Boycotting Glenn Beck
Calling President Obama a "racist" has cost the Fox News host some big advertisers
Glenn Beck and Fox News are feeling the wrath of advertisers.
(AP Photo/Evan Agostini)
Glenn Beck is in the doghouse, said William Spain in Marketwatch. A growing number of advertisers -- including Geico, Procter & Gamble, Sargento Cheese, and Progressive Insurance -- are abandoning Beck's Fox News show following his "incendiary comments" labeling President Barack Obama as a "racist" who has a "deep-seated hatred for white people." Fox says it's not losing money as the advertisers have simply moved to other shows, but this is "shaping up to be one of the more effective boycott campaigns in years."
"The venom coming from the right recently" may not have created a broad, "visible popular backlash," said Adam Serwer in The American Prospect. But the boycott, organized by the online grassroots group Color of Change, is "certainly hurting Glenn Beck. It's a reminder that this kind of craziness can have consequences."
"Whether Beck said something controversial or not about the president’s reaction to the Henry Louis Gates arrest is not the question," said Rory Cooper in The Heritage Foundation's The Foundry blog. What matters is that the White House may be using a "closely affiliated group" -- Color of Change was recently operated by top White House adviser Van Jones -- to "launch an underground attack" on advertisers linked to someone who had the audacity to criticize President Obama. "Making fun of cable news" is one thing, but using "Chicago-style tactics" to silence critics would be stepping over the line.
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59 Comments
Posted by DJ, Friday, August 14, 2009, 1:13 pm Chicagostyle tactics? Don't you people know he's from Kenya? Or was it Indonesia? WaitI knowHe's from Cambodia!Sorry, couldn't resist a dig.Do you think Beck's advocacy of armed revolution and assassinating the Speaker of the House might have also turned off a couple of advertisers? Especially in the wake of wingnuts bringing guns to town hall meetings? Suddenly, words have consequences.There's an election coming up in 2010, and another in 2012. Go vote. That's how we do things in a democracy.
Posted by John, Friday, August 14, 2009, 1:13 pm Glenn Beck is a douche! My wife has a tumor I named it Glenn Beck.
Posted by Terry, Friday, August 14, 2009, 1:25 pm I don't watch Mr. Beck don't watch any of the news shows but I wonder... what if Mr. Beck is correct? We seem to have tolerance for certain kinds of speech but only from certain sources. I don't like the KKK, but when they receive a permit to stage an event, I have to respect their right to speak. Mr. Obama says things I think should not come from a president, but he also has the advantage of having others do the dirty work.Maybe Mr. Obama is a racist maybe not it may be less of an issue than discouraging free speech.
Posted by Janet, St. Louis, Friday, August 14, 2009, 1:45 pm The Administration is certainly behind this boycott of Glenn Beck. They are waging a war on Fox News because it is the only network that dares to stand up to the Messiah. I support Glenn Beck, although I do think that calling the President a racist is a little over the top even if it is true. You should respect the office of the President, even if the man who occupies it is an complete idiot. The administration will keep up its campaign against talk radio and Fox News.
Posted by Carrie, Friday, August 14, 2009, 1:48 pm I've never watched Mr. Beck, but I certainly will now, if only because I don't approve of trying to muzzle free speech. Especially when the White House is behind the campaign to silence an opposition voice. I voted for President Obama, but he is proving to be a typical politican, not a force for hope and change. Where is the transparency? Where is the bipartisanship? And now the White House tries to silence its enemies. What an incredible disappointment this man has been.
Posted by TH, Friday, August 14, 2009, 1:49 pm Terry, I don't hear anyone saying that Mr. Beck has no right to voice his opinion, but why on earth would he have a right to advertisers?
Posted by Dave, Friday, August 14, 2009, 2:08 pm I have news for you: Glenn Beck is going to be around MUCH longer than the commie who currently occupies and defiles the White House. Smart advertisers will support him and not only because he speaks the truth...
Posted by Steve_For_Obama, Friday, August 14, 2009, 2:37 pm Glenn Beck has no right to speak about the President in that way. He should be taken off the air right after he said those remarks about the President. The FCC should have the power to do that. You can't call the President a racist. If he misspeaks so what? He's the President! He speaks a lot better than the last President and he's going to fix this country so no one should say anything against him. He's got the best plan we just need to go along with it.
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