You know how I didn’t believe Glenn Beck’s sudden claim to regret being so divisive? Well, it turns out he has a financial incentive to change his stripes. And somehow, in three different segments aired by the Kelly File this week, self-appointed “truth detector” Megyn Kelly didn’t say a word about that.
In Eric Boehlert’s latest column about Beck’s new “I’m a uniter” persona, this paragraph jumped out at me:
(K)eep in mind, Beck’s network, The Blaze, is currently in the middle of a marketing campaign to convince cable operations around the country to add his channel to their television offerings. It would make sense for Beck to strike a conciliatory public tone in hopes of addressing fears that operators might have about hosting the guy who was too crazy for Fox News.
Even if Beck’s change of heart is for real, Kelly should have at least told her viewers about this very possible ulterior motive. After all, this is the woman who promised, “I’m not gonna let anybody come on and give me talking points. …I would call myself a truth detector.”
Kelly had other reasons to suspect Beck's sudden regrets. His history at Fox was so incendiary that it prompted an advertiser boycott that eventually led to their parting of the ways. And Beck has a long history of dishonest theatrics.
But Kelly was so busy gushing over Beck that she didn’t spend a moment on any truth detecting. You can view Parts 1 and 2 of her interview with Beck here and Part 3 here.
At least he’s learned about boycotts in all this.
