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Fox News anchors Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum discuss upcoming Bernie Sanders town hall meeting in Pennsylvania

Despite painting Fox News as "right-wing propaganda," Bernie Sanders will appear in a town hall on the network in Pennsylvania next week.

Fox News anchor Martha MacCallum and Bret Baier will moderate a town hall with Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders in Bethlehem, Pa., on April 15 at 6:30 p.m.
Fox News anchor Martha MacCallum and Bret Baier will moderate a town hall with Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders in Bethlehem, Pa., on April 15 at 6:30 p.m.Read moreFox News / Fox News

Though running for president as a Democrat, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders is again showing his independent streak, bucking the Democratic National Committee by appearing on Fox News.

Sanders, who also will hold a rally in Pittsburgh on Sunday, has called most of Fox News “right-wing propaganda” that supports President Donald Trump. But he’ll appear on the network to face questions from anchors Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum in a town hall meeting Monday at 6:30 p.m. in the shadow of an abandoned steel mill in Bethlehem, Pa.

DNC chair Tom Perez stands by his decision to not allow Fox News to host a Democratic primary debate, citing a New Yorker article that outlined the network’s promotion of Trump and his agenda.

“I have respect for [Fox News anchors] Chris Wallace and Bret Baier, but people above their pay grade are doing a disservice to our democracy and a disservice to objective journalism by putting their thumb on the scale," Perez said this week on the San Francisco Chronicle’s It’s All Political podcast.

But Baier contended that the news and opinion sides remain separate, and that outspoken Trump cheerleaders such as Sean Hannity and Jeanine Pirro don’t impact on the network’s news division.

“Our opinion folks, yes, they have defended the president, and yes, they have opinions that line up with the administration. But it’s the easiest thing to paint with a broad brush,” said Baier, the anchor of Special Report.

Baier and MacCallum spoke to The Inquirer about the town hall with Sanders, criticism of Fox News, and what they think about Trump’s obsession with their network. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

Why is it so important to Fox News to host debates and town halls featuring Democrats?

Baier: We have a lot of viewers — the most in cable news — who have a broad swath of ideologies. It’d be a shame to not have arguments and questions about the substance of the big issues that we’re facing. So we’re trying our hardest to get as many Democrats in this format, but obviously we also hope that the DNC still opens the door to debates down the road.

MacCallum: I think Bernie Sanders said it best, that he knows that there’s a lot of viewers who watch Fox News who are reachable and probably persuadable. So I think any candidate who’s serious about running, this is going to be a stop that they’re going to want to make.

Why do you think other journalists and news networks haven’t stood up to defend the news side of Fox News this time around, the way they did when the Obama administration singled you out in 2009?

MacCallum: I think it’s a reflection on what you see across the country … there’s such a divide. I think it does a disservice to everyone. … I think that camaraderie among journalists, especially when the president has come after the media in a big way, is something that would really benefit everyone.

Baier: We stood up for them. [CNN’s] Kaitlan Collins out at the White House, [CNN’s] Jim Acosta about the press pass. ... It hasn’t been that vocal coming the other way. But I think it is part of the time. Fox has been No. 1 for a long time. And we’ve been under the spotlight and under attack for a long time. ... I think that journalists who cover media are a little skittish in the current environment to speak up.

What do you mean when you say skittish?

Baier: In this current environment, it’s just so heated, that the top priority for folks is not to stand up and defend us. We don’t need it, we’re fine. We all have personal relationships in the business who say to us all the time, ‘You guys are very fair.’ Democrats on the Hill say it to us all the time. That’s why they come on.

Trump certainly watches a lot of Fox News. Sometimes he even appears to take his cues from your colleagues. That seems like it could create a delicate situation in terms of how to cover him and his administration.

Baier: Well, unique, and a challenge at times, because you have to cover it all — the good, the bad and the ugly, no matter where it falls. And that’s what we do. You can see that in our day-to-day coverage of the administration. It took me 600 days to get a sitdown with President Trump. We’re trying for another, but we’ll see.

Next week’s town hall will take place here in Pennsylvania. What types of questions are you looking to ask Sanders?

MacCallum: Bernie Sanders is a democratic socialist candidate, which is a very new phenomenon in America at this level of politics. So in my mind, one of the most significant questions to talk about is capitalism and socialism and what is working in in America today, and how that might look in a place like Pennsylvania.

Baier: It’s largely driven by audience questions, and we’ll follow up and redirect. We’re kind of the moderators within the moderator — the real questioners will be citizens who want to find out more about Bernie Sanders.

Bret, you teased there may be other town halls in the works with other Democratic candidates. Care to break any news on that front?

Baier: (Laughing) I can’t break the news, but we have a lot of interest, and we’re working on a lot of different things, but can’t confirm anything today.

How to watch the Bernie Sanders town hall

When: Monday, April 15

Where: Bethlehem, Pa.

Time: 6:30 p.m.

TV: Fox News

Moderators: Bret Baier, Martha MacCallum