Hmm. Prominent Conservative Radio Hosts Planted Scripted Actors Among Callers
Well, looky here! From the Columbia Journalism Review:
Well, here’s a shocker: Some of the people who phone in to talk radio shows (that caller with the pitch-perfect rant, provocative comment or burning question) may actually be hired actors reading from scripts. I’m not an angry listener, but I play one on radio!
Via Tablet Magazine:
If [the actor] passed the audition, he would be invited periodically to call in to various talk shows and recite various scenarios that made for interesting radio. He would never be identified as an actor, and his scenarios would never be identified as fabricated—which they always were.
“I was surprised that it seemed so open,” the actor told me in an interview. “There was really no pretense of covering it up.”
Curious, the actor did some snooping and learned that Premiere On Call was a service offered by Premiere Radio Networks, the largest syndication company in the United States and a subsidiary of Clear Channel Communications, the entertainment and advertising giant. Premiere syndicates some of the more sterling names in radio, including Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, and Sean Hannity. But a great radio show depends as much on great callers as it does on great hosts: Enter Premiere On Call.
“Premiere On Call is our new custom caller service,” read the service’s website, which disappeared as this story was being reported (for a cached version of the site click here). “We supply voice talent to take/make your on-air calls, improvise your scenes or deliver your scripts. Using our simple online booking tool, specify the kind of voice you need, and we’ll get your the right person fast. Unless you request it, you won’t hear that same voice again for at least two months, ensuring the authenticity of your programming for avid listeners.”Ensuring the authenticity of your programming… with paid, planted callers.
Inigo Montoya said it best...
"You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."
I can't even count how many times I have linked to this for right-wingers who obsess over the Communist/Socialist President Obama. Maybe you'll find some new ways of using it, too. :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2y8Sx4B2Sk
We have not been scuffling in this waste-howling wildness for the right to be stupid.
Toni Cade Bambara
;-)
Perfect response, Tim!
Unfortunately, this does not surprise me at all. I've long suspected that the shows were more scripted than they let on.
It's propaganda folks, and everything about it should be considered suspect unless it can be proven otherwise.
That's right. Expect every call might be totally bogus. Every call is either bogus or coming from a victim of brainwashing. Either way there's no point in listening to a single one of them.
"Government by organized money is just as dangerous as Government by organized mob"
-= Franklin Delano Roosevelt =-
What did they steal that idea from Al Jazeera?
You can't blame the A-rabs and fureeners for this one. This is all-American.
We have not been scuffling in this waste-howling wildness for the right to be stupid.
Toni Cade Bambara
No need to go pointing fingers at others, it's 100% American-made bullshit.
There is no news in America. It;s all info-tainment, poli-taintment and propaganda.
"If the US government enforced its banking laws like it did its park regulations, we wouldn't be
in this damn park in the first place." OCCUPY.!!
Don't you get that spam in your email account offering you a work from home job salting comments in blog thread and calling in to radio shows?
I though everyone got those.
haven't for about 7 years or so. I have no idea how I avoid it, other than avoiding crap sites...
Years ago I was flooded, and it seemed the programmers discussion groups for MSDN (Micro$haft developers netwok) was the culprit. They've cleaned up their act, so I suspect my good fortune has more to do with the work of others than anything special I have or have not done...
FreeDUMB - what's the beef with al-Jazerra, other than they Arabs? From the very beginning it seemed they pissed everyone off, left, right, east, west. IMO, if a news organization gets under everybody's skin they are probably doing things right.
not all martyrs see divinity
Al-Jazeera's origins are with the BBC. They're a reputable and responsible news organization, and nearly had a cable network in the U.S. before Bush declared them a terra-ist organization. He didn't like em because of their 100% accurate reporting on Iraq.
pay attention, corporations are people too, have been since 1886
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Clara_Coun...
now don't you think artificial entities have opinions too?
these people are nothing more than cheap hucksters. But it turns out they are rather pricey hucksters. And there is something very 1984 about it. Talk about the "manufacturing of consent".....
Still, the one thing they fear the most is the Fairness Doctrine. That's the one thing they fear and loathe above all else we might do. Does that give us a clue as to what we should do? eh?
Yes, Shredder, it does give me an idea - a petition for a national referendum to restore the Fairness Doctrine. How would you like to see that?
We should get that started, and the sooner, the better.
No such critter.
Call my Representative, Greg Walden, and tell him he is an idiot for sponsoring a bill to kill what has been dead since 1987.
...only a Republican would ban something with "Fairness" in the title...
Well let's ask the Fox Ombudsman of Truth if this is ethical?
*chirp* *chirp*.................oh wait, Fox does not have an Ombudsman of Truth.
'Talk to the hand'
I think Fox calls them the Minister of Truth.
Election 2012: Be Educated! Be Active! Vote!
www.phoenixjustice.com
which I checked out, and saved the audition request form - it includes a confidentiality agreement.
They also want to know if you can do impressions. That's very interesting.
It's been obvious since 1938 that people should not believe radio performances were for real.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_War_of_the_Worlds_(radio_drama)
...this could be fun!
"He wrote this book here and the book says ; He made us all to be just like him So, if we're dumb, then god is dumb and maybe even a little ugly on the side".
Frank Zappa
was absolutley convinced tha "rasseling" was real. Yeah, right Grandma. You can easily fool the ill-informed.
As it was said some time ago, by a man who has made a career in pro wrestling, these right-wing talkers are - basically - similar to "heel" wrestlers cutting promos for the marks who are dumb enough to buy it.
Thus, I have displayed the wisdom of one Jim Cornette.
I'm so surprised to learn that conservatives would engage in astro-turfing the radio. Or using faked and deceptively-edited videos. Or providing shadow funds to bus in protesters.Or hiring retired military leaders to spin the war. Or lying on issues large and small. Or rat-f**king their opponents.
And of course by tomorrow they'll be saying liberals do it too.
Oh, I can't wait for the Maddow show tonight. She's going to have a field day with this. Astroturfing at its sleazy best. I'm sure you've all seen her segments where she exposes Republicans for using stock photos of "the housewife" and "the fireman" to populate their websites and campaign ads.
This is gonna be good.
"In theory theory and practice are alike. In practice they are very different."
Yes. She revealed that Gindrich is nothing more than a direct mail scammer - a con man.
"Government by organized money is just as dangerous as Government by organized mob"
-= Franklin Delano Roosevelt =-
Dirty Rotten Bastards
But we all knew that didn't we.
Good Work Susie. Good Work the Columbia Journalism Review !!!!!!!!
"Government by organized money is just as dangerous as Government by organized mob"
-= Franklin Delano Roosevelt =-
Good work to the Tablet Magazine!
Election 2012: Be Educated! Be Active! Vote!
www.phoenixjustice.com
corporations (artificial entities with human rights), "charitable organizations", religions; all these registered, state sanctioned "entities" are given different rights than the individual, why? why should spouting off about the gods of your fathers and all, be given a special tax status? or whatever?
we are accustomed to analyzing the operations of machines for unforeseen consequences, but about the way we organize society, maybe not so much. the old airplane/plane crash theory.
so now we have private capital controlling huge chunks of the public discourse, and once more it goes back to my favorite
Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Clara_Coun...
artificial entities with human rights is strange, a creature of the state that controls the discourse is what you wind up with, and rewarded for it with a tax status unobtainable by we mere mortal hourly wage people. get real, are you going to go out and start a car company tomorrow? maybe we can go randian anarchist and all just become private contractors?
and then the preachers, unitarians, bahai, christian, sikh, muslim, jew, wiccans, whatever!!!!!!!!!! they line up for the special favors, they've got that cheap time slot middle of the night stuff goin' on, doesn't matter, they're better you see, they're artificial.
the truth of it is the rights favorite attack is still the socialist charge, the goons coming to take your stuff away, or god forbid make your kids go to "government schools". no wonder beckworld features such a freak show of strange hybrids and chimeras, every group with an opinion is given a tax break to scream at each other.
capital wanted no borders, it is getting to be that way all over, thank goodness for that upc, huh? so now we have these machines, low wage workers and such, and it is working in a way, at least snippets of the "revolutions" are televised, as long as the power is on.
Sounds like the NTSB.
So I guess you're saying that there should be a National Government Safety Board and a National Corporation Safety Board to investigate when the nation crashes in ways that affect far more people than an airline crash or a train wreck. Good idea, but you know the first thing that will happen is that the GOP will grouse about 'big government regulation' and do their damnedest to defund it.
Me, I'm not totally opposed to the idea of an engineered society depending on who gets to write the specifications. Lest we forget Aldous Huxley's Brave New World was only a dystopic novel when considered from the point of view of the protagonist. From the Alphas' point of view it was a perfect Utopia. What I fear is a society engineered to benefit only the upper 1/100th of 1 percent. We're almost there, and it's not just some science fiction novel.
Sad, but true.
"In theory theory and practice are alike. In practice they are very different."
You mean in addition to out-and-out lying, they fabricate phones calls?
It's getting so you can't trust liars anymore.
me-oww!
you mean all those women who call up the Drugster and fawn all over his manly good looks are plants?
Say it ain't so! :)
I never listen to the Rushmeister (tried to once, but couldn't even last 5 minutes), but ARE YOU SERIOUS? Do women REALLY call him up to fawn on him? Ick! My respect for Republican women just went down to zero.
“The greatest evildoers are those who don’t remember because they have never given thought to the matter, and, without remembrance, nothing can hold them back,”
than one occasion I've heard some woman call in and just slobber all over this slob. I guess all those zeroes on his bank account are a real turn on.
number of customers for such a service you'd think Premier would have been a whole lot better off with a direct marketing program rather than putting the whole scam online. Machiavellian marketing this is not.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
How many people have visited their site and had no clue what the thing meant. I sure wouldn't have. The only reason anyone found out about it is because one actor had some morals and told the world knowing he or she would never be hired by Clear Channel. Knowing Clear Channel's reach in entertainment, speaking out was not the best career move in the world.
another award show in the season? This seems to cry out for it's own awards. Most disingenuous question? Best rant? Best writing of a spontaneous call? Best straight face kept while brown nosing the host? The possibilities are there.
Hasa Diga Eebowai
These shows feature plants in the listening audience? So, basically, these shows are rigged?
That explains why nobody can get through to the Vulgar Pigboy asking what he was doing with his Viagra in the Dominican Republic. That explains why nobody can ask Sean Hannity if the case was, "Hannity and Greenwood, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G".
Wouldn't you just love to see these evil people made to face some real people for a change? I know I would.
Playing meth lab wives or philandering husbands and so forth on Maury Povich is probably much the same gig for some of these budding actors. All to keep America entertained.
All to keep American diverted, divided and compliant.
...just more proof that the rights ideology and general bullshit could never stand on it's own or win the battle when exposed to the daylight. These fucking wastes of skin need to just disappear, and the quicker the better.
Generally speaking I don't trust anyone making over 150K a year.
I just love how the website (the blog entry, the tweet, etc) gets taken down when the light shines on them. After all, if what they said or are doing is so wonderful, true, Godly and for the children, shouldn't they be proud of what was said or what is being done?
Instead, they run for cover. Yeah, I can say corrupt too, and I'm not referring all y'all here at C&L.
Confidentially agreement:
By requesting an audition you are also agreeing to keep the details of the audition and the type of work that you may perform confidential. This applies to information acquired while working for Premiere or any of its affiliates.
Disclosure to any third party, sharing project information or publicizing what you do (including via social media) may be considered grounds for dismissal or further action.
If the average American has lost some deep moral character it can be proven by noting that so many of us have personal knowledge of wrong doing and illegal acts but chose to turn a blind eye or rationalize that our personal economic conditions require that we shut up. Individual courage for the greater common good is required: honest citizens must be prepared to be Whistleblowers.
You are right about the confidentiality agreement, of course. If Clear Channel can identify the actor they probably will not hire him or her again. It sounds like the actor is not interested in this job anyway. Clear Channel can sue of they want for breach of the confidentiality agreement. Will they?
I would be amazed if they did. Would you want the publicity a trial would bring to the company. Who reads the Columbia Journalism Review? Probably not many people that Clear Channel cares about. By this evening 99.9% percent of the people who even heard about this story will have moved on to other things.
There is no way Clear Channel wants this to be publicized every time there is a subpoena or a hearing.
Well, I tried calling many times to the Randi Rhodes when she was still someone relevant on Air America and the "filter" tried to debate for her off air, and when she failed to make a reasonable point, they hung up on me. Sorry, but I'm on the fence on this one.
At least one of us noticed in the article that there were no specifics related to any of the talk shows mentioned. That made me curious. Here's what I found:
As stated above, Premiere Radio Networks is a subsidiary of Clear Channel. Aside from carrying the conservative talk shows already mentioned, they also carry a wide range of other talk shows related to real estate, home and garden, health and ftness, technology, and autos. You would also find their hands in shock jock and "funny" shows like Bob & Tom, and liberal shows like Thom Hartmann, Randi Rhodes, and the now defunct Air America.
These actors are used for the sake of entertainment to stimulate conversation. I hardly think that the programs that have millions of listeners need to resort to actors to carry the show. Why do you think they have producers and call screeners? They need to weed out the idiots and those too nervous to string together a sentence.
At least now you know why you can't turn off that discussion about lawn care, how to change a carburator, or why spot won't sit. Damn those are good actors!
this needs to be pounded everywhere.
the talk radio gods and their daily coordinated talking points read from 1000 of the loudest radio stations in the country are why we are in this mess and anyone who ho hums this story is a bloody idiot.
if the left continues to ignore the problem till the next elections, except for occasional indignation at an outrageous comment here and there, progressives will once again lose no-brainers they should have aced.
the radio is the samsons hair of the new republicans. it is where the teabaggers were birthed, it does the groundwork for everything the right does and it's the only reason scott walker is a governor and why he is doing what he is doing. if the left doesn't take this and run they are collectively useless.
Besides the obvious stuff, these three "thinkers" don't have a single college degree. In fact among the three of them combined, there are not enough credits to complete a freshman year (if that was somehow possible).
CTHULHU 2012 "Why vote for a lesser evil?"
Ahhhhh but wouldn't Joseph ( Goebbels ) be proud ?
Of course - they are using his instruction manual for good propaganda.
What do you EXPECT from A CHICKENHALK COWARD like LIMBAUGH, He would like too see every one go Bleed and Die for there country and HE stayes out of the ARMED FORCES because a PIMPLE ON HIS A-- .
Anyone else, who's family were not prominent judges and lawyers for several generations, would have had a ticket for Vietnam at the Reception Station when they were drafted. I went in the Army in 1966, and I volunteered (I was RA not US). The old time Army people know what that means; you young people you do not need to know. At that time, the height of the war, if you showed up at New Cumberland at the Reception Station with a boil anywhere (let alone on your ass) the examining doctor would have reached in his bag and taken a lance to the boil. You would have gotten a band aid and a free train ticket to basic training.
Real hero weren't you, Rush.
I'm a little surprised by this. There are plenty of ignorant and angry people who would call into the likes of Beck, Hannity and Limbaugh, so you'd think that they would not need plants. I'm guessing that the real base comes off as rather moronic, which is what happens when someone listens to and believes a person like Glenn Beck. People who believe Beck might be moronic or just angry and naive.
I think it's time to take on Beck, the most vulnerable of all of these rabble rousers right now...this week. This month. He is vulnerable because conservatives are harshly criticizing him, so please take 15 minutes this weekend to help spread the word about the liar, hypocrite and charlatan, Glenn Beck.
"The antidote to bad speech is more speech." ~~J.S. Mill
Obviously all the shows screen anyone before they get on the air. The paid callers are probably used when the host wants do do a rant on a particular subject. How nice to not have to depend on the public to set up your little play act. The other time I would guess they would be used is if all the callers are too crazy to put on the air even for Beck, Limbaugh, or Hannity.
That is what happens when the Fairness Doctrine is killed and the FCC and it's licensing procedures are a joke.
plants are not provided to these shows which I document up at the top of this comment sheet.
You see, my original skepticism about the veracity of this story proved to be on the "money." However, I'm not the one who should have updated this story.
"The antidote to bad speech is more speech." ~~J.S. Mill
Will people now believe that this enormous right wing groundswell of enraged Americans is a sham.
Tea partier demonstrators are getting paid with vacations, attention and a social life of style. Tea party organizers are getting paid jobs. Candidates for public office are using their campaign funds to pay their rent and utility bills. Special Interest non-profits are hiring their spouses and cousins. Talk about free-loaders- if you are willing to lie or "believe in crap" the Kochs will fund you.
This is a bad theatrical operation designed to convince the American majority that we are the minority. WE ARE THE MAJORITY. Let's act like it.
I posted about this yesterday. Read it. Maybe you'll start being a little more critical of the things you read and hear. Stop being a drone.
It's obvious that all their nutty, ignorant callers are scripted to agree with Faux Noise because the majority of Americans don't agree with these morons on Faux Noise.
Do you know when a Reslug is lying?? When they open their ignorant mouths.
No it is not just that they are lying. They live in their own reality. In their world everything they say is true or serves a higher truth by fooling the masses into doing what they are too stupid to figure out themselves.
In their reality it is still 1886 when the only people arrested for the Haymarket Riot were the union organizers, not the police who started the riot. Ah, the Good Old Days.
Dittos Glenn!, Oh shoot,dittos Neil Bortz, I mean Rush.
Those feminazi Caliphates are ruining everything Rush Beck Bortz, Hannity.
bys1955
Wasn't it Limbaugh who called his listeners Ditto Heads? Now we know what he meant. He was giving signals to his paid "listeners" to call.
I once got a commenter on Yahoo News comments to admit he was a paid plant, being paid by the RNC to discredit the president, Nancy Pelosi, Harry Ried, and ALL democrats/liberals. He said he was emailed a list of insults and names to call the "lefties" and was paid per each comment he made. He was given a list of subjects with comments he should make and encouraged to personalize the comments and add more vitriol.
I used to dislike Republicans, but they are forcing me to hate them.
First reality TV, now reality politics and next reality reality. Ain't American really real!
Sometimes the callers are too damn slick to be ordinary wingnut rubes.
I love it when these stories come out, but it's not new. I learned of this tactic the mclaughlin group has used for years. Perhaps since it began. I often lecture how to get on these same radio programes. You start by saying what they want to hear, then go to the extreme end of their agenda to discredit it.
Perhaps Air America should have used this tactic, they might have had more sucsess! It's not the truth that is important!, it's the perception of truth that really matters more than anything else!
Why would a business pay actors when they get callers for free? Do you think they care what is said as long as they have callers who are willing to yap? Seriously, they have call screeners, you have to wait for hours to get on, this whole article applied to such ridiculously popular shows as Limbaugh's or Beck's is just laughable. Notice that nowhere in the article does it ever directly assert that those shows actually do use this service? There are a lot of folks who are just too credulous.
The Founding Fathers thought forced redistribution was immoral.
Because they want to make sure they get a caller who asks the questions they want asked, because the hosts have answers prepared.
And not only does it drive the conversation the way the production team wants that conversation to go, it makes the host look like he's informed about any topic that the public can throw at him, when, in reality, it was a talking point that, say, Rush got from the high muckety-mucks of the US Chamber of Commerce when they were on a Viagra-fueled sex romp in the Dominican Republic the previous weekend.
And if you don't see the difference between a real conversation and an infomercial, you need a legal guardian to sign off on all of your financial transactions.
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
That about infomercials is just your own straw man; has nothing to do with what I wrote. Why do they want particular questions asked? You seem to be under the impression that people aren't drawn to these shows because the shows mirror their own thought, which is just false. Further, they have call screeners and a time delay to ensure they air what they wish; no need for added expense. Also, you ignored completely the larger point here which is that the Columbia Review piece is a smear. It didn't even assert any evidence for who used the service, just sleazed a couple of popular hosts.
The Founding Fathers thought forced redistribution was immoral.
They did that to themselves. Their business is that of sleazing. And when they are confronted with the truth, their force of flying monkeys start howling on the websites that expose them. You and a couple others are proof of that.
We can't sleaze the embodiment of sleaze, the purveyors of sleaze, the graduates of the Karl Rove School of Smear Jobs and Lying & Swearing to It; it's been done by them ages ago.
me-oww!
Ok, let me put it plainly, this is a story without a shred of evidence and not even a clear accusation. There is an implication, completely unsubstantiated by evidence from the original source, that 3 conservative radio hosts use paid actors for calls. 1) I pointed out that it doesn't make sense; there's no need. 2) There's no evidence, just their names mentioned near [in the text] the objectionable practice.
So far, the replies have been less than stellar. If it is the truth, prove it. Even just cite from the original source. Any source at all, in fact, other than you ranting about Karl Rove, who has nothing to do with this issue, would be nice as substantiation. Red herring, anyone?
The Founding Fathers thought forced redistribution was immoral.
ARE THE REAL FOOLS!
Just read here and learn how most all of you all have been had and that ironically the real liars are in Crooks and Liars! Look how you all jumped like lemmings on to a story that does not show one bit of fact and is all based on speculation.
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/uncovered-ano...
Its actually embarrassing to see but I'm sure most of you will either just stick your head in the ground acting like its not there and/or just make more similar comments based on unproven allegations.
