Seth MacFarlane Delivers Laughable Take On American Media, Calls Fox News Money-Grubbers, NYT Truth-Tellers

I'll be the first to admit that I love "Family Guy" and consider it to be the second-best adult cartoon show ever created (South Park is clearly #1). I believe that, creatively, Seth MacFarlane is a genius and one of the most talented people in the comedy business. That being said, his recent comments on American journalism – specifically regarding the New York Times and Fox News – are nothing short of delusional.

MacFarlane appeared on a podcast called "Logically Speaking" hosted by a rapper named "Logic." I had never heard of him or this show before a clip surfaced on my X timeline. 

Apparently, the interview is two months old, but didn't gain much traction. That's not surprising, given that the commentary between the two is utterly ridiculous. 

One topic that they discussed is the state of American journalism and both expressed their deep admiration for people who have a college degree in Journalism. Full disclosure: I have a college degree in Journalism, so they should probably listen very carefully to what I have to say. 

Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane delivered a bizarre rant about the New York Times, Fox News and the state of American journalism.

(USA Today Network)

"I think journalists are f***ing incredible," Logic states. 

"Yes, so do I," MacFarlane quickly adds.

Thanks, guys! I appreciate that. Though, I think by the end of this article, you might not have such reverence for everyone with a journalism degree. 

"I will defend to the death the presence and existence of journalists," MacFarlane gushes. Thanks again, Seth! Remember that in about three paragraphs. 

Seth MacFarlane says New York Times writers "do their best" to "communicate truth" 

"When you look at a New York Times article … whether you agree with it or not, whether you connect with it or not, has been written by somebody who did the research … in an attempt to communicate the truth to their audience," he says. 

OK, so if a person has a college degree and works for the New York Times, that immediately makes them a truth-teller, according to MacFarlane. 

Seth MacFarlane believes the New York Times is above reproach because everyone there is a real "journalist."

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This is the same company that sent an employee to HR because he liked Chic-Fil-A only to be scolded by other employees that Chic-Fil-A "hates gay people." 

To be clear, the Chic-Fil-A Chairman and CEO, Dan Cathy, opposes gay marriage. Agree or disagree with that opinion, he has never once said that he "hates gay people." Nor does the company refuse service to gay people or deny gay people the opportunity to work at Chic-Fil-A. 

This is one of the many examples – I could go on for days – of the New York Times openly ignoring the truth in favor of its own righteous ideology. 

But MacFarlane has the audacity to claim that American people should accept what someone writes in the New York Times because writers there "attempt to communicate the truth to their audience" and they "do their best." 

Seriously, he also wants us to listen to them because they try real hard. That's also why we should not be mad if they make a mistake. 

"Maybe they f***ed up, but they did their best," MacFarlane says. 

MacFarlane takes aim at Fox News, claiming that the network only cares about money 

MacFarlane pivots to Fox News, calling the network the antithesis of the New York Times. 

"Fox News is in it for the dough. That's that's as simple as I can put it," MacFarlane says. "They're in it for the money, and they make a lot of money, and they get a lot of viewers. Is it worth it? Wouldn't be to me. I wouldn't be able to sleep at night," he said.  

This is such a classic example of prioritizing ideology over logic (pardon the pun) and reasoning. Let's break this down: MacFarlane claims that Fox News' goal is to make money. By saying it like that, he implies that the New York Times' goal is to not make money (which, by the way, they're great at, so maybe he has a point). 

But that's absurd. Most news organizations in the United States operate on a for-profit basis. We can certainly debate the merits of that system, but it's the one we have. 

Seth MacFarlane delusionally claims that the New York Times isn't interested in money, they only want to do what's "right." 

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And, by the way, despite the pitfalls of for-profit media, it's still much better than a system of non-profit media that gets all of its funding from the government, which then gives the government control over said media. 

America has something called "Freedom of the Press." China does not. Which system do you prefer? Which system does MacFarlane prefer? 

"Family Guy" is banned in more than 10 countries. Think that's good, Seth? And, like he mentioned, I did the research and the legwork to make sure I got that fact correct. Putting that college degree in Journalism to good use! 

