Joel Cheatwood

The Unmitigated Hate of Fox News

Posted by on January 27, 2011 at 9:58 pm. 20 Comments :

In response to a long and repulsive record of anti-Semitism and insensitive allusions to Nazis and the Holocaust on the part of Fox News, a coalition of 400 rabbis published an open letter calling on Rupert Murdoch to sanction Glenn Beck and demand that Roger Ailes apologize for their atrocious behavior. The letter was printed in a full page ad in Murdoch’s own Wall Street Journal, and said in part…

“We share a belief that the Holocaust, of course, can and should be discussed appropriately in the media. But that is not what we have seen at Fox News. It is not appropriate to accuse a 14-year old Jew hiding with a Christian family in Nazi-occupied Hungary of sending his people to death camps. It is not appropriate to call executives of another news agency ‘Nazis.’ And it is not appropriate to make literally hundreds of on-air references to the Holocaust and Nazis when characterizing people with whom you disagree.”

Rather than take the responsible path and accept that the criticism of hundreds of independent rabbis is sufficient evidence that Fox has stepped way over the line, Joel Cheatwood, senior vice president of development for Fox News, took a confrontational stance that proved once again that Fox News is committed to an agenda of hate. He said…

“We haven’t seen the ad, but this group is a George Soros backed left-wing political organization that has been trying to engage Glenn Beck primarily for publicity purposes.”

Really? The 400 rabbis who signed the letter are from a diverse spectrum of congregations, from reform to orthodox. They include liberals and conservatives and they have no organizational affiliation other than their common faith and a shared disgust for those who tarnish the memory of their families and heritage. But Cheatwood insults them by accusing them of being publicity seekers. And worse, he asserts that they are but minions of the “puppet master,” as Glenn Beck dubbed George Soros, thus recycling the same sort of vilification that Jews were subjected to in Hitler’s Germany.

There is simply no excuse for this overt hostility and insensitivity. This is no longer confined to the brutish ignorance of a few television hosts. It extends to the network management from Cheatwood, to Ailes, and all the way up to Rupert Murdoch himself. These people have no respect for others who have suffered under the most horrendous circumstances. They are only concerned with their own obsession for spreading hate and division. Ironically, Glenn Beck spoke of this on his program today:

“We can’t treat everyone as an enemy. We need to stop focusing on the things that divide us, but the things that unite us. […] Do you know why you can shoot a cop or beat somebody at Wendy’s; why you can call neighbors – neighbors – enemies because they voted for a different person? Because we no longer see people as human beings.”

If that wasn’t so sick coming from someone who spends every waking hour demonizing his ideological foes, it would be a laugh riot. Beck is the man that has likened progressives to cancer and warned that they can only be dealt with by shooting them in the head. And now he wants to deliver sermons on unity and respect for fellow Americans?

Glenn Beck has spoken more about the Nazi affiliations of Democrats and liberals than anyone on radio or television. It is an obsession with him. Hardly a day goes by that he doesn’t make some comment about the Holocaust. Which is interesting because today was one of those rare days when he never brought it up at all. He completely ignored the subject of the Holocaust today – the International Holocaust Remembrance Day. On this day Beck remains silent on the subject. A silence that speaks volumes.

Fox News Stands By Glenn Beck’s Hate Speech 1000%

Posted by on August 4, 2010 at 2:32 am. 6 Comments :

This should tell you all you need to know about Fox News and their commitment to bigotry and division.

Earlier today Michael Calderone of The Upshot posted a story describing the most recent example of Glenn Beck’s intolerance and insensitivity. It all began when Beck broadcast a brazenly offensive attack against Simon Greer, chief executive of Jewish Funds for Justice. As you might imagine, the fact that Greer runs an agency that advocates justice of the social variety is enough by itself to set Beck off. But when Greer wrote about the benefits, both personal and spiritual, of pursuing the common good, Beck couldn’t restrain himself:

“This leads to death camps. A Jew, of all people, should know that. This is exactly the kind of talk that led to the death camps in Germany. Put humankind and the common good first.”

Not surprisingly, Greer took offense at being portrayed as an instigator of Holocausts. Especially when he was merely expressing what his faith teaches him as written in the Talmud:

If I am not for myself, who will be for me? If I am for myself alone, what am I?

Calderone’s article goes on to state that Greer had a meeting with Fox News CEO Roger Ailes and senior vice president Joel Cheatwood. In Greer’s account of the meeting the Fox executives agreed that Beck had “crossed the line” and they promised talk to him. A couple of days later Greer received a letter from Beck that was something less than an apology, but which Greer graciously regarded as “a peace offering.”

But the story doesn’t end there. After Calderone’s article was published, Cheatwood ran to the press to deny that there was ever any agreement with Greer and that both Cheatwood and Ailes stand “behind Glenn Beck 1000%.” That’s right. They felt it was imperative to quickly correct the record and make it known that they believe, along with Beck, that caring for your neighbors, and your community, and the community of mankind, will lead to fascist death camps. And, of course, those who do care are budding Hitlers. Thanks for clearing that up.

Veteran Beck observers will not be surprised by any of this. His racism, and his employer’s support for it, has been documented before. When Beck called President Obama a racist with “a deep seated hatred for white people or the white culture,” Rupert Murdoch declared that he was right.

To top off this story, it was just revealed that Beck had listed on his “favorites” on Twitter a Tweet from a white nationalist that said to “Embrace White Culture” and included the logo and acronym for “White Pride World Wide,” a known slogan of white supremacy groups. After it became public, Beck deleted all of his favorite Tweets. Unfortunately for him, the evidence was captured before he was able to destroy it.

And this is the guy who compares himself to Martin Luther King and still thinks he has a moral right to hold a self-glorifying rally on the anniversary of, and at the same location as, King’s “I Have a Dream” speech.

Thar’s Gold In Glenn Beck’s Shills

Posted by on December 14, 2009 at 12:58 pm. 1 Comments :

To accuse Glenn Beck of being a greedy, capitalist, manipulative, profiteering, hustler would probably be received as a compliment by him. He spreads the marketing on pretty thick with TV, radio, magazines, books, movies, and personal appearances. And all of these self-aggrandizing ventures are hawked shamelessly on his multiple media platforms.

Recently, however, Beck has come under fire for his promotion of products and services offered by his advertisers. This sort of hucksterism is problematic because it makes it impossible to tell if the product endorsements are genuine or if they are payoffs to keep the advertiser happy. That obvious conflict of interest seems to escape Beck. What’s worse, shilling for products in this manner can result in the spokesperson deliberately misleading his audience in order to create or enhance the market for a product.

And that is precisely what Beck is being accused of doing on behalf of his gold advertisers. During the course of his programs on radio and TV, Beck is painting a picture of America, and the world, as teetering on the ledge of catastrophe. He insists that the economy is in freefall and the dollar is collapsing. He has even floated conspiracy theories about the dollar being replaced by a new world currency. All of these frightful predictions are encouragements to his gullible disciples to protect their assets by converting them to gold.

Now, even Beck’s employer, Fox News, has registered some concern about Beck’s relationship with his sponsors. Joel Cheatwood, Senior Vice President of Development at Fox, says that the network’s legal department asked Beck’s representatives for clarification about his work for Goldline International. The response was that Beck is not a paid spokesman. That’s fortunate because Fox’s official policy on the matter is that…

“Fox News prohibits any on-air talent from endorsing products or serving as a product spokesperson.”

So how do they explain this:

Glenn Beck for GoldlineThe Goldline web site has prominently featured Beck endorsing their products. The footnote referenced on the ad identified Beck explicitly as a “paid spokesman.” However, it no longer does so. The designation was recently changed to read “radio sponsor.” And concurrent with that, both Goldline and Fox are now claiming that Beck was never a paid spokesman in the first place. It was all just a big misunderstanding. Never mind the fact that Beck has appeared in specially produced videos touting Goldline.

The doomsday gold rush is a staple for Beck’s media empire. At least four of his current advertisers are gold dealers (Goldline, Superior Gold Group, Investment Rarities, and Rosland Capital). Granted, Beck is having a hard time attracting advertisers since he called President Obama a racist. The remaining ads are almost all for conservative publications or products and services exploiting one crisis or another. And this is not just a Beck phenomena. Goldline and other gold traders are also pitched by such financial wizards as Mark Levin, Dennis Miller, Fred Thompson, Laura Ingraham, Lars Larson, Michael Smerconish, Monica Crowley, and G. Gordon Liddy.

If the world doesn’t come to an end soon, Beck’s viewers are going to be very disappointed – and poor. Gold prices have cratered in the past month, losing more than $100.00 per ounce. And the worst thing that can happen from the perspective of Beck, and those who foolishly took his investment advice, is for the economy to recover. And therein lies the problem with regard to conflict of interest.

In order for Beck and his coterie to prosper, the economy must not. Beck has a financial stake in the nation’s economic affairs turning south. He also has a personal stake in that he does not want to be seen as having been wrong about his dire predictions. So his programs’ advertising, his investment portfolio, and his reputation all require that our country fail. Could that have something to with Beck’s relentless barrage of lectures about how the country is going to hell and it is time to build an Ark? Could it have something to do with his rallying cry for God, guns, and of course, gold?

Could it? Could be.