In the few weeks that have transpired since Glenn Beck called President Obama a racist, the campaign to persuade advertisers from patronizing his program has grown phenomenally. Today there are over 60 companies that have withdrawn from his show because they do not want their brands associated with the hatred and hostility for which Beck is known. And these are significant national advertisers like Wal-Mart and Procter & Gamble. Color of Change, the group spearheading the action, is continuing to apply pressure.
But now the campaign has expanded into the international arena. The Guardian UK is reporting that Waitrose, Britain’s most upmarket supermarket chain, has pulled all of their advertising, not just from Beck, but from all of the Fox News Channel.
“We take the placement of our ads in individual programmes very seriously, ensuring the content of these programmes is deemed appropriate for a brand with our values,” said a customer services spokesman. “Since being notified of our presence within the Glenn Beck programme, we have withdrawn all Waitrose advertising from the Fox News channel with immediate effect and for all future TV advertising campaigns.”
Fox News airs in Europe on Sky satellite television. Sky itself is part of the international media empire owned by Rupert Murdoch who, of course, also owns Fox News. Sky’s chairman is Murdoch’s son James, who is the likely heir to the News Corp. throne.
Notable in this announcement is that Waitrose explicitly states that their ads will be withheld from all of Fox News. Previously, Fox has claimed that they were not suffering any revenue loss because ads removed from Beck were simply shifting to other programs. They can no longer make that claim.
I have maintained that Fox’s claim regarding their revenue never held water because advertisers shifting to other programs would only displace the ads those programs already had. There is only so much inventory (i.e. air time) in TV. Therefore, at best it would neutral, assuming that Beck brought in replacement ads, which he didn’t. He was left with low-paying direct marketers and locals that can’t possibly raise the same revenue as Geico and Best Buy. What’s more, a recent study revealed that Beck’s show is losing about $500,000 a week. So even with his ratings increasing, Fox is incapable of converting them into dollars.
At some point Fox will have to decide whether covering for Beck is worth it. Eventually the taint will rub off on the network (more so than presently). There will be more Waitrose’s. Does Fox want to be regarded as so committed to promoting Beck’s beastly behavior that they will do so no matter how much money or reputation they lose?
I hope his ratings continue to increase. It will be that much more frustrating for the suits at FOX since ratings mean nothing if they can’t proportionately increase ad revenue. The disparity will only grow greater until, at some point, FOX is forced to cancel Beck just as his viewership hits the stratosphere.
If Fox didn’t get rid of O’Reilly for you know what, then I doubt that they’ll get rid of Beck. Murdoch tends to stick these things out for the long-haul, the boycott won’t last forever, and Newscorp have the wealth to outlast it.
I am old. Saw the Safeway “Grape Boycott” in California work. Until recently haven’t been in a Safeway market. That boycott was 30 years ago. AND NOW I KNOW ALL WE HAVE LEFT IS OUR POCKETBOOK VOTE and and boycott is the pocketbook vote!
vote the “wing nuts” down with your pocketbook, and keep doing it till they give us REAL NEWS, STOP THE LIES. Use your brain, don’t let them say the boycott won’t work, it will and does!
I know Glenn Beck is doing a good job for two reasons, 1)he has so many people riled up and, 2)they cannot or will not defeat his arguments.
Glenn Becks success is related directly to the one single group noone knows much about and that is the silent majority. For years Americans have sit back and watched as politicians ignored our nations Constitution and pretty much did wht ever they wanted.
Now we are faced with an economy in shambles, and a nation full of people who do not know how to make it on their own. How many thousands of dead beat, armchair politicians do we have sitting in the comfort of their parents homes, because they just cave in when things get tough. No ambition what-so-ever.
The silent majority wants one thing, they want their politicans to live up to their oaths of office and clean up the mess that they have made!
If people feel that Glenn Beck is so wrong why can’t they defeat a single argument that he has made? Why does the White House remain silent on these issues? Because they know he is right.
