Fox donates $1 million to GOP governors

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Washington - The parent company of the Fox News Channel has donated $1 million to the Republican Governors Association and helped the GOP group more than double its fundraising in the second quarter of the year.

The RGA helps elect Republican gubernatorial candidates. Government filings show that it raised more than $19 million during the second quarter, compared to more than $9 million in the first quarter.

The parent company of Fox News, News America Inc., is a subsidiary of Rupert Murdoch's media conglomerate News Corp.

The RGA also received $1 million from David Koch of Wichita, Kan.-based Koch Industries. Koch is a longtime supporter of conservative causes.

The Democratic Governors Association reported raising $9 million in the second quarter.

DGA executive director Nathan Daschle said that with the News America contribution, "Fox has crossed a bright line."

"Fox can no longer pretend that it is a 'fair and balanced' news organization when Rupert Murdoch greenlights a million dollar contribution to defeat Democratic governors," Daschle said.

News Corp. spokesman Jack Horner defended the donation. "News Corporation has always believed in the power of free markets and organizations like the RGA, which have a pro-business agenda, support our priorities at this most critical time for our economy," he said in an e-mailed statement.

The DGA's biggest contributor so far this year is the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, which has donated $1 million, with $500,000 in the second quarter.