Glenn Beck Booted Off Fox News

by Dr. Boyce Watkins, Syracuse University – Scholarship in Action 

I admit feeling a bit of glee upon hearing that Fox News is going to part ways with Glenn Beck. After watching his ratings decline, the network decided that it’s best that Beck take his chalk board elsewhere and find something new to do with his time. The departure is likely good for America, for Beck became one of the most divisive figures in the country.

What can’t be overlooked in Beck’s break from Fox is the fact that the decision was likely a financial one. Fox was losing millions when advertisers decided to boycott Beck’s show, largely because they didn’t want their products to be affiliated with a man with such extremist viewpoints. According to ColorofChange.org, Beck has lost 300 advertisers, largely because of comments he has made about President Obama having a hatred of white people. Remarks like this one, along with other conspiracy theories Beck threw at the nation every afternoon, likely led to his demise.

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Your Black Life: NAACP Report: No Diversity In Network TV

Nearly a decade after the NAACP condemned a “virtual whiteout” in broadcast TV, the civil rights group said major networks have stalled in their efforts to further ethnic diversity on-screen and off.

Television shows of the future could be even less inclusive because of a failure to cultivate young minority stars and to bring minorities into decision-making positions, NAACP President and CEO Benjamin Todd Jealous said.

The effect on the country could be profound, Jealous said.

“This is America: So goes TV, so goes reality. We don’t think it’s any accident that before we had a black president in reality, we had a black president on TV,” he said, referring to the chief executive portrayed by Dennis Haysbert on Fox’s “24.”

A “critical lack of programming by, for or about people of color” can be traced in part to the lack of minorities who have the power to approve new series or make final creative decisions, said Vicangelo Bulluck, executive director of NAACP’s Hollywood bureau [...]

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Your Black Life: Bill O’Reilly Humbled By Colleague

YourBlackWorld.com

What happens when a FOX News-subordinate emphatically and insistently tells a network-star that he’s “wrong”? Well, according to what took place on The O’Reilly Factor, two nights ago, all hell breaks loose. In a discussion/dialogue/debate/shout-fest on the consequences of free speech, vis-a-vis religious expression, FOX News host, Megyn Kelly, reminded the cable-king of his immense intellectual limitations: “I’ve never met a non-lawyer who argues the law so confidently, albeit so wrongly,” she said. As O’Reilly grew increasingly aggressive in his condescension toward the former-lawyer, it was only a matter of time before Kelly blurted out the line of the night: “You don’t get it… You’re wrong, Bill!” Yes, WRONG indeed, but a “self-deluded” could have buttressed the point better Ms. Kelly:

[FYI: This is certainly not the first time O'Reilly's been humbled on national TV].

Your Black News: Juan Williams Calls Iraqis ‘Ingrates’

YourBlackWorld.com

At a time when social-consciousness is at its peak, and millions of citizens around the world are scratching their heads to figure out how much of a foreign policy disaster the Iraq War was/is — especially in light of the shoe-throwing incident last Sunday — some of our more… ‘conservative-minded’ fellows still don’t get it. Of such is FOX News superstar-Negro, Juan Williams, who declared, last night, that dissenting Iraqis are petty “ingrate[s]” who don’t value the 2003-invasion, which has wrecked more than a million lives:

Your Black News: Sean Hannity Blames Obama For Ailing Economy

On the November 11 broadcast of his nationally syndicated radio program, Sean Hannity again suggested that President-elect Barack Obama is to blame for the decline in the stock market and said of Wall Street’s performance: “Wall Street keeps sinking. Could it be the Obama recession: The fear that taxes are gonna go up, forcing people to pull out of the market?” Hannity is not alone among conservatives in the media in referring to an “Obama recession” in purported explanation for the state of the stock market. As MSNBC’s Chris Matthews noted on November 12, radio host Rush Limbaugh “says the recession isn’t President Bush’s fault. It’s the fault, catch this, of the president who hasn’t yet taken office. It’s an ‘Obama recession’; that’s what he’s calling it.” Matthews characterized Limbaugh’s reference to an “Obama recession” as “some of the bitter sore loser’s rhetoric we are hearing from the right these days.”