It will be fun to see if any of you have enough personal integrity to admit you've been had and that there really isn't one piece of factual truth in the article thats got you all so whipped up when it comes to linking any of these companies (or these tactics in general) to right wing talk radio.
Don't worry I wont be holding my breath.... Well let your baseless hate flow as that will surely also be telling and very comical to read....
Catch the fuck up.
Oh that was so well written... Thanks for enlightening me with more "facts"....
.
But this story plays well, but has no legs, and will be forgotten in days!
Because nobody has given any kind of evidence they worked for any of the infamous conservative pundits. It's like cotton candy, but has no substance.
"The press should be not only a collective propagandist and a collective agitator, but also a collective organizer of the masses. "
Vladimir Lenin
'The Blaze,' published by liar and circus clown Glenn Beck, or CJR, published by the school of journalism at Columbia University. I don't suppose you went to Premiere On Call siteand looked at the audition app or checked out its ownership? No. No you didn't. Because you'd find it was owned by Clearchannel.
Go ahead. Click the link to the cached version referenced in the story and click home, click corporate. Do a google search on "Premiere On Call" and see what that brings up. See I can debunk Glenn's "Soros attack!!!" with Google. He knows his audience is too freaking stupid to do some easy light checking
We love it when asshats like you check in a day after the story and git all riled up cuz y'all got you sum fax frum Glenn. Oooh Ooooh blah blah blah boogey man Soros blah blah blah. It's pretty much all you morons at Glenn U have to say. Everytime. Pull your head out of the sand, Beckbot.
me-oww!
That's gotta hurt.
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
I doubt he felt a thing.
me-oww!
Hah proof that I was right! You've all been had by baseless accusational news and you fell for it. How does this make you feel? Do you have conscience at all?
So come on Crooks and Liars. The Blaze has called you on the carpet so nows your chance to put up any tangible proof that your accusation had any credibility. But will you...? Why do I doubt we'll see little or nothing in this regard? Or probably even more likely just the deletion of my post. I really thought maybe we could have a real discussion here but maybe not....
Crooks and Liars, The Columbia Journalism Review and Tablet Magazine all neglected to exercise the most basic journalistic common courtesy – asking the accused for a response. Instead of seeking real answers, they printed what they wanted to believe.
Curious as to why a journalist/reporter might risk their own integrity by printing misleading or blatantly false stories, we have petitioned Susie Madrak, the author of the Crooks and Liars story as well as Liz Cox Barrett, writer of the Soros-funded CJR story. To date we have no response to the following questions:
Why didn‘t you speak with someone at Beck’s show or his company, Mercury?
Did you ask Hannity or Limbaugh’s show if they used fake callers? If so, what was the result?
Did you reach out to anyone at Premiere Radio Networks? If so, what was their answer?
We reached out to Premiere and they happily answered with this statement in response to the misleading stories stating:
“Premiere On Call is not utilized by any of Premiere’s nationally syndicated talent, including Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and Glenn Beck. Premiere On Call is a recently launched audio service connecting local entertainment radio stations with great voice talent to supplement their programming needs. The service is not utilized by News/Talk programs or stations.”
Glenn’s Executive Producer, Stu Bruguiere, and his co-host, Pat Gray, both deny ever using actors or faking calls on the show.
Hannity himself sent me a one word reply, ‘Never.’
And Rush vehemently denied ever using actors and then explained that if it had happened, you would have heard about it by now:
and 'vehemently denial' is never a sign of one being up to one's neck in it. Ask anyone who deals with criminals. Those weren't his drugs, not his Viagra, he's not fucking kids on vaycay in the DR.
And Hannity too. Never lies. Ask him about the ACLU. He'll tell you they don't help anyone, even though they took up his cause and got his job back for him once. Not. A. Liar.
And Glenn Beck's producer. No one in GlennBeckistan lies! None of the above are liars. Glenn Beck has never said untrue shit on the air, like Obama is a socialist, communist, fascist Nazi, that MLK Jr is his big hero. We believe every word that POS who called up a competitor to laugh at him for not even being able to make a baby right after the guy's wife had a miscarriage, or asked his listeners to each chip in a dollar so he could buy a Mercedes. I guess a multimillion dollar salary just doesn't stretch as far as it used to.
Of all the criticism the left levels at these creepy multimillionaire fucks, who purport to speak for the 'little guy' no one every says they lie. We know them to be shining beacons of truthtelling.
