The Emmy awards this past Sunday reminded me of my hypocrisy. It always does. Most television viewers identify the Emmy ceremonies with entertainment programs. The awards have been been around for 62 years and I tried to calculate how many of these presentations I have watched. By adding together the minutes I glimpsed at the shows while channel surfing or passing TV sets in department stores, I haven’t accumulated enough time for even one night of viewing.

But there is such a thing as Emmy awards for television journalism—not only at the network level, but for local news. And in terms of pretentiousness and self-importance, the presentations of Emmys for news reporting have acted as sort of bookends for my “award-winning” career as a muckraker. 

In 1977, I received a New England regional Emmy for outstanding investigative reporting. In the preceding five years, I had already collected several major  national journalism prizes, including two Peabody medallions. But this was the first awards presentation in which I was expected to dress like a penguin in a rented ensemble from Mr. Tuxedo. It was a risky investment since I was only a nominee.

The winners were to be announced at this—the first ever Emmy event for New England local news. It was even being televised, apparently based on the assumption that there were viewers who actually gave a shit who won.

When I arrived at the hotel ballroom and read the program, I was shocked to discover that the very first awards category was investigative reporting. It may have been the only time in my career I hoped to lose. Given the fact that I had missed seeing the national Emmy shows for entertainment for thirty years, and because there was no precedent for accepting local trophies, I was clueless of what to say if I won. And as luck would have it, I was the winner of the first ever New England regional Emmy.

And how did I react? Just like some dumb-ass at the Academy Awards. I had seen Oscar presentations. So while trying to appear humble, I rattled on, giving thanks to co-workers, etc. It was a missed opportunity. In retrospect, I should have asked why the hell were we inflating our already oversized egos. Instead of giving our easily earned money—television doesn’t require heavy lifting—to Mr. Tuxedo and dress designers, why not make contributions to our favorite charities. But like I said, I’m a hypocrite. I was happy to get the damn statue, which is on a shelf behind me in a home office that could be mistaken for a self-worship shrine. 

Anyway, on the night of the first New England Emmys, all the winners following me to the podium echoed my hokey sentiments in their acceptance speeches. And I assume the custom continues. However, there was a mini-scandal connected to the 2008 presentations involving an award given the Fox “News” resident asshole, Bill O’Reilly.

He was presented the “prestigious” Governor’s award, causing a controversy that was subject of a story in this month’s Columbia Journalism Review. I am providing the citation. But for non-news junkies I have excerpted the gist of the magazine article.

http://www.cjr.org/behind_the_news/the_oreilly_factor.php?page=1

According to Timothy Egan, then the president of the academy’s local chapter, “Bill O’Reilly was selected because he hosted the top-rated talk show on cable seven years running. He worked at TV stations in Hartford and two in Boston. He wrote for The Boston Phoenix. And he holds master’s degrees from Boston University one from [Harvard’s] Kennedy School of Government. He is someone who understands New England’s journalism industry and honed his skills here.”

To some participants, though, O’Reilly was an odd choice. For all his success as a media superstar—cable TV host, newspaper columnist, and best-selling author—O’Reilly has long been dogged by critics turned off less by his conservative politics than his inflammatory rhetoric and bullying tactics.

Barry Nolan, a veteran New England cable TV personality and talk show host was particularly incensed by the O’Reilly award. In fact, there was concern he would disrupt the event. Instead, he skipped the tuxedo and showed up at at the presentations armed with six page hand-outs that were passed among the tables of the 400-plus guests. Nolan then departed before the awards ceremony began.

In case you haven’t heard, the thin skin of Bill O’Reilly is a medical marvel. Two weeks after the New England Emmys, he launched an attack on his critic. Bond’s bosses at Comcast Cable then displayed their mini-testicles by firing the longtime employee. Oh, for the good old days when the biggest controversy at the New England Emmys was the steak being too tough.