Limbaugh referred to an “Obama recession” on the November 6 and November 11 broadcasts of his nationally syndicated radio show. But as Media Matters for America has noted, analysts have refuted the proposition that the market decline is attributable to Obama’s election, citing other factors such as weak economic data [...]

More W/ Video At Media Matters

Your Black News: Rev. Jeremiah Wright Speaks Out Following Obama Victory

MILFORD — As protesters outside held a giant American flag and yelled words like “traitor” and “racist,” the Rev. Jeremiah Wright discussed his views on race and Christianity before an audience of hundreds Thursday night in Kingdom Life Christian Church.

Wright, President-elect Barack Obama’s former pastor, whose racially and politically charged remarks in sermons propelled him to notoriety in March, was invited to a forum on the Bible, race and American history by the Rev. John C. Rankin, an evangelical scholar and head of the Hartford-based Theological Education Institute.

A soft-spoken Wright, retired senior pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, told the diverse crowd his controversial remarks were taken out of context as media sound bites.

“They could care less what I preach,” he said in response to a question. “Their intention was to use me as a weapon of mass destruction to destroy that man’s candidacy. “¦ Perceptions of me are based on 10 seconds.”

The spotlight fell Wright when ABC News reported a review of dozens of his sermons found repeated denunciations of the U.S. and lists of its injustices to blacks and other minorities [...]

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Your Black News: White Journalists Blow Race Coverage: A Review

White Journalists Blow Race Coverage: A Review

By: Tolu Olorunda

Staff Writer – YourBlackWorld.com

The stage theatrics performed by the corporate press in analyzing the dynamics of Race vis-à-vis Sen. Obama, has been abysmal, at best. To put it bluntly, they suck. When Barack “Hussein” Obama, a Black man, initially announced his bid for the presidency, it was clear that the predominantly White media was unprepared, to say the least, in tackling the indomitable beast of RACE. The first revelation of this reality came, early 2007, when White pundits began asking the question: “Is Barack Obama Black enough?” It took an unprecedented level of effrontery for the grossly unenlightened conglomerate of White journalists to pose such a question, but, to paraphrase Sinatra, they did it their way.

Before long, the same group of overfed self-congratulators would declare, with such temerity, the dawn of a “post-racial” era. Considering the ground-work of “post-racialism,” it came as no surprise when the White, New York Times columnist, Matt Bai, declared Obama’s candidacy to be “the end of Black politics.” Upon Bai’s preposterous assertion, numerous Black bloggers/Writers asked a simple question: What the heck is going on? Unfortunately, their reluctance to curtail mass media’s long-tradition of re-defining race-discourse had begun to bear fruit [...]

Full Article At Your Black News

Your Black Brothers: Juan Williams Stands Up To Sean Hannity!

Is Juan Williams leaving the house? Not sure he’s welcome back on the field, but that’s an entirely different discussion. On Thursday, Sean Hannity, the self-proclaimed McCain surrogate and FOX News host, attempted, once again, to smear Palestinian-native and Chicago professor, Rashid Khalidi. Unfortunately for Hannity, even Juan Williams wouldn’t back him up on his erroneous claim that an association with Prof. Khalidi is synonymous to dancing with the devil. Juan Williams, known for his anti-black sensibilities, seemed to express some frustration with his pal, Sean Hannity, whose desperate strategies at helping McCain win appear to hold no barriers. To put it plainly, Juan Williams called him out on his B.S. and unadulterated hypocrisy:

Video At Your Black Brothers

Your Black News: Ashley Todd: A Counter-Argument to “Post-Racialism”

Ashley Todd: A Counter-Argument to “Post-Racialism”

By: Tolu Olorunda

Staff Writer – YourBlackWorld.com

Perhaps one of the greatest ironies of the 2008 Presidential race is the constant assertion of the notion of a “post-racial” period, while juxtaposed with an endless torrent of refuting occurrences. Last week, Ashley Todd, a Pittsburgh McCain worker, reported a compelling story of being “robbed at an ATM at the corner of Liberty Avenue and Pearl Street in the Bloomfield area around 9 p.m. Wednesday after leaving a Republican phone bank.” To avoid misleading the local police station, Todd was quick to comment that her purported attacker was a “dark-skinned African-American man about 6’4″,” who “stole $60 from her and became enraged after seeing a bumper sticker supporting Republican Presidential Candidate John McCain on her car.”

