President Obama is making a huge mistake by attacking the talking heads at Fox News Channel. In doing so, he is inadvertently giving that network much more legitimacy than it deserves. Instead, he should be using one of three other strategies that I often use on people who are antagonistic toward me.
First, he could ignore them. This would be a good strategy if his goal is to get back at them for the stuff they say about him. People who crave attention would much rather be verbally attacked than ignored. TV networks thrive on attention which, in turn, drives their ratings. And ratings bring advertiser dollars, which mean profits for the TV networks. Ignoring Fox would be a way for Obama to hurt their bottom line – or at least keep from enhancing it.
Second, he could act if he be believes they agree with him. Very often, when I receive a scathing email or a particularly nasty response to something I have written, I will respond by saying, “I’m glad you agree.” Usually, I will never hear from that person again. Now, if the president did that kind of thing to Fox News, would it stop them from being critical of him? Of course not, but it would let them know he’s able to handle their criticism with a sense of humor and that he’s not letting it get to him.
Third, he could sarcastically agree with them. He could say something like, “You know, those guys and gals and at Fox are absolutely right about everything they say about me. Therefore, I will do my best to change my ways and conform to their ideal of what a president should be.” Then, of course, he could just continue doing things the way he always has. And when they start getting on him again, he could repeat his previous statement and the cycle would continue from there.
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