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You are here: Home / Open Threads / It’s coming from inside the television

It’s coming from inside the television

by | 99 Comments

This post is in: 

I like this story: Gawker hires a mole at Fox News, who brings a video:

Romney professes his and his wife Ann’s well-known love of horseriding, praising the qualities of the “Austrian Warmbloods” that his wife rides—the are “dressage” horses, he notes—while maintaining his own preference for the “smoother gait” of his own “Missouri foxtrotter.”

The next day Fox claims:

“We found the person and we’re exploring legal options at this time.”

The mole today:

If Fox has smoked me out, it’s news to me. I’m still here. Back to work.

Countdown to Howie Kurtz and Bill Keller denouncing the mole and calling for his/her prosecution.

Reader Interactions

99Comments

  2. 2.

    geg6

    I have been following this story all day. Funniest fucking thing I’ve wasted time on at work in years.

  3. 3.

    dmsilev

    I’m waiting for the ultimate reveal in which we learn that there never was a mole, and Gawker was just fucking with Fox’s corporate mind.

  7. 7.

    Mickey

    I’m loving how the mole is taunting them. I liked his (or her?) analogy how they are John McClane from Die Hard, crawling around in the air ducts. A fly in the ointment…lol.

    Love how Fox goes straight for the lawyer card. Bet ole paranoid Ailes really has his panties in a bunch over this. Wouldn’t it be sweet of one of these Fox lawsuits for wrongful dismissal or whatever made it to the supreme court. That would keep the media well fed with red meat for months.

  8. 8.

    jibeaux

    I hope the person they first inaccurately identified as the mole and explored legal options against becomes Gawker Mole #2.

  10. 10.

    Schlemizel

    @jibeaux:
    I would prefer they become “Plaintiff” in the wrongful termination suit that FAUX loses for several million dollars – hit em where it hurts!

  12. 12.

    JGabriel

    @dmsilev:

    I’m waiting for the ultimate reveal in which we learn that there never was a mole, and Gawker was just fucking with Fox’s corporate mind.

    … followed by 173 people filing a class action suit against Fox News for wrongful termination.

    .

  13. 13.

    catclub

    @efgoldman: Didn’t someone dare Hannity to be water boarded to show that it is ‘not so bad’? And Hannity naturally pretended not to hear?

  14. 14.

    Carnacki

    To be fair, the initial statement and follow up from Fox News say they know who it is, not that the person had been approached, fired, disciplined, etc.

  15. 15.

    Warren Terra

    Wait … a “Missouri foxtrotter” is a horse? Because it sounds like it would be a great euphemism for something …

    (Also, perhaps to a lesser degree, “Austrian warmblood”)

  16. 16.

    Anonymous37

    Romney professes his and his wife Ann’s well-known love of horseriding, praising the qualities of the “Austrian Warmbloods” that his wife rides—the are “dressage” horses, he notes—while maintaining his own preference for the “smoother gait” of his own “Missouri foxtrotter.”

    Isn’t this the bombshell part of this whole story, not the fact that there’s a mole at Fox? I haven’t seen the video of this yet, but isn’t this a devastating self-inflicted wound against Romney, and by association, Sean Hannity?

  18. 18.

    Amir Khalid

    I am intrigued to hear of a breed of horse called the Austrian Warmblood. Does this mean that there are also cold-blooded horses in Austria?

    (I was also going to make a joke about a dressage-horse breed called the Tennessee Waltzer. But then I thought, “Nah, too obvious.”)

  19. 19.

    ThatLeftTurnInABQ

    Romney professes his and his wife Ann’s well-known love of horseriding, praising the qualities of the “Austrian Warmbloods” that his wife rides

    __
    I always knew that the Austrian school of economics was a bit off, but I didn’t think they were into that anything quite that kinky. Ponyboys on Wall St! Yeehaa!

  20. 20.

    wrb

    @Mickey:

    Bet ole paranoid Ailes really has his panties in a bunch over this.

    Could this Guy know anything as juicy as what has been coming out of
    News Corp’s English holdings?

    Anticipa-a-a-ation

  23. 23.

    Narcissus

    Maybe Romney is actually talking about whores and boy-toys. I mean that would probably be better.

  26. 26.

    Xecky Gilchrist

    @Amir Khalid: Does this mean that there are also cold-blooded horses in Austria?

    I think it means that dressage is such an ancient tradition that they used to ride giant lizards. The term dates from when horses first evolved.

  28. 28.