Actually, my prize-winning days are over. In 1995 as CNN’s Senior Investigative Correspondent, I was nominated for a national Emmy for exposing Whitewater as a bogus scandal. Sitting in the ballroom of a Manhattan hotel surrounded by network celebrity journalists and lesser lights of my ilk, I had a “who really cares” feelings. Good thing to, because I didn’t win. But even before the winners were announced I had decided this was my last awards ceremony. And I’ve not been back since.

Come to think of it, I haven’t been invited. Have a safe Labor Day weekend.

My memoir, Odyssey of a Derelict Gunslinger, is available at amazon.com and independent bookstores. It offers much more than $19.99 worth of laughs. The book is an account of my illustrious (I choose the adjectives) career.

My calendar is running backwards and I am somehow being transported back to the 1960’s. Or so it seems. I think New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd got it right when she wrote this week that the nation is suffering “a nervous breakdown.”

Even worse, is an outbreak of national paranoia—a condition that is being exploited by politicians, preachers, and talk show characters like Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Bill O’Reilly, Glenn Beck and the Republican Propaganda Network—also known as Fox “News.”

Indeed, the country is being exposed to a sick joke this week by the planned Glenn Beck rally at the Lincoln Memorial on the anniversary of Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech. Beck personifies all that the Reverend King opposed. Instead of unifying people as civil rights leader dreamed, Beck’s rhetoric is designed to divide the country.

He claims that the selection of August 28th for his rally is a benevolent accident—a date orchestrated by God. If this is truly God’s plan, I have hunch that a lightning storm will hit Washington on Saturday. If that comes to pass, Glenn should avoid standing beneath trees. And that probably goes for many other people attending the rally.

If some of the past Tea Party demonstrations are an indication, Glenn’s soiree will be exploited by far-right fringe groups. And although the Ku Klux Klan has been reduced to double digit numbers in most parts of the country, there are still enough racists around to fill a lot of sheets. They will show up, invited or not, to spread their brand of hatred—often in the name God.

The “God told me so” syndrome is nothing new. My old pal, Jimmy Swaggart, has regularly used quotation marks in relating instructions given him by the Lord. Unfortunately, Brother Jimmy’s hearing must have been failing when he heard God say, ”Go forth and save prostitutes.” Jimmy thought he heard, “Go forth and pay prostitutes.”

As someone who has worn a hearing aid for years, I know the problems of  misunderstanding words. And I’m guessing this is what happened to the Pastor of the Dove World Church in Gainesville, Florida. He believes God wants him to promote ”Burn the Koran Day” on the 9/11 anniversary.

But who am I to judge the hearing of other folks—Pat Robertson being the exception. The TV mogul and religious broadcaster has been wrong so many times in relaying God’s word that he must be deaf. Undeterred by his hearing loss, Robertson continues to interject himself in ongoing controversies. Most recently, he weighed-in on construction of the proposed Islamic mosque and cultural center in lower Manhattan. Earlier his month, an organization he heads filed a lawsuit to block the project. For me, the very fact that Robertson opposes the mosque suggests that it is worthwhile.

Although I am sympathetic to the protests of families of World Trade Center victims, they represent only a small percentage of the people opposing the project. In fact, there are families of victims who support the center, which is being constructed as a symbol of Islamic moderation. 

But sadly, Muslims are the victims of a wave of the mass hysteria sweeping the nation because of an economic downturn and fear of the future. In bad times, the population can easily be manipulated by morally corrupt politicians and others with selfish motives. Watching the confrontations between groups of demonstrators at the mosque site this past weekend was reminiscent of covering civil rights more than forty years ago.

The sheets and hoods of the sixties were missing. Still, I fear they may return if the characters exploiting the hysteria don’t butt out.

My memoir, Odyssey of a Derelict Gunslinger, is available at amazon.com and independent bookstores. It offers much more than $19.99 worth of laughs. The book is an account of my illustrious (I choose the adjectives) career.

