Rival networks were quick to go on the counterattack after being accused by Fox of ignoring last weekend's tea party protests in the capital, Mediaite reports. A full-page Washington Post ad from Fox asked, "How Did ABC, CBS, NBC, MSNBC And CNN Miss This Story," prompting the irate networks to make it clear that—as millions of viewers could attest—they had indeed covered the protests in detail.
CNN's Rick Sanchez gave Fox one of its most furious responses, calling the ad "a lie so bold and so upsetting that, frankly, I'm just not going to sit here in silence" and demanding an apology. "Two words: You lie," he added. To underline the point, he played clips of CNN's coverage of the rally—and a clip of Fox's Bill O’Reilly noting that CNN had covered the protests. (More Fox News stories.)