    JWL

    They seek him here,/ They seek him there,/ Those Foxies seek him everywhere./ Is he in heaven,/ Or is he in hell?/ Our own elusive Pimpernel.

  30. 30.

    wrb

    @Amir Khalid:

    a breed of horse called the Austrian Warmblood

    Most of the traditional European horse breeds that are not draft horses are considered warmbloods.

    Draft horses: coldbloods
    Arabs & those with a lot of Arab blood, like thoroughbreds: hot bloods
    The classic European saddle & carriage horses: warmbloods

    The warmbloods include some very fine horses.

  32. 32.

    scav

    Ah, but News International is all over the “It’s entirely OK if it’s in the Public Interest(tm) ” school of justifying dodgy journalistic techniques. Fake Sheik? This is just a meat-based hack, and I’m sure phones are involved somewhere.

  35. 35.

    Gin & Tonic

    @wrb: Thanks for the explanation, but I prefer to keep thinking of “Austrian warmblood” quite differently, as I suspect some others here do as well. High-heeled black boots begin the look, and… well, you know where this is going.

  36. 36.

    ThatLeftTurnInABQ

    This is why the Mittbots can’t relate to ordinary people, because for them every sentence which ends with “…and a pony!” comes true!

  39. 39.

    wrb

    “Missouri foxtrotter” is a horse

    One of its defining characteristics is that as it fox trots (a diagonal 4-beat gait that reportedly makes for a smooth ride) it is constantly nodding its head in apparent agreement.

    (true fact)

  41. 41.

    GregB

    Fox has undertaken a joint merchandising venture with National Review.

    They are marketing superhero outfits that the viewers and readers will just love.

    Super Douche!

  42. 42.

    nellcote

    praising the qualities of the “Austrian Warmbloods” that his wife rides

    Anne and Arnold Schwartzenegger?

  43. 43.

    BDeevDad

    In related news, National Review had to fire another blogger for racism. Doesn’t this type of news usually come in threes?

  44. 44.

    Richard

    We could have used a mole at the NY Times when the likes of Judith “I was proved fucking right” Miller was ginning up bullshit to justify invading Iraq back in 2003. I’d like to have seen what the behind the scenes action was like on that fakery.

  45. 45.

    henrythefifth

    How can this comment thread have gone on so long w/o anyone mentioning Hannity’s comment about how his wife has to play tennis every day, or else! These rich guys are hilarious. Must be rough!

  46. 46.

    scav

    @Gin & Tonic: OK, whatever rocks your hobbyhorse. I can see wrestling the fishnet stockings on the horse but how in the hell does one manage high-heel black boots? Especially with the horseshoes, (although the metal bits would be rather exciting to some) I’m just really really struggling with the heels part. Especially anything tending toward the stiletto, those beasts are heavy.

  49. 49.

    pragmatism

    Faux now sez that “We know who it is” but they haven’t approached the person. OMG THE CALL IS COMING FROM INSIDE THE HOUSE!

  50. 50.

    PeakVT

    This mole could be great fun if he lasts (prolly not a she given the bathroom story). I hope he and Gawker talked about covering his tracks.

    I wonder how many conservative moles there are in liberal organizations (not counting centrist types that operate in the open).

  51. 51.

    ThatLeftTurnInABQ

    @scav:

    I can see wrestling the fishnet stockings on the horse but how in the hell does one manage high-heel black boots?

    __
    LOL.
    This train of thought puts Richard III at Bosworth in a whole new light. For want of a nail…

  53. 53.

    gex

    Poor dears. Fox is used to being the ones spying, not being spied upon.

    Taste of their own medicine.

  54. 54.

    BGinCHI

    I’d like to see Romney do an ad with that Electric Horseman suit on. I bet he has one.

  55. 55.

    Randy P

    This is a lot of fun, but has the mole done any actual damage? If we learn that the management at Fox are a**holes, is this going to surprise anyone?

  56. 56.

    patrick II

    @catclub:

    From Huffington:

    The debate over torture is getting personal for two of cable TV’s prime-time hosts. After Fox News Channel’s Sean Hannity made a seemingly impromptu offer last week to undergo waterboarding as a benefit for charity, MSNBC’s Keith Olbermann leapt at it. He offered $1,000 to the families of U.S. troops for every second Hannity withstood the technique.
    __
    Olbermann repeated the offer on Monday’s show and said in an interview Tuesday that he’s heard no response. He said he’ll continue to pursue it.
    __
    “I don’t think he has the courage to even respond to this _ let alone do it,” Olbermann said.

    Keith has his moments.

  57. 57.

