BUSTED: Fox News Memo Reveals Coordinated Bias

Posted by on December 9, 2010 at 1:27 pm. 2 Comments :

In August of 2009, while the debate over health insurance reform was in full swing, GOP pollster Frank Luntz appeared on Sean Hannity’s program and advised Hannity and other Republican operatives to stop using the term “public option.” As a result of his own polling Luntz discovered that…

“…if you call it a ‘public option,’ the American people are split, [but] if you call it the ‘government option,’ the public is overwhelmingly against it.”

Luntz is a Republican pollster who specializes in language. His web site, The Word Doctors, sports the motto “It’s not what you say. It’s what people hear.” He is responsible for introducing rhetorical distortions such as the “death tax” into the public discourse. He truly does have a gift for doctoring words.

Two months after Luntz’s appearance with Hannity, Bill Sammon, Fox News’ Washington managing editor, issued a memo to Fox producers ordering them cease the use of the term “public option.” Media Matters published the memo today:

From: Sammon, Bill
Sent: Tuesday, October 27, 2009 8:23 AM
To: 054 -FNSunday; 169 -SPECIAL REPORT; 069 -Politics; 030 -Root (FoxNews.Com); 036 -FOX.WHU; 050 -Senior Producers; 051 -Producers
Subject: friendly reminder: let’s not slip back into calling it the “public option”

1) Please use the term “government-run health insurance” or, when brevity is a concern, “government option,” whenever possible.
2) When it is necessary to use the term “public option” (which is, after all, firmly ensconced in the nation’s lexicon), use the qualifier “so-called,” as in “the so-called public option.”
3) Here’s another way to phrase it: “The public option, which is the government-run plan.”
4) When newsmakers and sources use the term “public option” in our stories, there’s not a lot we can do about it, since quotes are of course sacrosanct.

This is about as clear a demonstration of institutional bias at Fox News as you’ll ever see. The evidence of their bias has always been apparent on the air, but this shows that it isn’t merely the opinions of the presenters, but that it is a coordinated policy embraced and enforced from Fox News’ executive suites. It is also contrary to an earlier memo Sammon distributed disingenuously asserting that, “We do not cheerlead for one cause or another.” However it is perfectly aligned with Sammon’s ideology as expressed in his books:

Bill Sammon Books

  • The Evangelical President: George Bush’s Struggle to Spread a Moral Democracy Throughout the World
  • At Any Cost: How Al Gore Tried to Steal the Election
  • Strategery: How George W. Bush Is Defeating Terrorists, Outwitting Democrats, and Confounding the Mainstream Media.
  • Fighting Back: The War on Terrorism from Inside the White House
  • Misunderestimated: The President Battles Terrorism, Media Bias and the Bush Haters

In an interview on The Daily Beast. Howard Kurtz got Sammon to respond to the email flap:

“The term public option, he said, ‘is a vague, bland, undescriptive phrase,’ and that after all, ‘who would be against a public park?’ The phrase ‘government-run plan,’ he said, is ‘a more neutral term,’ and was used just last week by a New York Times columnist. I have no idea what the Republicans were pushing or not,’ Sammons says. ‘It’s simply an accurate, fair, objective term.’

If you believe that you’re probably already a loyal Glenn Beck viewer. Sammon’s complaint that “public option” is vague and bland is actually an endorsement of its neutrality and makes it more appropriate for unbiased reporting. Sammon knows full well that “government-run” is a loaded phrase. It certainly would have an impact on the anti-government Tea Party that is the foundation of both his network and the Republican Party.

His claim that he has no idea what Republicans were pushing is utterly implausible. If it were true it would mean that he is an incompetent manager and an uninformed journalist. How could he not know the GOP preference for “government-run” when it was broadcast on the second highest rated Fox News program? Does he expect people to believe that Frank Luntz could conduct polling on the phrases and report the results to Sean Hannity, without him having any knowledge of it? And was he entirely oblivious to the fact that only Republicans ever used the term “government-run”? His defense forces us conclude that he is either a liar or an idiot.

