Fox News and and the Trump administration, have been swapping people back and forth from Fox and the White House to take on different positions. Should this be allowed? Is there something suspicious about this? Why are these arrangements being made? In the article titled – The Making of the Fox News White House – author, Jane Mayer, explains “Joe Peyronnin, a professor of journalism at N.Y.U., was an early president of Fox News, in the mid-nineties. [Concerning Fox, Peyronnin contributes to the conversation, saying…] ‘I’ve never seen anything like it before… It’s as if the President has his own press organization. It’s not healthy.” Peyronnin recognizes what President Trump is doing – that he is personally creating his own press organization and giving people certain jobs for his own benefit – and he knows it is wrong.

Author, Kevin Matthews, writes the article Does Fox News Control the White House? Here’s the Evidence. Matthew explains his view of the subject, which is similar to that of Joe Peyronnin. He says, “Fox News serves as a propaganda outlet for conservative politics, but the extent to which the Donald Trump administration and cable channel have become so troublingly intermingled that it needs to be screamed from the rooftops (Matthews).” The fact that Fox and the White House have become so intermingled is one of the defining reasons for why it is so unhealthy. In fact, Matthews goes on – giving detail as to who exactly is being entangled – saying – “Trump’s national security advisor, deputy national security advisor and HUD secretary (John Bolton, K.T. McFarland and Ben Carson, respectively) were all plucked from their roles as Fox contributors to join the White House.” Trump is specifically choosing people to move from there positions in Fox, in order to work for him in the white house.

Further blurring ethical lines, a man by the name of Bill Shine “used to be the president of Fox News and gained notoriety for allegedly playing a role in ignoring Roger Ailes’s chronic sexual harassment, went on to serve as Trump’s deputy chief of staff and director of communications. He even continued to collect money from Fox News in the form of bonuses while at the White House” (Matthews). This is not okay, and is definitely looked down upon. Furthermore, while switching roles with people in the white house and Fox news, it has clearly benefited people like Bill Shine who is getting bonuses from his old job, Trump is also reaping benefits. Kevin Matthews found out that “Two sources told Mayer that they had firsthand knowledge of Fox providing Trump with questions in advance for the GOP primary debates…” (Matthews). Trump is being unethical and it makes him look really bad to be accepting information that should be kept private.

Overall, Fox News and the White House have become too intertwined by swapping people back and forth. This should not be allowed because it is giving people like Trump and Bill Shine too many unethical benefits, and it has created an unhealthy relationship between the White House and Fox News. Also, by choosing who he wants to work where, Trump is selfishly looking out for himself, and in turn it is making him appear suspicious and untrustworthy.