When a guest argued a little too passionately that #BlackLivesMatter is not a radical, violent group akin to the Nazis, O’Reilly not only refused to listen, he cut the guest’s mic so that the viewers couldn’t hear, either.
O’Reilly’s whole purpose for the discussion was to smear the Democratic Party for agreeing to host a forum with #BlackLivesMatter and to suggest that the Democrats are in bed with a black version of skinheads.
“So you believe the Democratic Party is correct in embracing a radical group, a group that calls for police officers to be killed?” O’Reilly accusingly asked guest Keith Boykin, who served as a special assistant to President Bill Clinton.
Boykin took exception right away. “I was there in December, in 2014, marching with those protesters. I was covering it at that time for BET… and I did not hear anyone talking about killing dead cops. …Has anybody in the leadership ever said that?”
Of course they haven’t and O’Reilly almost certainly knows that. So instead, he argued that the leadership must be culpable because they didn’t denounce the rhetoric – as far as O’Reilly knows. But first, he said, “Mr. Boykin, you’re either gonna stop talking or I’m gonna cut your mic off.” Classy.
“Did anybody in the #BlackLivesMatter movement repudiate ‘We want dead cops?’” O’Reilly demanded to know. When Boykin paused before answering, O’Reilly took that for a “no” and said, “Thank you.”
Boykin started to disagree, saying, “Yes, yes, yes,” as in yes, somebody had repudiated the rhetoric.
But O’Reilly didn’t want to hear it. “Your time is done, Mr. Boykin. Cut him down.” Boykin’s mic was cut even though he was still talking.
O’Reilly asked the other guest, David Goodfriend, former deputy staff secretary to President Clinton, “Would you be comfortable with the Republican Party bringing in the Stormfront—the Nazi people—and saying we would like our candidates to talk to you guys? Would you be comfortable with that?
Goodfriend said he would not.
“OK. But they are an extreme group, the Nazi Party,” O’Reilly said. “The Black Lives Matter is also an extreme group as you’ve heard, as we’ve proven.”
Later, O’Reilly allowed Boykin to speak again.
“The #BlackLivesMatter movement is not the Nazi Party. It’s an offensive suggestion to make that comparison, Bill,” Boykin told O’Reilly. “I’m outraged that you would say that.”
O’Reilly said dismissively, “I know. …I asked you to give me one name of repudiation and neither of you gentlemen can give me a name.”
“Can you name me one person who’s endorsed that?” Boykin shot back. “One leader in the #BlackLivesMatter movement who’s endorsed killing cops? Give me one, Bill. Give me one. …You can’t do it Because it didn’t happen, it’s not true and it’s a shame.”
“The group is judged by its behavior, gentlemen,” O’Reilly said condescendingly. “All America just saw the behavior on the video tape.”
All America saw, in 2014, Fox News promote racist, criminal rancher Cliven Bundy who didn't just talk about killing cops, he and his pals actually threatened law enforcers, with guns. To his credit, O'Reilly obviously took issue with it. But O'Reilly did not repudiate Fox News for that. No, he credited Fox for airing a "wide variety of opinion expressed in a vibrant way."
Maybe O'Reilly is counting on his elderly viewers not to remember Bundy. But Bundy's not the only one. Factor producer, Jesse Watters, also the managing editor of Fox Nation, permits readers to plot murder on the site. I’m not just talking an occasional post that gets by a moderator. I’m talking repeated offers of money to assassinate various people Fox demonizes. That's not counting the usual death wishes and threats we've reported to authorities over the years. I haven't heard a peep out of O'Reilly denouncing that, have you?
Or is it that only black threats matter to him?
Watch O’Reilly act is if white threats don't matter below, from the October 22 The O’Reilly Factor, via Media Matters.
“DOING HIS DUTY. CHIEF CLAIMS POST WAS TO PROTECT OFFICERS” screams the GOPTV™ lower third. With a proclamation like that can you expect anything but another completely fair and balanced softball “Fox & Friends” interview of some wingnut whose story they’ve picked up off right-wing blogs? Meet former Surf City, NC police chief Mike Halstead. What makes Mike newsworthy? Well, he retired early after doing a Facebook meltdown calling #BlackLivesMatter a terrorist group.
We all can clearly understand Fox News’ latest right-wing hysteria since who doesn’t get hysterical over domestic terrorism? And certainly a minority group looking for equality under the law through a social media hash tag, web site, occasional protest, and embarrassing political candidates by party crashing (sorry, bad pun) is obviously a terrorist threat. Oh, my, no hyperbole there! ;^)
On a serious note, Fox News’ hypocrisy is obvious. Some right-wing group they’re sympathize with like the Brady Ranch standoff where armed Tea Party ‘freedom fighters’ threatened to kill law enforcement was all fine and dandy. Data-mining a few moments of a “pigs in a blanket” chant which is ambiguous in its interpretation deserves to be smeared as dangerous, even terrorists.
#BlackLivesMatter‘s crime? Well, the kindest thing I can say is it’s typical political team sports and blacks vote the wrong way. However, this is more than a simple issue over votes like ACORN voter recruitment which Fox News worked hard to destroy. Because #BlackLivesMatter is embarrassing Democrats too and trying to change the agenda from police targeting blacks. Conservative whites – and I know more than a few – are scared to death of blacks and filled with bigotry on this topic. They’re all for locking them up, throwing away the key. Any move to reverse that scares them enormously.
And where’s O’Reilly on the rash of black Church arsons? Both the skinheads and the Klan said they were gonna attack black churches under the banner of Dylan Roof, I don’t remember O’Reilly condemning that. Or asking why Fox News has been largely ignoring it. Or that, in one of the very few segments I saw on the first rash of fires, they tried to claim there was only one fire, started by lightning, and cut off a guest who tried to correct them.
And let’s not forget things like his first reaction to Tiller being killed by an Operation: Rescue nutjob was to defend his reporting- Not denounce said nutjob.
I don’t think it’s physically possible to list off all of O’Reilly’s past IOKIYAR/TOKIYAW hypocrisies that this is dredging up without making it take at least 4 hours to read.