When Sammon objected to accusations that he was biased, Kurtz correctly pointed out a number of incidents that supported the accusations. He also mentioned a couple of Sammon’s books. However, I can’t let this little escape from reality go without comment:

Kurtz: “The significance of the marching orders is that they were issued to the news division, which aims to be fair and balanced and is run separately from the opinion side, populated by the likes of Hannity and Glenn Beck.”

I would like to see Kurtz provide any evidence that the news division at Fox is run separately from the opinion side. Or that they aim to be fair and balanced. The significance of the marching orders is that they were marching orders. An ethical network would not impose such constraints, even on their editorial commentators. The only sort of enterprise that would do so is one that is focused, not on news, but on propaganda; one that has an agenda and seeks to maintain ideological purity in their messaging. In other words: Fox News.

Find us on Google+
Advertisement:

Glenn Beck Goes Nuts Over Forbes Blurb On Soros

Posted by on December 8, 2010 at 11:44 pm. 10 Comments :

Robert Lenzner posted a brief item today on Forbes.com about an event last night honoring George Soros. In the article Lenzner noted Soros’ warnings that…

“…the combination of Fox News, Glenn Beck, The Tea Party, and the ability of Americans to fantasize unrealistically about their political system might lead ‘this open society to be on the verge of some dictatorial democracy.’“

That’s a fairly cogent observation that recognizes the risks associated with a severely naive and misled electorate and an opportunistic and doctrinaire media. Lenzner continued saying….

“Soros also characterized Fox newscaster Glenn Beck, who has been falsely vilifying Soros publicly, as a throwback to the wild and crazy radical elements that never before were given such a public pedestal to foment their hate.”

Well that’s all it took to send Beck into one of the most demented tantrums I’ve seen him throw to date. Beck spun wildly from mocking Lenzner, to outlining a plot to “enslave” America, to pretending to hypnotize his viewers. He was in rare form as he employed several of his cartoon voices, held up props, and dashed manically from his video screen to his blackboard. In the end it was nothing more than petulant hysterics brought on by the perceived insult he suffered in a blog post. Beck spent twenty enraged minutes rebutting two paragraphs. It was an epic display of psychosis.

In the course of his tirade, Beck claimed that he didn’t hate Soros. If that’s true, he has an Olympian tolerance for evil. Beck’s three day Puppet Master series described Soros as a Nazi collaborator who collapses economies and destroys nations, with the United States next on his hit list. Beck cast Soros as advocating a tyrannical, one world government that would prohibit freedom and renounce God. He was plainly fomenting hate, just as Lenzner said. How Beck could not hate such a person I have no idea.

All of this built to a climax with Beck challenging Forbes to put up or shut up:

“The most egregious statement from Forbes Magazine is one that I would either like proof of or an apology from Forbes. In fact, I think I might demand one. Yes, I’m going to. That I “falsely vilified” Soros. Forbes Magazine – show it or apologize. I’d like to know exactly what I lied about.”

I sincerely hope that Forbes takes Beck up on this challenge. It would be a pretty easy task for them to document the litany of lies from Beck’s Soros-athon. They could start with Beck’s contention that Soros was a Nazi collaborator. Then they could address his deceitful editing of videotape that misrepresented Soros’ position on foreign influence in Congress. They could raise his reliance on the widely debunked book by David Horowitz and Richard Poe, The Shadow Party. They could point out his misrepresentations of Soros’ support for Poland’s Solidarity movement and the anti-communist Velvet and Orange revolutions in Czechoslovakia and the Ukraine.

So have at it, Forbes. This is your opportunity to take Beck apart. He wants to know what he lied about and you can tell him. Try it, it’s easy. There is no shortage of lies in any episode of Beck’s program.


