Fox Nation and Fox News Latino Push Different Spin on Immigration

Fox News simultaneously headlines a negative immigration article on Fox Nation while headlining the exact same topic with a positive connotation on Fox Latino.

By Jorge Rivas Jan 04, 2013

Media Matters points out Fox Nation and Fox News Latino is once again "selling different versions of the same story to pander to conservative audiences while simultaneously attempting to court Latino readers."

Media Matter’s Hilary Tone unravels the latest Fox Nation/Fox News Latino contradiction:

Fox News Latino reported the story with the headline, "US Eases Path to Legalization for Some Immigrants, Keeps Families Together," accompanied by a photo of individuals at a rally for immigration reform:

The anti-immigrant Fox Nation, on the other hand, posted the Los Angeles Times article with the headline "Obama Begins Amnesty Push" and the following photo:

When Fox Nation launched the Fox News Latino website in 2010, its leadership seemed optimistic about both websites playing nicely alongside each other.

"The launch of Fox News Latino creates an unprecedented opportunity to expand our reach by engaging the fastest growing minority audience and providing a unique platform for compelling and original content focused on the Latino community and the American dream," said Fox News senior vice president Michael Clemente in a statement.

In an interview with Reuters Clemente downplayed difference in opinions on both sites.

"I don’t think there’ll be conflict," Clemente told Reuters in a 2010 interview. "We will do what we always do on the news side which is to be very fair and balanced on all sides of the issue in our reporting."

But the truth is when it comes to immigration issues both websites often have different takes on on the issue. Another common contradiction over coverage is use of the word "illegal" to identify undocumented immigrants. 

The word illegal is an accurate description for actions, but not individuals," explained  former Fox News Latino Managing Editor Alberto Vourvoulias-Bush in a story last year. "We don’t use it to describe people who commit other crimes. We write about unlicensed drivers, for example, not illegal drivers."

Fox Nation on the other hand, has a completely different take: