Within Fortune magazine’s lengthy interview of media mogul Rupert Murdoch, the following exchange struck this reader as particularly interesting.

Does it bother you at all, Rupert, that there is a view that Fox News has contributed in a big way to the political discontent in the U.S., degraded the political process, and maybe, in spotlighting the Tea Party, even hurt the Republican Party?

I think it has absolutely saved it. It has certainly given voice and hope to people who didn’t like all that liberal championing thrown at them on CNN. By the way, we don’t promote the Tea Party. That’s bullshit. We recognize their existence.

Imagine that? Recognizing an important element of today’s political debate. One might even label such a stance “fair and balanced.” This reminds me of Jon Ham’s Shaftesbury Society presentation on media bias, which reminded us of an independent analysis that confirmed Fox news reporting showed the least amount of political bias.