Crime Inc: The Law Closes In On Glenn Beck’s Advertisers

Posted by on December 8, 2010 at 7:08 pm. 3 Comments :

Glenn BeckLast May I revealed the criminal syndicate surrounding Glenn Beck and his dwindling cadre of advertisers. The list included Goldline International, LifeLock, Tax Masters, and Free Score. I’m not sure there is any program on TV with a more nefarious assortment of sponsors.

Today Mother Jones is reporting that the long arm of the law has reached into Beck’s hideout and nabbed one of his gold scammers.

“At the request of prosecutors from LA County and Santa Monica city who have filed a civil suit against the company, Los Angeles County judge has ordered that Superior Gold be placed into receivership and all of its assets – bank accounts, real estate, and presumably gold stored for customers – frozen. On Monday, a court-appointed lawyer actually physically seized control of the company, presumably to prevent further wrongdoing. The lawsuit alleged that among other things, Superior had defrauded its customers by overcharging them, fraudulently inducing them to buy overpriced collectors’ coins rather than the bullion that they wanted, and taking customers’ money for coins they never produced.”

Superior is just one of the gold vendors advertising on Beck’s show. Rosland Capital, Investment Rarities, and Goldline International are others. Goldline is presently under investigation for the same sort of criminal activity for which Superior was busted.

The past few months has seen more than 300 companies refuse to advertise on Beck’s show. It can’t be a good sign for him if the advertisers he has remaining pull their ads because their company was shut down and they’re in jail.


Fox Nation Has To Tell Their Idiot Readers How To Think

Posted by on December 8, 2010 at 1:48 pm. NO Comments :

Fox News has built a collection of mottos that all have one thing in common: they are distorted and deceitful descriptions of the network they purport to represent (i.e. “Fair and Balanced”). So when you hear Fox say “We Report, You Decide,” you can safely dismiss it as rubbish. Anyone who who watches Fox for more than thirty seconds knows how strictly they lead their viewers around by the nose. The same is true for the Fox Nation:


Notice that these headlines editorialize the Fox Nationalist view of Politico. This appears to be a recent occurrence that began last month. Fox is apparently worried that their readers won’t assign the same bias to Politico as a news source that the Fox editors do. So they tell their readers exactly what they are supposed to believe to insure that they come away with the same authorized Fox opinion. Here some more examples of this pre-digested analysis:

Left-Wing Politico Called Sexist by Palin
Left-Wing Politico: Barack Obama’s Deals May Leave Liberals Behind
Left-Wing Politico: Stimulus Sent $140 Million to Religious Groups
Left-Wing Politico: Obama’s Arrogance
Left-Wing Politico Smears Black Republican Allen West
Left-Wing Politico: Drudge Wins

It’s interesting to note that most of these headlines aren’t even representative of anything remotely left-wing. In fact, they are actually overt expressions of right-wing thinking. That wouldn’t surprise most liberals who regard Politico as a conservative-leaning publication.

The purpose of this, of course, is to inject FoxThink into their readers minds before they even read the article. The Fox Nationalists obviously regard their audience as too stupid or incapable of forming a coherent thought on their own, so Fox helps them along by providing its own brand of bias.

This is just further evidence (as if it were necessary) that Fox, despite it’s name, is not news. Perhaps a better motto for them would be “We Tell You What To Think, You Can Go Back To Watching American Idol.”


Right Wing Plotting To Infiltrate Media

Posted by on December 7, 2010 at 8:32 pm. 5 Comments :

US News and World Report published an article today with this headline: Fred Barnes Wants Conservatives to Infiltrate Left Wing Media.

Barnes is the executive editor of the conservative Weekly Standard. He is also a featured pundit on Fox News. The surprising thing about the headline above is not what Barnes is proposing. That has been going on for decades. The surprising thing is that he is admitting it in public. The occasion was a swanky dinner in his honor hosted by the uber-rightist American Spectator Magazine. Barnes delivered an address that was remarkably candid with regard to his aspirations for spreading conservative dogma. There is already ample evidence of the right’s efforts to “infiltrate” the press, and Barnes helpfully makes that very point in his speech:

“Conservatives dominate talk radio; we do awfully well in magazines, with the American Spectator, Weekly Standard, National Review, and many others, and actually there is probably room for a lot more. With Fox News we do pretty well on television. Fox News really has a tremendous influence.”

