I don't know if that was meant sarcastically or not, but, like it or not, Fox has clearly achieved mainstream status ...

July Ratings: Fox News Beats MSNBC & CNN Combined in Total Day and Prime

Fox News Channel continued its cable news dominance in July not only beating CNN and MSNBC combined, but showing the most growth in the younger demo. In A25-54 viewers, FNC is up 48% in total day, and up 70% in primetime, compared to July '08.

FNC had 9 of the top 10 shows in cable news in Total Viewers and ranks as the third most-watched basic cable channel behind USA and TNT.

Cable news' #1 show for 104 consecutive months, "The O'Reilly Factor", is up 37% over July '08. "Glenn Beck Program" is up the most, up 120% over last year's 5pmET show. "On the Record with Greta Van Susteren" is up 60% and "Hannity" is up 41%

http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/ratings/july_ratings_fox_news_beats_msnbc_cnn_combined_in_total_day_and_prime_122858.asp

My point is that if you claim to be the paper of record, you should not decide for your readers what to think or where to get your other viewpoints.

The Times is a great paper, with great reporting - and editors who frequently add their own political point of view to the news.