    Culture of Truth

    this is no doubt adding to the atmosphere of mutual suspicion and finger pointing at Fox

  62. 62.

    Catsy

    @PeakVT:

    This mole could be great fun if he lasts (prolly not a she given the bathroom story). I hope he and Gawker talked about covering his tracks.

    If Fox’s info security is even slightly competent, he’s already toast. We already know what department he works in. Some of what he’s written suggests that he’s posted while he’s at work. Unless he is doing that on his smartphone without accessing corporate WiFi, it should be trivial to isolate his traffic.

    As entertaining as this is, unless this is Gawker trolling Fox and the Internet, I don’t see this ending favorably for the mole.

  63. 63.

    samara morgan

    @wrb: ann romney’s horse is a registered oldenberg stallion that she doesn’t ride.
    she pays Jan Ebling, professional rider, to ride him.
    im a horse person and i do not know wtf an “austrian warmblood” is.
    german warmbloods are trakaeners, oldenbergs, hanoverians and holsteiners.

  66. 66.

    Tavism

    No big deal, but the mole did a fantastic job of humanizing Mitt Romney. “Dressage” or no “Dressage” Romney comes across as
    a decent guy, something he can’t do when the red light goes on.

    Maybe he is a Romney mole rather than a FOX mole ;)

  67. 67.

    Culture of Truth

    “If you pay someone else to ride your dressage horse….ya might be Romney”

  68. 68.

    samara morgan

    @Amir Khalid: tennesee walkers and missouri foxtrotters are gaited breeds, incapable of doing anything useful like dressage or jumping.

  69. 69.

    Violet

    @Catsy:
    If he has half a brain, he’ll certainly not be accessing corporate wifi to communicate during work hours. Smartphones really have made this sort of thing much easier in a lot of ways.

    We already know what department he works in.

    We don’t know for sure, do we? We just know he has access to the video.

  71. 71.

    Amir Khalid

    @Catsy:
    Agreed. It won’t take Fox too long to identify The Mole, because they know what was leaked and who had access to it. I hope The Mole has already taken this into account and planned a clean getaway, rather than waiting to be confronted and thinking all the while that Fox have no clue.

  73. 73.

    redshirt

    I think you’re all giving corporate IT security too much credit. They want you to think they’re all knowing, all powerful, but they’re often not. If they can find him, I bet it takes a while, and possibly only if the mole makes an egregious mistake.

  74. 74.

    Mark S.

    @Catsy:

    Yeah, I’ve been thinking the same thing. Unless he’s being super careful, this isn’t going to last very long.

    Of course, it sounds like he wants to be fired. I just hope it lasts a little longer.

  75. 75.

    BGinCHI

    Would Fox even notice if the mole were actually a mole?

    You know, a blind, hairy, insect-eating pest?

    They’d have to fire almost everyone.

  76. 76.

    Jay in Oregon

    @Tavism:

    I mentioned this is an earlier thread, and I agree.

    Of course he’s on Fox News, which will only lob the softest of softballs at him, but he’s relaxed and he’s chatty.

    While I’d rather have my liver torn out by an eagle than vote for the man, Romney comes across as an actual person in that clip.

  78. 78.

    Elizabelle

    @Jay in Oregon:

    You and Tavism beat me to it.

    Viva the mole!

    The Romney in that clip was somewhat endearing.

    (1) He wasn’t saying anything nasty about Obama, and I didn’t catch any outright lies on anything.

    (2) Yeah, he’s a rich dude with a rich and privileged wife (who may not consider herself rich, whatever), but he seemed intelligent and authentic there. He’s with a fellow millionaire who gets a lot of airtime. He’s among his peeps.

    (3) He shows a sense of humor — the Trump tie, Edwards’ primping (Romney says five minutes, Hannity goes for hyperbole with “an hour”). He’s also cautious and exercises judgment. He’s not trash talking. He looks wary when it’s time for the interview to begin.

  79. 79.

    wrb

    @samara morgan:

    Gaited breeds can jump and learn dressage just fine. What
    they are exceptional at, though, is covering ground while keeping
    the the rider comfortable. The were favorites in the civil was. Robert R. Lee’s horse, Traveller,
    was gaited.

    I’ve been tempted to get one for trail and endurance riding.

  80. 80.

    Violet

    @Jay in Oregon:
    An actual rich person, maybe. Who talks about their his-n-hers horses except very rich people?

    And then he and Hannity both talking about how their wives have to do whatever (ride horses, play tennis) on a regular basis or they just get all out of whack–that’ll play well with the rich white guy demographic they’ve already got sewn up, but it isn’t going to make women like them any more.

