington Times, which ABC said broke the news about the documentary.
“The documentary provides insight into Mr. Carson’s family life and how he has made the jump from being born to a single mother to becoming a famed neurosurgeon and now a political rock star in some conservatives circles,” the Washington Times reported.
Carson posted on Instagram the below promo for the program
Carson is the Emeritus Benjamin S. Carson, Sr., M.D. and Dr. Evelyn Spiro, R.N. Professor of Pediatric Neurosurgery at John Hopkins.
Fox News hired Carson as a contributor in October 2013.
Earlier this year, Fox News aired a segment, “Will Dr. Ben Carson run for president in 2016?” He said he didn’t “want to do it” but he “would give it serious consideration.”
Corrections
A quick sidenote on corrections on reporting on Carson today.
ABC News published a correction on its article to reflect that Carson hasn’t formally said he’s running. The correction reads:
“CORRECTION: Due to an editing error, an earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that Ben Carson made an opening bid for the Republican presidential nomination. Carson has not made a formal announcement for president, but has said he is ‘starting to think about it.’ ABC News regrets the error.”
And the Washington Post’s Wemple published a correction about the length of the video and to report that Carson’s business manager argues the video isn’t an ad, even though the air time has been purchased. The correction reads:
“* Correction: Based on a news report, this item originally put the length of the video at 40 minutes. However, Carson’s business manager, Armstrong Williams of Armstrong Williams Productions, tells the Erik Wemple Blog that the length of the video is actually 58 minutes and 30 seconds. Williams also insists that the video is not an ad but rather a documentary. Given the business relationship between Williams and Carson, we’ll go with the hybrid ‘ad/documentary.'”
Earlier this year, Fox News ended Scott Brown’s contract with the network because he was planning to run for U.S. Senate in New Hampshire. He lost his race.
Last year, Fox News ended Liz Cheney’s contract since she was planning to run for U.S. Senate.
In 2011, Fox News fired Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum because they were both considering running for office.