More often than not in television, smart producers save on-air personalities from stupid gaffes. Such was not the case this week on the Greta Van Sustern show. The Fox “News” talk show host is an attorney smart enough to realize that a facelift was required for her to succeed on TV. I’m not saying she was ugly. Just ordinary—a condition that plagued me, especially in the latter years of my CNN career when droopy jowls began getting in the way of my shoulders. Unfortunately, my facelift failed to bring me fame and fortune.

But enough about me. Let’s cut to the chase and Fox’s monumental goof of mistaking Shirley Sherrod for U.S. Representative Maxine Waters, the California Congresswoman under investigation for an ethics violation. 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/03/greta-van-susteren-sick-o_n_668829.html

The inability of Fox “News” to distinguish between Sherrod and Waters seems symbolic. It is a symptom of the networks underlying attitude toward African-Americans, and President Obama in particular. Time and again, Fox anchors, talk show personalities and pundits have been guilty of subtle racism. And in some instances—hello, Glenn Beck—not so subtle racist comments. During lulls in parroting Republican propaganda, the network acts as an outlet for misinformation spread by right-wing blogger Andrew Breitbart, the source of the out-of-context video that set off a storm surrounding Shirley Sherrod.

Fox denies using the video prior to her resignation as the top USDA official in her native state of Georgia. The edited video distorted an inspirational story she told of helping a white farmer. It was changed to a story of revenge. Displaying a level of stupidty equal to that of Glenn Beck, a Department of Agriculture official in Washington demanded Sherrod’s resignation.

Fox’s denial of jumping the gun on the story is almost true. The video did not air before the resignation, although its existence was disclosed on Fox.com and aired on the Bill O’Reilly show, which was taped earlier in the day. In effect, the over-reaction of the Obama Adminstration saved Fox from itself.

The good fortune of the network in escaping Andrew Breitbart’s racism does not change the past. Breitbart is the same guy who produced altered video that pushed the black activist organization, ACORN, into bankruptcy. And a crazy woman who hosts an afternoon talk show on Fox has been obsessed with the failure of the U.S. Department of Justice to collect a judgment against dirt poor Black Panthers in an uncontested civil case involving voter intimidation.

President Obama’s former pastor in Chicago, the Reverend Jeremiah Wright, and an obscure administration ”czar” named Van Jones have also been on the Fox hit list. Jones quit his enviromental czaring job after a couple of minor indiscretions in the 1990’s caused Glenn Beck several weeks of insane wild-eyed drooling. The Reverand Wright got the Fox “News” treatment because of irrational sermons that suggested he was slipping into dementia.

With Fox’s history, its too bad that Greta Van Sustern is victimized by people who can’t tell one African American from another. I could understand Sarah Palin making such a mistake. In Wasilla, Alaska, she rarely saw a black face. Although I only encountered Van Sustern a couple of times when she worked for CNN, my impression was she did not make stupid mistakes.

And speaking of stupidity, I can’t pass up the opportunity to mention Sharron Angle—the Nevada Tea Party heroine, who was supposed to send U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid into retirement. Instead, she seems determined to get him re-elected. Reid’s rescue is aided by Angle’s mouth. Everytime she opens it near a TV camera, he is assured of more votes. 

For example, Angle claims that people collecting unemployment are “spoiled,” supports phasing out Social Security and recently refused to answer questions at a news conference she called. But the topper came during a friendly Fox interview when Angle stated that reporters should only ask questions she wanted to answer and report news that she endorsed.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/03/angle-the-press-should-as_n_668521.html

Unlike Greta Van Sustern, Angle can’t blame  blunders on technicians, stupid aides or advisors. All by herself, she has mastered dumbness.

My memoir, Odyssey of a Derelict Gunslinger, is available at amazon.com and independent bookstores. It offers much more than $19.99 worth of laughs. The book is an account of my illustrious (I choose the adjectives) career.

There is no getting around the fact that Bill O’Reilly must be one smart guy. Just ask him. He is a Harvard graduate with a couple of Masters Degrees, plus extensive training in the art of assholism (I know there’s no such word, but in explaining the use of the word, “refudiate,” Sarah Palin assured fans that it is okay to make up words because William Shakespeare made up words. And speaking of masterful writers, I made up assholism in my masterpiece, Odyssey of a Derelict Gunslinger. Indeed, I’m adding another contribution to literature by composing long parenthetical digressions).

http://popwatch.ew.com/2010/07/19/sarah-palin-refudiate/ 

Getting back to Bill O’Reilly finally, I am fascinated by his remarks regarding the influence and impact of Fox “News” on television viewers—more influential he claims than other networks.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/07/20/bill-oreilly-fox-news-bet_n_652477.html

O’Reilly is correct in believing that the Republican propaganda network gives viewers the news they want to hear, which is basically what he is saying. However, the comment makes me wonder if he really received a Masters in Broadcast Journalism from Boston University. After all, O’Reilly once falsely claimed that he was awarded a Peabody. If he’s telling the truth about his Masters, I want be recommending the journalism school to fledgling reporters. The role of news is to report the truth and give people information they need to know. My old employer, CNN, at least tries. But Fox fails miserably as a legitimate news organization. The network so slanted to the right that discerning truth is a formidable test for viewers—even if they cared.

I concede that Fox “News” has considerable influence on its viewers. On a regular basis, I encounter Fox folks who take the attitude of “Don’t confuse me with facts.” Some are simply too lazy to think for themselves. Others are angry, unhappy people facing economic setbacks and other difficulties they don’t understand. O’Reilly and his right-wing comrades provide viewers targets to assign blame. Primarily Democrats. 

But lets face it, monkeys in a room filled with typewriters (are any left?) will compose one word that is comprehensible. And even though God may punish me for this, I’m going to give Fox ”News,” Bill O’Reilly and Megyn (this is hard to spit out) Kelly an A+ for criticizing Bob Scheiffer, the CBS host of Face the Nation. Crazy Megyn’s point……

Attorney General Eric Holder sit downs with CBS’ “Face the Nation” host Bob Schieffer for a half hour, a one-on-one interview. And not one question about the now-infamous New Black Panther voter intimidation case….

I’m telling you one of two things happened. You tell me if I’m wrong. Number one, Schieffer doesn’t care about the story and just decided to punt on it, even though you can find facts about it on CBS.com. So, the Web site over there is doing its job, but Schieffer apparently isn’t interested in the story. Or, number two, the DOJ sent guidelines for this interview and told him you can’t ask about that.

In reality, the Black Panther case is a non-story stemming from a decision by the U.S. Department of Justice to drop a civil case regarding allegations of voter harrassment at precincts in Philadelphia during the November, 2008 Presidential election. Critics of Eric Holder—wing-nuts mostly—have accused the Attorney General of showing favoritism in cases involving African Americans. In this instance, there is no monetary value in pursuing a case against individuals without assets.

The so-called scandal has been conjured by Megyn Kelly and other Fox loonies. But it received enough publicity to a warrant question by Scheiffer during Holder’s appearance on the Sunday program. In an interview with Washington Post media columnist Howard Kurtz, Scheiffer pleaded ignorance. The veteran CBS newsman said he had been on vacation and was unaware of the Holder “scandal.” Shame on Scheiffer. Unless he was trapped in the remote jungles of Borneo fighting for his life against headhunters, he must have been in contact with the rest of the world. Most reporters maintain a casual interest in public affairs while on vacation. And besides, news shows like Face the Nation employ producers and researchers to provide questions and background. So O’Reilly wins one.

Let me tally the scorecard. He is correct that Fox distorts the news to fit an audience, wrong to suggest this is good journalism, right that Fox has influence on its viewers, wrong in believing they have good sense, correct in saying Scheiffer screwed-up, and wrong in considering the Black Panther case worthy of Scheiffer’s attention. According to my Tuscaloosa High School math skills, O’Reilly has three rights and three wrongs. That comes out to 50 percent—a miserable grade.

Hey, Bill. How the hell did you ever get into Harvard? On an assholism scholarship?  