So why is Barnes complaining when he already knows how much conservatives have come to monopolize the media? What more does he want? I’ll let him tell you:

“What we need to do right now is dedicate ourselves to expanding our influence and not just sitting back and complaining about the mainstream media, but infiltrating them, overtaking them and changing the American media.”

Barnes goes on to note that there is a lot of money available to right-wingers to start more magazines, buy TV networks, etc. Apparently controlling the bulk of the print, radio and TV news business isn’t enough. He wants all of it.

But the worst part of this is that he is advocating the formation of an army of young reporters to surreptitiously sneak into legitimate news enterprises and misrepresent themselves in order to plant their disinformation from within. It is a strikingly unethical proposal whose only purpose is to taint the practice of journalism and advance his own weaselly agenda. And the fact that he is comfortable announcing such a scheme in public says a lot about the shamelessness of the rightist movement.


Another Glenn Beck Inspired Domestic Terrorist

Posted by on December 6, 2010 at 8:12 pm. 8 Comments :

Glenn Beck: There Will Be BloodWhile Glenn Beck scoffs at the notion that his followers would ever harm anyone, his followers keep proving him wrong. This time it’s an Idaho man who has now pleaded guilty to federal gun charges and manufacturing grenades.

“Kenneth B. Kimbley Jr., 58, discussed bombing local bridges with an undercover federal agent and made threatening statements toward President Barack Obama, leading investigators last July to seize 20,000 ammunition rounds and several firearms from Kimbley’s property, where he and other suspected militia members gathered to construct grenades, according to court documents.”

Kimbley was a felon and, as such, was already prohibited from possessing firearms. But his aspirations that led to this arrest far exceeded any simple desire to exercise any second amendment rights. The Southern Poverty Law Center identified Kimbley as the leader of the Brotherhood of America Patriots, an extreme-right militia, and notes that at the time of his arrest he had 20,000 rounds of ammunition, a stock of firearms, and materials he planned to use to construct grenades.

Kimbley admitted guilt without any plea deal and faces up to 10 years in prison. His inspiration for his lawlessness was his “idol,” Glenn Beck. In his defense his attorney was quoted as saying that…

“…everything said by Mr. Kimbley is no different than what his idol, TV commentator Glenn Beck, typically states on the air.”

I’m not sure if that’s much of a defense for Kimbley, but it is a pretty good indictment of Beck. What Beck typically says on the air is overtly hostile and incendiary. Despite frequently imploring his viewers to be peaceful, he cannot be absolved of responsibility when he also alarms them with terrifying tales of radicals conspiring to destroy their country, offend their God, and murder their families. In the face of that sort of looming nightmare, what would you do? And by the way, when a television host has to repeatedly remind his viewers not to kill anybody, what does that say about him and his employer?

This is not an isolated incident. In the recent past there have been other would-be terrorists who believed they were doing Beck’s bidding. Last July Byron Williams was captured after a shootout with police while he was on his way to kill people at the ACLU and the Tides Foundation. Beck has made numerous references to these groups and Williams regarded Beck as a teacher. In April of 2009, Richard Poplawski allegedly shot three police officers to death at his home. His best friend said that he “loved” Beck and was apparently worried that the government planned to intern dissidents in concentration camps.

The news of this latest case of domestic terrorism comes as Beck is ratcheting up the rhetoric of hate and hostility. His program today was dominated by his theory that it is the left who are prone to violence. His evidence of that was a few out of context quotes that employed analogies that no one in their right mind would take literally. Unfortunately, we’re talking about Glenn Beck here and, as we know, Glenn Beck is Unhinged.


Much his horror story was based on a portion of a speech by perennial Beck bogeyman, Van Jones. Here are the ghastly remarks by Jones where he described what he called a “nightmare scenario…”

“…where we’re going to see a nation more and more ethnically diverse, more and more culturally diverse, but less and less economically prosperous…If you know anything about history that is not a recipe for common ground. It is a recipe for a battleground. And you have opponents in this country who see the same scenario and their answer is fear the diversity. Their answer is attack the diversity.”

Clearly Jones is warning of potential trouble resulting from the ever-widening gap between the rich and the poor, and the disharmony we already see in Tea Party racism, immigrant bashing, and Beck’s own virulent anti-Semitism. Jones is not threatening violence. He is not advocating violence. He is merely observing a social trend that he views as troubling but avoidable if we act constructively and compassionately.

But what Beck hears is that “this is the bottom up, top down, and inside out theory”, wherein the people are organized to rise up so that the government can bring the top down turning us all inside out. Of course Beck invented this theory himself. It makes no sense whatsoever, but that doesn’t matter because he’ll just keep hammering it into the heads of his disciples until all they can do is repeat it robotically and assign whatever meaning to it that Beck says. And what Beck says is that…

“You have Latinos being organized. You have unions now being organized in the unemployment battle. You have unions in our churches. It’s the Czech Republic, 1948.”

See? When American workers, minorities, and people of faith are united in pursuit of their interests, and the interests of their neighbors and their nation, you have communism. And communism is the work of the Devil. And if you stand by and allow the forces of Satan to take control of your country, you are no better than the sinners who are out to enslave us all and impose a one-world government that answers only to the Prince of Darkness himself. But by all means do not resort to violence. It is just your country, your family and your eternal soul that is at stake.

And it’s after Beck berates you with that incomprehensible blather that he insists you make a choice. Poplawski, Williams and now Kimbley, made their choices. And Beck cannot disassociate himself from the demons he looses on society.

Find us on Google+
Advertisement:

Glenn Beck’s Amazon Wish List Revealed

Posted by on December 6, 2010 at 2:50 pm. 2 Comments :

You’ll never guess what Glenn Beck wants for Christmas. Here’s a hint: It’s something he really, really needs.

Well, you don’t have to wonder any more. The crack investigators at News Corpse, with help from Glenn Beck Unhinged, have discovered Beck’s Wish List on Amazon.com.


Stop by and consider helping to make Glenn’s holiday the best ever.


Alan Grayson Exposes Greedy Media Leeches

Posted by on December 5, 2010 at 2:14 am. 32 Comments :

Ten years ago George W. Bush signed a bill to cut taxes that was so controversial at the time that it included a provision to expire in ten years. It was regarded by many as too costly and likely to produce massive deficits. Ten years later the worst fears of the critics were borne out and the nation is struggling under its largest debt burden in history.

Somehow Republicans are still defending those tax cuts and demanding that they be extended. Democrats have conceded to extend them for 98% of the American people excluding only income over $250,000. But that isn’t enough for the GOP. They are presently holding the cuts for the vast majority hostage on behalf of the wealthy 2%. It is an unconscionable and irresponsible position that reveals their inflexibility and greed.

Congressman Alan Grayson took to the floor of the House last week to address this issue and delivered a brilliant and damning critique that explains what’s behind the Republican obstructionism.

Grayson: [Y]ou have to wonder why they persist in this mania, this obsession of theirs that we need to have tax cuts for the rich when the economy is flat on its back and unemployment is almost 10%. I think I have the answer. The answer turns out to be very simple.

They want tax cuts for the rich because they want a tax cut for themselves. What do I mean by that? Let’s take a look at the people who are really in charge, the ones who actually run the Republican party.

With that Rep. Grayson ran through a list of wealthy right-wing media hogs who will benefit handsomely from the positions they are taking on taxes:

Greedy Bastard Annual Income Tax Benefit
Rush Limbaugh $58,700,000 $2,700,000
Glenn Beck $33,000,000 $1,500,000
Sean Hannity $22,000,000 $1,000,000
Bill O’Reilly $20,000,000 $914,000
Sarah Palin $14,000,000 $638,000
Newt Gingrich $5,000,000 $250,000
George W. Bush $4,200,000 $187,000

These are just some of the more prominent beneficiaries of the Republican plan to give $700 Billion to the richest people in America. The Republicans, who can’t bring themselves to extend unemployment benefits while the unemployment rate is nearing 10%, have no problem with helping those poor millionaires and billionaires to struggle through these tough times. And it is no coincidence that many of the rightist advocates of this millionaire giveaway are wealthy television and radio stars or politicians themselves.

This is one of those times when words like greedy, selfish, and even shameless, simply do not suffice. But Rep. Grayson has provided as good an explanation for what is happening this week in Congress as any I’ve heard.


Fox News Battling Lawsuit Alleging Illegal Campaign Contributions

Posted by on December 3, 2010 at 1:19 pm. NO Comments :

Earlier this year the Democratic Governor’s Association filed a complaint against Fox News claiming that by featuring John Kasich, the Republican gubernatorial candidate in Ohio (and former Fox News host) on their network, along with appeals to make donations to his campaign, they were engaging in illegal contributions to his candidacy. Sam Stein at the Huffington Post is now reporting that Fox is taking the lawsuit seriously:

The Fox News network has solicited the services of a prominent D.C. law firm and an equally prominent campaign finance lawyer to ward off a suit alleging that it made illegal in-kind contributions to a Republican gubernatorial candidate.

No kidding? It is apparent to most cognitive lifeforms that the sole purpose of Fox News is to promote Republican politicians and policies. The have at least four potential candidates for the 2012 GOP presidential nomination currently on their payroll. They regularly invite Republicans on the air to solicit donations. They feature right-wingers and Tea Party spokespersons with far greater frequency (and affinity) than they do Democrats or liberals.

The lawsuit by the DGA addresses only a very small part of the problem, but it is a good start. There has to be marker set for further litigation and, hopefully, prosecution. What occurred in Ohio makes a good test case because the evidence is pretty compelling. The DGA complaint cites Kasich’s appearance on the O’Reilly Factor wherein his web site address was displayed on screen as he was soliciting donations. That was never done for Democratic guests.

Rupert Murdoch

What’s more, Rupert Murdoch, via News Corp, made a $1,000,000 donation to the Republican Governor’s Association, who presumably spent some of it on Kasich’s campaign. Murdoch even admitted that his motivation for making the donation was “my friendship with John Kasich.” That securely ties together the intentions of the network and the results of their favoritism.

It will be interesting to watch this case proceed and to see if it inspires additional litigation. There is certainly sufficient evidence of misbehavior to produce a flurry of lawsuits. And, if nothing else, it might cause Fox to think twice before showering their friends with illegal funds and favoritism on the air.

News Corpse Presents: The ALL NEW 2nd volume of
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.


Glenn Beck’s Ratings Sink into Irrelevancy

Posted by on December 2, 2010 at 5:37 pm. 26 Comments :

If there is one thing for which Glenn Beck deserves some measure of credit, it is his ability to promote himself and inflate his influence on the media, and in society, outside of all proportion to reality. The way he is portrayed in the press would give a neutral observer the impression that he is the most beloved public figure in the country with a growing following that dwarfs his contemporaries.

Of course the truth is that Beck is hated as much as he is loved. And in most polls the highest percentage of respondents are those that have no opinion or haven’t even heard of him.

The most recent ratings for his Fox News program bear out these statistics. Even though Beck gets far more attention than his Fox colleagues, his program is not a top performer and it is not growing. In fact, it is the network’s biggest loser.


In the past year Beck has dropped from 2.67 million total viewers to 2.30 million, down 14%. In the key 25-54 year old advertising demographic it’s even worse. He sank from 678,000 to 434,000, a drop of 36%. Keep in mind that the mid-term elections this year ought to have made his program more pertinent and compelling to his audience rather than less, yet he still underperformed last year’s numbers by a huge margin.

Beck’s deteriorating numbers came on the heels of his vaunted “Restoring Honor” rally in Washington, DC. Apparently that did nothing to restore his ranking. And two months later Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert rubbed salt in his wounds by hosting an even bigger rally. It is also notable that in the same time frame both Keith Olbermann and Rachel Maddow improved their ratings.

During the past year Beck trotted out some unusual news that some cynics may regard as attempts to boost viewership. On one program he announced that he might be going blind. A few weeks later he disclosed that he was being treated for some sort of nerve ailment that resulted in a loss of feeling in his hands and feet (the Stigmata?). He has said nothing about these traumatic incidents since.

The scope of Beck’s ratings failure is not trivial. his decline far exceeds those of his Fox comrades. He routinely places fourth in the Fox lineup behind O’Reilly, Baier, and Hannity. That is pretty low for someone who is being hailed as the network’s star attraction. His ratings are a full 40% below Bill O’Reilly, who doesn’t get nearly as much press as Beck, at least since Beck came aboard. That’s gotta buzz Billo’s beak.

Along with Beck’s dismal ratings picture, he is also a money drain on Fox News. Over 140 American advertisers have pulled their ads from Beck’s show. In the UK Beck has been airing for months with no advertising at all.

You have to wonder why Fox News keeps Beck around when he is neither a source of ratings or revenue. And increasingly he is the network’s greatest source of embarrassment. His ravings are becoming ever more distant from reality (see Glenn Beck Unhinged for copious documentation). The range of his dementia begins with the eminently mockable frightfest he hosted surrounding his assertion that the government is plotting to induce mass starvation via the Food Safety Act. But just when he seems like the rodeo clown he calls himself, he veers into the repulsive bigotry and overt anti-Semitism of his disgraceful and lie-riddled series on George Soros. It would be naive to dismiss him as the joke he often appears to be when he is also capable of incendiary hate speech that has already incited real world violence.

There are only two plausible excuses for keeping someone like Beck on the air:

1) Beck represents the views of the people who employ him and their determination to advance those views supersedes their obligation to produce popular or profitable programming. That would fit the profiles of both Roger Ailes and Rupert Murdoch. Ailes is unambiguously partisan and has crammed the Fox lineup with staunch conservative activists in the role of reporters and hosts. At least four potential candidates for the GOP nomination for president are currently on the Fox News payroll. Murdoch has demonstrated his preference for ideology over profit by deficit financing many of his notoriously biased news operations for many years. And the disclosure of his million dollar donations (via News Corp) to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Republican Governor’s Association remove all doubt as to his activist intentions.

2) Beck’s bosses are afraid to terminate him due to the rabid idolatry of his fan base. Even though Beck’s audience is relatively small and shrinking, they are an unstable lot and they would make a fierce roar of anguish were Fox to cut Beck loose. Whether that would manifest violently with threats to the network or its principles is unknown, but not implausible. They would certainly create a media maelstrom. The cultish worship of Beck approaches Messianic proportions. He even speculates on air that he is the target of death threats and that evil, clandestine forces are gathering to silence (crucify?) him. Just imagine how he would spin his cancellation as persecution, and all of his disciples would believe it.

If the suits at Fox News had any integrity they would cancel Beck tomorrow. That’s how television networks work. You bring in either money or viewers or you get the axe. It’s not censorship. It’s called a free market, and I thought right-wingers were supposed to support that. News Corp and Fox executives have a fiduciary duty to shareholders to return profit on their investments, but they are shirking that duty for either ideological of cowardly reasons.

Perhaps it is the shareholders who should revolt and demand that action be taken to restore fiscal responsibility. Either Beck goes or the brass that are too incompetent to do what’s right and necessary do. I’m holding my breath starting . . . . . . . . Now.