The bizarre story took an unusual twist when Ashley Todd told Pittsburgh police that her “dark-skinned” bandit made sure to carve “a ‘B’ in her cheek,” when he noticed the McCain sticker on her car. From the onset, this mystery was suspicious at best. Nevertheless, John McCain and Sarah Palin swiftly conducted personal phone calls with the victim: Ashley Todd. Even Sen. Obama’s camp would not risk being charged with condoning this reported act of bestiality. In a released statement, the campaign stated: “Our thoughts and prayers are with the young woman for her to make a speedy recovery, and we hope that the person who perpetrated this crime is swiftly apprehended and brought to justice.” Damn. Tawana Brawley must be feeling pretty disgusted at this point [...]

More At Your Black News

Your Black Politics: Bob Beckel’s Racist Tirade Against Charles Barkley

In an interview with CNN’s Campbell Brown, Monday night, NBA legend, Charles Barkley, mentioned that racism was still an integral part of U.S. political life. Surprisingly, FOX News wasn’t to happy about it, and talk-show host, Sean Hannity, made much hoopla about it on his show last night. “Liberal Commentator,” Bob Beckel, was featured as a guest to provide some analysis on Barkley’s charge. Beckel responded saying, “I would rather take the words of a drunk on the corner down here on politics than Charles Barkley’s… He’s a great basketball player, but he ought to stay there. That’s exactly right. And not wander into our neighborhood, you know.” What does Beckel mean by “our neighborhood?” Perhaps, in Beckle and FOX News’s minds, Black athletes can only function one-dimensionally. This might explain why politically-conscious athletes like Etan Thomas have become increasingly marginalized in mainstream athleticism:

Watch Video At Your Black Politics

Your Black World Headlines: 10/29/2008

NAACP Sues Virginia For Election Protection

Ethiopia Building Africa’s Largest Wind Farm

Charles Barkley Wars With FOX News

Fatal Shooting In Brooklyn On Monday

Marion Jones To Discuss Jail On ‘Oprah’

Your Black Politics: David Letterman Embarrasses FOX News & Bill O’Reilly

Last night, David Letterman gave the bully-boy of cable-news a taste of his own medicine. As the interview progressed, O’Reilly grew increasingly agitated — much to the delight of Letterman and the studio audience. At one point, Letterman accused O’Reilly of putting “artificial facts” in his head, and believing them. On the subject of Iraq – one Bill claims to have mastered – the FOX News host proved to be unbelievably nescient, and incapable of defending the talking points he spews on his nightly show. The manhandling is pretty graphic (ADULTS ONLY):

Video At Your Black Politics

Your Black Politics: FOX News Calls Obama Presidency “Unfortunate”

The common-sense bandits – also known as FOX News – are at it again. This time, the insinuation is loud and clear. In an interview with Sen. John McCain, FOX News host, Chris Wallace, asked the Republican Presidential Nominee what life would look like if he lost to Sen. Obama — come Nov. 4th. In the interview in which Sen. McCain descried Gov. Palin as a, “cold political calculation,” who is a “direct counterpoint to the liberal feminist agenda for America,” Chris Wallace hinted at an Obama presidency being synonymous to the world tuning “an unfortunate way.” This was the exchange:

WALLACE: … Have you considered – have you even dealt in your mind with the possibility that you could lose, and could you live with that?

MCCAIN: Oh, sure. I mean, I don’t dwell on it. But look. I’ve had a wonderful life. I have to go back and live in Arizona, and be in the United States Senate representing them, and with a wonderful family, and daughters and sons that I’m so proud of, and a – and a life that’s been blessed.

I’m the luckiest guy you have ever interviewed and will ever interview. I’m the most fortunate man on earth, and I thank God for it every single day.

WALLACE: So if the world turns an unfortunate way on November 4th, don’t feel sorry for John McCain?

MCCAIN: Don’t feel sorry for John McCain, and John McCain will be concentrating on not feeling sorry for himself.

Reposted From Your Black Politics

Your Black Life: Sister, Can You Spare Some Class: Black Women In The Media

Sister, Can You Spare Some Class: Black Women in the Media
By: Tolu Olorunda
Staff Writer – YourBlackWorld.com

Who can argue with prophetic leader and political prisoner, Mumia Abu Jamal’s assessment that “Black women are the most disfavored of all the nation’s women?” Only a fool would. Black Women, historically, have had to endure the horror of living in a world that screams hatred from its four corners. Like piercing swords drilling a hole into one’s soul, many Black Women are subjected daily to inhumane attacks from the left, right, front, and back angles of society.

[...]

In addition to coming to grips with the rampant racism exhibited in many White feminist organizations, financially-disempowered Black Women also face the firey scorn of well-to-do Black Women who hypocritically blame them for the criminal conditions in which they exist. With such precedent, I ask again, who can argue with prophetic leader and political prisoner, Mumia Abu Jamal’s assessment that “Black women are the most disfavored of all the nation’s women?”

Full Article At Your Black Life

Your Black Life: FOX News & Greta Van Susteren Attack Gwen Ifill

FOX News’s Greta Van Susteren, who last week compared Rev. Dr. Jeremiah Wright to reputed Klansman David Duke, took a curious look, last night, at the folly-induced controversy brewing over legendary journalist/moderator Gwen Ifill’s status as the moderator for tonight’s V.P. debate. In a segment titled, “Fair and Balanced?” the FOX News tabloid queen went to unbelievable lengths in attacking the character, integrity and dignity of Ms. Ifill — all the while claiming to be doing otherwise. As most YBW readers are aware, FOX News is neither fair nor balanced to begin with, and when journalistic ethics are mentioned, FOX is nowhere to be found. This intentional chauvinistic and racist assault upon Gwen Ifill’s character confirms two things. First, that Black women are still subjugated to the consideration, analysis, preference and dictate of White men — a la Michelle Obama. Secondly, that the GOP is so fretful over the expectable disastrous performance by their V.P. selection tonight – Gov. Palin – and a preemptive strike against the moderator was strategically formulated to make an excuse for why Palin might not be able to answer questions in a coherent and decipherable format. Gwen Ifill, being the brilliant and elegant journalist that she is, responded in an AP interview yesterday, questioning her detractors if “they made the same assumptions about Lou Cannon (who is white) when he wrote his book about Reagan?” As one might suspect, the silence was deafening. So I say more power to Gwen Ifill, for she is the embodiment of the great legacies of fierce Black Women such as Fannie Lou Hamer, Harriet Tubman, Rosa Parks, and Callie House. As for FOX News and Greta Van Susteren, they only furthermore proved to be the goose which lays a thousand retarded eggs:

From Your Black Life

Your Black News: FOX News Compares Rev. Wright To David Duke

FOX News’s Greta Van Susteren – the Journalism equivalent of Gov. Sarah Palin – made an insinuation a couple of nights ago that, at the very least, compares Rev. Dr. Jeremiah Wright to a man who has openly advocated for the lynching and castration of Black people. In an attempt to ask former president Bill Clinton a “tough question” (perhaps Fair & Balanced), the FOX News tabloid queen took time out from her Caylee Anthony marathon stalk-fest to query:

“What is the difference between an association with someone like David Duke and someone like Reverend Wright?”

