This article, originally published November 18, 2019, and substantially revised and expanded February 19, 2020, will be updated as President Trump executes more acts of executive clemency and as Fox News personalities call on him to issue additional pardons.

President Donald Trump’s Fox News obsession is linked in some way to at least 13 of his grants of executive clemency -- and if he listens to the entreaties of the network’s hosts, more pardons may be on the way.

Trump’s relentless consumption of Fox propaganda and his use of network personalities as outside advisers has triggered an array of consequences, from racist tweets to a federal government shutdown to White House and Cabinet-level personnel changes to the abuse of power in Ukraine that led the House of Representatives to begin an impeachment inquiry into his conduct.

The U.S. Constitution and federal law limit Trump’s presidential powers through checks and balances by the legislative and judicial branches, while the extensive bureaucracy constrains his actions because he depends on other executive officials to carry out his orders. But the president’s ability to grant clemency in federal cases is virtually unrestricted, to the point where he could conceivably issue a pardon to almost anyone with a single tweet.

Fox, which often provokes Trump to act on his worst impulses, thus has particular influence over his use of that power. Recognizing this, people accused of or convicted of federal crimes and their family members and lawyers have descended on the network over the past few years, using the president’s favorite programs to plead their case to him directly.

These campaigns have been quite successful. Trump has granted clemency to individuals whose cases became causes celebres of Trump-loving hosts; heroes of Fox’s programming; and clients of pro-Trump lawyers who regularly defend him on the network. In some cases, the White House has issued press releases which list Fox personalities among the supporters of the clemency acts.

Trump is reportedly well aware of how would-be pardon seekers are trying to use Fox to reach him. The Daily Beast reported in February 2020, after Trump issued several acts of clemency apparently influenced by the network: