There is a movement afoot to have Fox talk show host Glenn Beck booted off the air. For what, you ask? It seems he expresses his opinion too strongly, which some claim is offensive; actually they say he’s a fear-mongering racist. Because of his alleged fear-mongering, racist activities, both StopBeck.com and ColorofChange.org launched campaigns to pressure advertisers to pull out of Beck’s popular shows here and abroad.
It may be working. A report on the progressive website AlterNet.org claims “well over 100” advertisers have dropped their ads from the popular cable show; and they say it has been running in the UK sans any advertisers for almost a week. Their source for these claims? StopBeck.com and ColorofChange.org.
While those who despise Beck would love nothing better than to believe these claims are true, fans of his (and there are plenty who watch Beck’s highly rated cable show) may wonder if this is fact or conjecture. Herein lies the problem. Journalists used to be regarded as unbiased. They were expected to remain neutral, report facts regardless of their opinion, and function as a watchdog for the American people.
Unfortunately, although it claims to, for the most part the media no longer functions in that capacity. Most Americans no longer believe the reports they read in newspapers or see on television. A recent Rasmussen poll shows that people believe there is a liberal bias in the media and that news organizations use that bias to sway voters. The poll shows that 69 percent of Americans believe reporters try to help the candidate they want to win, and during the 2008 campaign, they believed reporters were trying to help Barack Obama by a nearly five-to-one margin.
A Pew Research survey found that nearly three-quarters (74 percent) of people say news organizations tend to favor one side in dealing with political and social issues. That same percentage says the media is controlled by powerful people and organizations. Often these groups have two things: money and an agenda and not necessarily in that order.
The Internet presents an entirely different issue. Anyone can put up a website, post “news” stories and call it journalism, and it can be difficult sometimes for people to distinguish the facts from the opinions. Free speech is a Constitutional right, and any American who wants to express an opinion should be able to. However, before believing everything that gets posted online, it behooves us to do a little research into who is putting forth the information. For instance, AlterNet.org is a progressive website based in San Francisco, Calif., one of the most liberal cities in the U.S., and whose writers also contribute to liberal sites like The Huffington Post. Their agenda is clearly stated on their site if you know where to look:
“AlterNet.org believes that media must have a higher purpose beyond the essential goal of keeping people informed. We insist on playing an active role in helping our community funnel its energy into change. To achieve this, we will continue to practice tough and visionary strategic journalism.”
Conversely, Beck is careful not to call himself a journalist, instead calling what he does a “fusion of entertainment and enlightenment.” Clearly not everyone is amused, but whether you love him or hate him, Beck, like everyone else, has the right to express his opinion, and he is doing it with much success. Last month a Harris poll showed he is one of America’s favorite television personalities, second only to Oprah. While he is often confrontational and over the top, he freely admits part of it is for entertainment value.
The real reason these liberal activists are after Beck isn’t because they believe he is racist or promoting fear. It’s because he is popular and his message opposes their progressive agenda. If these organizations were concerned with stopping racist hateful speech, Obama’s former pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright would be the one with the target on his back.
