Editing Roger Ailes (section)

=== Political consulting ===
[[File:Nixon Contact Sheet WHPO-0514 (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|Ailes with [[President of the United States|President]] [[Richard Nixon]] in 1969]]
[[File:Reagan Contact Sheet C36903 (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|Ailes with [[President of the United States|President]] [[Ronald Reagan]] in 1986]]
[[File:Bush Contact Sheet P15686 (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|Ailes with [[President of the United States|President]] [[George H. W. Bush]] in 1990]]
In 1984, Ailes worked on [[1984 United States presidential election|the campaign to reelect Ronald Reagan]]. In 1987 and 1988, Ailes was credited (along with fellow consultant [[Lee Atwater]]) with guiding [[George H. W. Bush]] to victory in the [[1988 Republican Party presidential primaries|Republican primaries]] and in the [[1988 United States presidential election|victory]] over [[Michael Dukakis]].<ref>{{cite news|first=Lloyd|last=Grove |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2018/12/08/before-roger-ailes-was-disgraced-mogul-he-was-george-hw-bushs-wily-media-man/ |title=Before Roger Ailes was a disgraced Fox News mogul, he was George H.W. Bush's 'wily media man'|newspaper=[[Washington Post]] |publisher=Nash Holdings, LLC|location=Washington DC|date=December 8, 2018}}</ref>

Ailes was credited with the "Orchestra Pit Theory" regarding sensationalist political coverage in the news media, which originated with his quip:{{Blockquote|If you have two guys on a stage and one guy says, "I have a solution to the [[Israel-Palestine conflict|Middle East problem]]," and the other guy falls in the orchestra pit, who do you think is going to be on the evening news?<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.repository.law.indiana.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1802&context=ilj |title=The Death of an Honorable Profession|last=Bogus|first=Carl T. |website=[[Indiana University Law School]]|location=Bloomington, Indiana|date=March 17, 1997 |access-date=July 13, 2009}}</ref>}} Ailes's last campaign was the unsuccessful effort of [[Dick Thornburgh|Richard Thornburgh]] in his run for the U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania in November 1991.<ref name="guardianobit">{{cite news|last1=Carlson|first1=Michael |title=Roger Ailes obituary |url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2017/may/18/roger-ailes-obituary |access-date=May 18, 2017|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=May 18, 2017}}</ref> He announced his withdrawal from political consulting in 1991.<ref name="guardianobit" />

Days after the [[September 11 attacks|9/11 attacks]], Ailes advised President [[George W. Bush]] that the American public would be patient as long as they were convinced that Bush was using the harshest measures possible.<ref name=WaPo20021119>{{cite news|last=Grove|first=Lloyd |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/2002/11/19/the-reliable-source/78c9570b-e972-47b8-a825-60d2c306499c |title=The Reliable Source: Roger Ailes-Bob Woodward Smackdown?|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=November 19, 2002}}</ref> The correspondence was revealed in [[Bob Woodward]]'s book ''[[Bush at War]]''.<ref>{{cite book |title=[[Bush at War]]|first=Bob|last=Woodward |author-link=Bob Woodward |publisher=[[Simon and Schuster]]|location=New York City|date=2002|page=207|isbn=9780743215381|quotation=Ailes ... was currently the head of FOX News ... In that position, Ailes was not supposed to be giving political advice.}}</ref> Criticized for giving political advice, Ailes lashed out against Woodward, saying "Woodward got it all screwed up, as usual", and "The reason he's not as rich as [[Tom Clancy]] is that while he and Clancy both make stuff up, Clancy does his research first."<ref name=WaPo20021119/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://archives.cnn.com/2002/ALLPOLITICS/11/19/cf.opinion.fox.debate |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071030144621/http://archives.cnn.com/2002/ALLPOLITICS/11/19/cf.opinion.fox.debate |archive-date=October 30, 2007 |title=Fox chief too cozy with White House?|work=[[CNN]]|date=November 19, 2002}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Colford|first=Paul D. |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/archives/news/didn-w-ailes-sez-fox-news-boss-disputes-book-article-1.497140 |title=Didn't Help W, Ailes Sez: Fox News boss disputes book|work=[[New York Daily News]]|date=November 19, 2002}}</ref> Ailes refused to release a copy of the memo he sent to Bush.<ref name=WaPo20021119/>