Okay look, I’m an equal opportunity misanthrope. I can find fault and idiocy in almost any human endeavor and view. It’s a gift.

But one view that has me particularly annoyed recently is a certain sort of ideologue stating as a matter of fact that Fox News Channel is not conservative, even that they’re liberal. That is just loony stuff and it emanates, of course, from the Trumpist populists.

Because FNC does not buy into Trump’s views on the result of the 2020 election, populists decry the news organization as some dark tool of the Deep State, New World Order, or whatever mythical group populates their feverish nightmares this week. Any legitimate analysis indicates that the basic conservatism of FNC is strong.

First off, the left hates Fox. Just go to Twitter or Facebook and see what Democrats, the NYT, the WaPo, and CNN think about Fox News. That’s pretty definitive. Those organizations wouldn’t loathe Fox so much if it was carrying water for them.

Then look at the Fox show lineup? Where are the liberals? The Five? Yeah, so they can look dumb at the hands of Gutfeld. Carlson, Waters, Ingraham, Gutfeld himself? All conservatives in good standing. What the populists take exception to is even though the Fox lineup is generally pro-Trump, they don’t consider his word holy writ. As the populist hordes are obsessed with cult of personality politics and thus have deified Trump, they take umbrage at even fair and objective treatment of their peasant icon.

But the real question we should be asking is, do we actually want conservative media? Wouldn’t we prefer objective media? For if we think we’re correct on issues, wouldn’t factual objective media not biased in any way still prove us right?

It could do that without engaging in the biggest problem on some sectors of the right: confirmation bias. Thinking what you want to be true instead of what is actually true, something the left wholly succumbed to decades ago, leaves us as prey to those politicians and media outlets that merely amplify our own biases and prejudices back at us and call it news.

Those of an objective frame of mind do not need an ideological echo chamber, but can work the truth out for themselves after consulting myriad sources and viewpoints. Conservative, even populist, leaning news is fine to read, watch, or listen to as long as you don’t always consider it the end of the story and thus take the time to think for yourself.

You may be asking, why is a guy who makes his living as a conservative pundit asking me to read the other side? I’m not, necessarily. I’m asking you to read me and anyone else you want, but to buttress your views with your own research.

In that way you won’t he disappointed with Fox or anyone else if they don’t toe your particular line. And you won’t be looking for enemies at basically conservative places like Fox News, because you’ll realize as you scan the ideological spectrum that Fox is a friend, not a heretic.

Okay Carlson, are you happy now? Are you finally gonna return my golf clubs and settle up on that bet over whether Woodrow Wilson dated Nancy Pelosi? Jeez…