My memoir, Odyssey of a Derelict Gunslinger, is available at amazon.com and independent bookstores. It offers much more than $19.99 worth of laughs. The book is an account of my illustrious (I choose the adjectives) career.

As a Father’s Day gift, my wife—a child bride, some friends say—gave me Bill Press’s recently published book, Toxic Talk: How the Radical Right has Poisoned America’s Airwaves. I mentioned to her that wanted the book, even though it was like a choir member requesting a hymnal that he or she had memorized. But reading the book was the first time that I have seen the magnitude of the lies gathered in one place, which is a rather mind-boggling experience.

I don’t recommend the book as a great piece of literature. Press is a liberal Democrat and freely admits his political prejudices. But he did his homework in gathering examples of the lies, distortions and misinformation that dilutes the airwaves. One chapter each is devoted to liars Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity and Michael Savage. Two guys with an ounce of brains, presumably—Harvard graduates Bill O’Reilly and Lou Dobbs—share a chapter. That’s too bad because they are probably the worst of the bunch because they have enough sense (a quantam leap on my part) to know they are exploiting fans for personal gain. In a matter of a few paragraphs, the book also cites a few wannabe stars of the far right.

Toxic Talk isn’t particularly well written. However, it catalogues abuses under specific headings and uses direct quotes from radio and television shows hosted by the wild-eyed characters, most of whom seem devoid of consciences since they will say anything for a buck.

Actually, Glenn Beck falls in a different category altogether. From all appearances, he is simply mentally unbalanced. Take, for example, his most recent outbreak of lunacy.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/06/22/glenn-beck-vomits-over-na_n_621551.html

The Bill Press book fills in gaps for me. I have a hard time listening or watching the ranting of wing-nuts for more than a few minutes. Fortunately, I get to watch a lot of right-wing antics on television’s two most legitmate news shows—Jon Stewart’s The Daily Show and Stephen Colbert. For my reading pleasure, Media Matters keeps me abreast with the lunatic fringe. The liberal left-wing Internet site obviously monitors and transcribes AM radio craziness and political distortions of GOP propaganda outlet, Fox “News.”

Speaking of which.

Over the past ten years, I’ve regularly worked out at health clubs in two golf communities— first in Georgia following my retirement from CNN, and more recently in my adopted home of Louisiana. I’m guessing the majority of my neighbors in both places are die hard Republicans. Arriving for my 6:30 exercise time in the morning, the television has almost always been on Fox “News.” I find that a bit surprising because in both communities, a large percentage of the residents are well-educated college graduates. Sadly, though, most apparently don’t subscribe to newspapers or major news magazines. If so, I believe they would have doubts about what Fox represents as “fair and balanced” news. Instead, I hear intelligent folks—including some members of my family—parroting the propaganda, lies and distortions proselytized by Fox and its pundits. It would be interesting to hear their responses if they took time to read Toxic Talk. But that ain’t gonna happen. Facts only confuse these people.

And late word just in.

CNN announced today that it has hired a narcissistic, whore-hopping egomaniac to replace Campbell Brown as a prime time anchor. Former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer—a disgraced liberal Democrat—will host the show with Washington Post conservative columnist, Kathleen Parker. I really don’t care about Spitzer’s taste for hookers, his narcissism or outsized ego. What I care about is CNN’s decision to replace a news program with an updated version Crossfire, a program that aired many years ago when I worked for the network. 

Coincidentally, given the topic of this post, Toxic Talk author Bill Press was the liberal voice on Crossfire. Pat Buchanan occupied the chair on the right. The show was entertaining. But it didn’t qualify as news, nor occupy a prime time slot. In my opinion, the mummy show, Larry King, provides enough entertainment for CNN’s prime time. But what the hell do I know?

I predicted that Rich Sanchez would replace Campbell Brown. So the bad news that CNN is dumping a news show is tempered by the good news that I was wrong.

My memoir, Odyssey of a Derelict Gunslinger, is available at amazon.com and independent bookstores. It offers much more than $19.99 worth of laughs. The book is an account of my illustrious (I choose the adjectives) career.