Who are those that are so upset with Glenn Beck? I believe they are Socialists, Communists and/or those social parasites who believe that the silent majority owes them a living.
Do we need to find a solution for the poor that do not have medical insurance? Of course! But not at the expense of our Constitutional rights, our freedom and the security of our Nation.
You’re first point is simplistic nonsense. Your second point is just plain untrue.
1) If Beck’s ability to rile people up means that he is doing a good job, than you must also believe that Hitler did a good job?
2) Beck’s arguments are so easy to defeat it’s pathetic. I have done so many times on this site.
What’s really sad is that Beck gets people like you riled up and believing his lies. And he turns what should be an honest debate into a cartoon war where you turn your opponents into socialists and fearsome monsters who are drooling at the prospect of destroying America.
BOOOO!
You clearly get all your information from glenn beck. You should look for more reliable unbiased sources for information. You are clearly ignorant and hateful. Calling people with a differnt opinion names is not an argument.
I have been a registered Democrat all my adult life and a progressive. I am absolutely disgusted by how petty and tyrannical the left has become since Bush. Yes, Bush was bad. But does that mean we must now silence all opposing views? So the only viewpoints that are fit to be aired are those that toe the progressive party line?
It’s supposed to be a free country. I don’t want a monochrome country where every talk show conforms to one political viewpoint.
You people trying to silence dissent from the right are fascists at heart. You’ve actually pushed me over to the center, and I have been purposefully visiting the Fox News website now just because people like you are trying to shut them down.
I really love these phonies who say they are progressives, but still defend Beck. Do you really believe we’ll fall for that?
More to the point, nobody is trying to silence all opposing views. The action taken against Beck is not because his views oppose ours, it is because his views are repulsive, racist, and dangerous.
Furthermore, free speech does not entitle everyone to a national TV show (if so, where’s mine?). If Beck goes off the air due to his own irresponsible behavior, he will still have the same freedom of speech that every other American has.
Finally, free speech is not a shield from criticism. When you exercise your freedom to speak, others also have the same freedom to respond. If the result is that you lose a media platform for your hate speech, that is just the free market working. I thought you wingnuts liked the free market?
Oh and PS most of the liberal friends I have who go on and on about how horribly Fox and Glenn Beck are HAVEN’T EVEN WATCHED IT!!!
I don’t agree with everything Glenn Beck says, but he has been consistent in his fight against increased power going to the executive branch. He criticized Bush over the Patriot Act and his beef with Obama is the same. He’s not even a REPUBLICAN, he’s a libertarian, who believes in allowing marijuana to be legalized.
Most people I know who demonize Glenn Beck know nothing about him. They just don’t like Obama being criticized and want to punish anyone they deem is on the “right” because of Bush.
It’s absolutely horrible, childish behavior.
Glenn Beck should stay on the air because we need opposing viewpoints. If you think otherwise, then you truly are a petty fascist at heart or a group thinker at best.
If most of your liberal friends, and most of the people you know who demonize Beck, haven’t watched him and know nothing about him, that just reveals what a bunch of idiots you’re friends are. It says more about you than anything else.
If you’ve read even a little bit of this web site, it is obvious that I pay close attention to Beck’s show. I could not comment on it with such specificity without doing so.
By the way, I never asserted that Beck is a Republican (although he does feature Republican guests and themes almost exclusively on his show). But he is an ultra rightist who knows something himself about childish behavior. And the fact that you want this pathological liar to stay on the air tells us even more about you.
Can you please tell me what lies Glenn Beck has told and where I can check the facts of these statements?
Good Lord…..That is a massive project. There are so many lies. You are going to have to do you’re own homework. But here are a few you can start with:
Van Jones is a convicted felon – LIE
ACORN receiving billions – LIE
Eco-terrorists bombed radio tower in Washington – LIE
1.7 million tea baggers at 9/12 rally – LIE
UAW workers earn average $154.00 per hour – LIE
Carbon dioxide not a dangerous pollutant – LIE
I could go on, but I think this should get you started.