  83. 83.

    Laertes

    Romney in that video is more human and likeable than his stage persona. I suspect he’d do a lot better campaigning as a real patrician than as a fake man of the people. Most people don’t hate rich people. Everyone hates a fake.

  84. 84.

    redshirt

    @Amir Khalid: Oh, agree 100% 110% in fact. I just don’t have the lofty regard for Corporate IT as many have posted here. The bigger the corporation, in fact, the more incompetent they’ll be. And from what I can gather about Fox, I bet they’re pretty incompetent.

  85. 85.

    Jay in Oregon

    @Violet:
    I’m not saying “Guys, stop with the Romneybot jokes! You’re being mean!” If he wants to get elected, he has to figure out how to connect with voters, and he’s spectacularly bad at it. I hope it costs him the election, because I think he would be disastrous for the country.

    So the guy is comfortable among people he has more in common with? That goes for just about everybody. Hopefully, after he gets his ass kicked by the voters in November he and his wife can go back to his-and-hers horseback riding and leave the rest of us alone.

    All I’m saying is, I was pleasantly surprised that Romney can be an actual person at times.

  87. 87.

    Tavism

    One more thing: are those dentures?
    You would think if you make $21M a year in un-earned income you could afford better caps or whatever they call those dental veneers actors use.

  88. 88.

    Baron Jrod of Keeblershire

    I don’t think “but he’s very personable around his fellow millionaires” is going to help Romney much in November.

  89. 89.

    David in NY

    How odd that some people think this makes him human. I mean, that sickening clubiness is appealing? The insider chit chat about an enormously expensive hobbby, with the interviewer matching him for insideriness? I think he looks far more detached from normal life than ever did the first Bush, and old G.H.W. seemed pretty removed from the ordinary world (the bit about his not understanding a bar-code reader at the store was wrong, but it stuck because it was right). The “I’m really, really rich” just oozes out of the real Romney. I hope every prospective voter in the country sees it.

  90. 90.

    David in NY

    @Violet:

    it isn’t going to make women like them

    This too. “The old girls have to have their fun or they get cranky, you know.” Creepy.

  91. 91.

    Odie Hugh Manatee

    The Mole is toast if Faux forces everyone there to undergo a lie detector test.

    Everyone but The Mole will fail it, easily exposing him.

    I’m hoping that with the ‘instant fame’ that the internet provides today, some enterprising soul at Faux will expose some really juicy shit that ruins them.

    It’s not surprising that the Romneys love riding warmbloods.

    Reptiles like warm stuff, it keeps them moving.

    ETA: Zim charged with Murder II. Yeah!

  93. 93.

    Martin

    @Jay in Oregon:

    All I’m saying is, I was pleasantly surprised that Romney can be an actual person at times.

    If you prick us, do we not leak coolant? If you tickle us, do we not emulate an emotional response? If you poison us, do we not report the presence of impurities in our logs? And if you wrong us, shall we not whine about the lamestream media to the lamestream media? If we are like you in the rest, we will pretend to resemble you in our attempt to curry your vote.

  94. 94.

    Catsy

    @Violet: Seems pretty easy to infer from this post:

    The basement newsroom is dreary, with no windows, fluorescent lighting, and constant worrying about an infestation from bedbugs, mice or some other vermin. Nobody really has a lunch break, so we bolt down our food at our desks like convicts and toss our sandwich wrappers and salad bowls into the wastepaper baskets under our desks, creating a tasty daily buffet for insects.
    __
    The place is oddly low-rent. The computers are all at least 6 or 7 years old, and can barely run more than two software programs at a time. Everyone has a TV at their desk with a cable hookup, but the signal is bad and constantly cuts out and has static on half the channels. Half the printers are usually out of commission, and god help you if you have to find a working fax machine.

    Could be a web of misdirection and bullshit, but that’s an awfully detailed description of a specific office.

    Edit: aaaaaand, apparently we’re back to having to fool FYWP into not arbitrarily breaking up paragraphs in blockquotes.

  96. 96.

    Groucho48

    @samara morgan:

    Dressage is useful?

    Who knew?

    I would have thought a horse that was good at moving along easily and comfortably for its rider would be more useful.

  98. 98.

    Jake

    Good luck winning wrongful termination, especially for something like this, in New York. Won’t survive a motion to dismiss.

  99. 99.

    Purse Organizer

    That would have given them a major advantage if they had of, although that still wouldn’t enough to beat us I think. But where did you learn that, I looked for it a little but found nothing.

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