Bill Clinton, unable to comprehend the effrontery and packaged acidic stupidity, paused for a few seconds before attempting to answer the question. David Duke, as most are aware, is a Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan, who made headlines last year when he arose in defense of the nooses hung on the infamous tree in Jena, La. Most human beings would find it immensely difficult to stomach such insinuation by FOX News; but coming from a network which, on Friday Sept. 18, 2008, found it refreshing to suggest that “loaning to minorities and risky folks is a disaster,” nothing, even such as morally-repugnant as Susteren’s statement, should come off as shocking. FOX News = The High Cost Of Low Standards. A leopard indeed, does not change it’s spots:

From Your Black News

Your Black Politics: FOX News’ Clown Host, Bill O’Reilly Attacks Michelle Obama

The face of disgrace, Bill O’Reilly, found another way, yesterday, to take criminal swipes at the potential first lady, Michelle Obama. In a new segment he calls, “The Obama Chronicles,” an “extensive 25-part series” on Sen. Barack Obama, O’Reilly made some deeply reprehensible comments. In an effort to slime the independent-minded Michelle Obama, Billo – as he’s called by rival host Keith Olbermann – began by degradingly labeling Ms. Obama as “the controversial wife of the Democratic candidate.” To affirm this folly-inspired categorization, O’Reilly further claimed – rather baselessly – that Michelle Obama “looks like an angry woman.” Most YBW readers are aware of FOX News’ reporter, Cal Thomas’s despicable remarks, earlier this year, that most Black Women on TV are of some shade of angry. Bill O’Reilly, who has in the past, expressed willingness to lynch Michelle Obama — on the condition that substantive proof is given that she feels a certain way about her country, blamed the victims of Hurricane Katrina for their demise, publicly expressed shock at the idea of Black people acting civically at an Harlem Restaurant, and claimed inner-city kids are innately incivil, is in no way morally equipped to assess the temperament of anyone — let alone someone who, quite obviously, shatters the limited brain data he possesses:

Reposted From Your Black Life

Your Black Life: FOX News Host Sean Hannity Abuses Guest — Has History

Strangely, FOX News’ postal boy, Sean Hannity, has a detailed history of abusing his guests — especially those who don’t see the world through the narrow keyhole with which he analyzes reality. The radio/television host, who has rarely used his bully-pulpit for the good of society, shows why a college degree goes a long way in preventing mental decrepitude. Watch as he screams-down his guest, Robert Kuttner, on the pitiful FOX “News” show, Hannity & Colmes:

Also, check out a 2007 interview with Dr. Boyce Watkins, in which the same arrogant disposition of Hannity is displayed:

Your Black Politics: FOX News Host, Sean Hannity Says “Colored People” Repeatedly

FOX News postal Boy, Sean Hannity, used the derogatory term, “Colored People” profusely — as a descriptor for Black Politicians. In an argument with National Action Network founder, Al Sharpton, Hannity is relegated to anger, and inadvertently repeats the term one can only assume he uses at will — when the camera and mic are turned off. Pls. call FOX News, or send an email, to let them know that you do not wish to be categorized as “Colored” in 2008:

Your Black News: Barack Obama Claims The “Surge Has Succeeded”

OBAMA: ….There is no doubt that the violence is down and that is a testament to the troops that were sent and General Patraeus and Ambassador Crocker. I think that the surge has succeeded in ways that nobody anticipated, by the way, including President Bush and the other supporters….

O’REILLY: But if it had been up to you there would not have been a surge. You and Joe Biden, no surge.

OBAMA: Hold on, if you look at the the debate that was taking place. We had gone through five years of mismanagement of this war, which I thought was disastrous, and the president wanted to double down and continue and open-ended policy that did not create the kind of pressure on the Iraqis to take responsibility and reconcile.

O’REILLY: But it worked, come on.

OBAMA: Bill, look – I already said it succeeded beyond our wildest dreams.

O’REILLY: Why can you not say, ‘I was right in the beginning, but I was wrong on the surge?’

OBAMA: Because there is an underlying problem with what we have done. We have reduced the violence. But the Iraqis have still not taken responsibility. And we still do not have the kind of political reconciliation — we are still spending, Bill, $10 billion or $12 billion a month

O’REILLY: And if you’re president, I hope you can get them to kick in on that.

OBAMA: They’ve got $79 billion dollars in the dirt

O’REILLY: I’ll go with you.

OBAMA: Let’s go!

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