American citizens should ignore the mistakes of New York Times because they're "not perfect," according to the creator of "Family Guy"  

MacFarlane also does something that I absolutely loathe when someone is defending someone or something. MacFarlane says the New York Times is "not perfect." 

Again, this absolves them from making mistakes. When Fox News makes a mistake, in Seth's mind, it's in an attempt to make money. When the Times does it, it's excusable because, hey, they're not perfect. Got that? 

"Everyone thinks they're an expert," MacFarlane continues. "Everybody thinks that they know better than the person who did the legwork. Everybody thinks they know better than the person who put in the hours, did the research, did the interviews, did the follow-up, did the best that they could to make sure that everything that they put into print is factual." 

This is a fun quote. MacFarlane lauds outlets like the New York Times for doing the "interviews" and the "follow-ups." Except, they only interview people who they agree with. Is that really "doing the research" to "make sure that everything they put into print is factual"? 

Don't get me started on follow-ups. The New York Times posted a long article prior to the Super Bowl in 2021. They talked about how it was going to be a "superspreader event" not only for those in attendance, but for those at home, too. 

"But whatever happens Sunday in Tampa, what worries epidemiologists most is not the crowd inside the stadium but the people watching the game in their living rooms — and that concern extends well beyond Florida," the article states. 

Fair point. Now, where's the follow-up article? Did the Super Bowl lead to a massive COVID outbreak? Probably not, but how could we know because there was no follow-up? But we do know, and the answer is no. How do we know? Because there was no follow-up. See how that works? 

This was incredibly common during COVID and is exactly why the American public is quickly losing faith in "journalists." The Times staff has an agenda, and they do whatever they can to protect that agenda. During COVID, that meant pushing fear and panic. They were wrong about virtually everything. 

But we're supposed to trust them because they "did their best"? C'mon, Seth. Even you should see how ridiculous that sounds. 

MacFarlane, like many sports fans, can't recognize the bias displayed by members of his "team" 

What this reminds me of, to use a sports analogy, is when a diehard fan watches a game on the network of the opposing team. Think about a New York Yankees fan watching a Red Sox-Yankees matchup on NESN. 

You think that a Yankees fan sits there like, "You know that Dave O’Brien is excellent. He treats both teams equally, and I enjoy listening to him call a game." 

Dave O'Brien is the Red Sox play-by-play announcer on NESN. See, I did the research! 

But, of course not. That fan thinks that O'Brien hates the Yankees and loves the Red Sox. Do you think when he's screaming "I HATE DAVE O'BRIEN!" his buddy turns to him and says, "You know, he's doing his best to tell the truth"? 

Of course not. This happens on a national level, too. I've argued for years that the reason most baseball fans hate Joe Buck is that they spend all year listening to their local announcer – who is generally favorable to the home team and who the viewers agree with – and then they get a national announcer. 

It's not that Joe Buck is biased against their team. It's that they're not used to someone trying to be objective. But their sensibilities are out of whack from listening to an extreme version all season. Does that sound familiar? 

"Family Guy" was a great show, but it isn't anymore, and part of the reason is that Seth MacFarlane lost what made him great 

One of the things that made "Family Guy" an incredible show, to me, is one of the main characters, Brian the Dog. Brian is a hardcore liberal. However, he often makes racially insensitive comments, openly mooches off of everyone around him, and makes decisions that benefit him much more than the people for whom he expresses concern.

I always viewed Brian as MacFarlane's way to reflect upon himself in the cartoon show. I got the feeling that he understood that, even as a liberal, he could acknowledge some of his own hypocrisy. He wasn't afraid to both point that out and make fun of it. 

But now, MacFarlane seems all-in on his favorite "team." No longer is he able to call out the ridiculousness from his cheerleading section. He's lost what made him great. 

And that's sad.

One of my favorite scenes in the show's history comes when Brian appears on "Real Time with Bill Maher" after writing a terrible book that becomes a bestseller. 

Maher delivers a brilliant line in that scene. Brian tries to demean Dana Gould, one of the panelists, for being a comedy writer. 

"Yes, Dana has made a career in comedy; I don't think he's ever done anything as laughable as this book," Maher dryly replies. 

Seth MacFarlane has made a career writing comedic TV shows and movies, but he's never done anything as laughable as saying that the New York Times is full of truth-tellers who "do their best."