That is fine sourcing on your part. Ask the guys who would do it! They never lie!
Hey! I've got a bridge in Brooklyn for sale, numbnuts. How much you wanna pay me for it?
me-oww!
Here's three more that we caught Beck telling about Obama:
Obama apologizing to an audience in Europe for America's past
Obama discussing fair trade with China
Obama's campaign promises about war
And yes, the Beckbots still want to argue that they weren't "lies."
Uh huh. Morally brain dead tools!
"The antidote to bad speech is more speech." ~~J.S. Mill
Beck exercises the same lack of journalistic standards.
See "Joel Rogers’ one word answer exposes Beck’s Crime Inc."
"The antidote to bad speech is more speech." ~~J.S. Mill
I see an article today on Beck's The Blaze (of Bulls#$t) about this story today. They want to know why Madrak didn't call Beck's show to ask if they use the service because, you know, they would have told C & L if that were the case. Right? That's all Beck's media empire is about, the truth.
They wrote: "we have petitioned Susie Madrak, the author of the Crooks and Liars story as well as Liz Cox Barrett, writer of the Soros-funded CJR story. To date we have no response to the following questions:
Why didn‘t you speak with someone at Beck’s show or his company, Mercury?
Did you ask Hannity or Limbaugh’s show if they used fake callers? If so, what was the result?
Did you reach out to anyone at Premiere Radio Networks? If so, what was their answer?"
The only question that matters is the third one, because you know, Beck confirms his conspiracy theories with the accused. Remember the "wizard" behind Beck's Crime Inc, Joel Rogers? Yeah, guess how many times anyone from Beck's show or Fox contacted Rogers to see if he were involved in a conspiracy to bring about cap and trade.
Give up? NO ONE CONTACTED JOEL ROGERS! (Except me). And that was about a "crime" conspiracy.
So The Blaze is taking C & L to task today for doing what Glenn Beck does, not checking with the people involved and asking a few questions.
How do we spell hypocrisy? T-h-e B-l-a-z-e
"The antidote to bad speech is more speech." ~~J.S. Mill
OMG your kidding right...? Thats really the best you've got? How sad that you cannot actually debate what I'm saying specifically and are now just trying to change the subject.
My point was: The article that got all you fired up turns out to not have one shred of evidence in it to back up its assertion that right-wing talk radio uses actors to call in on their shows and the writer did not even try do very basic fact checking to back up their assertions.
And you all fell for it. Is this really the kind of "journalism" you want to read and point too???
C'mon people I really thought you could to do better than that....
And you did the switcho-changeo on the subject upthread.
"Thats really the best you've got??!!1!" is all you got, followed by boilerplate projective accusations, I think I can safely say we're done here, boyo. Click here
me-oww!
What does that have to do with anything? If people are responding to me it should be to refute specifically my point on this article and nothing more.
But I've yet to see one thing on this worthy of calling a honest debate on this particular subject.
Thanks for helping to cement my stereotypical view of baseless accusatiional Lib haters. I guess I just gave to too much of the benefit of the doubt.
Again so sad...
We will close down operations immediately, because we have so disappointed one of Drugbo's/Hannity's/Beck's brain-washed, projecting, subject-changing, condescending Flying Monkeys.
me-oww!
I wrote yesterday in my comment below, "I'm a little surprised by this. There are plenty of ignorant and angry people who would call into the likes of Beck, Hannity and Limbaugh, so you'd think that they would not need plants. I'm guessing that the real base comes off as rather moronic,...."
After listening carefully to Glenn Beck for the last 10 months, I've learned to tune into something, some story, some claim that doesn't add up, and this didn't add up for me.
I've also e-mailed Madrak to point out how Beck does NOT follow up with questions when he points his angry finger of baseless accusation at others (in the Crime Inc conspiracy for example). See below.
"The antidote to bad speech is more speech." ~~J.S. Mill
Nowhere in her post did Susie assert that was the case. She suggested the possibility:
Why are you so paranoid about this if Beck is innocent?
You realize that there's a simple solution to this, don't you? Premiere On Call can simply release an itemized list of the services they provided, redacting the names of the voice actors.
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
I just sent an e-mail out to them to ask if I can get the list of programs that employ their services. I thought Madrak should have taken this on, but so far there is no Update to this story.
"The antidote to bad speech is more speech." ~~J.S. Mill
There is something to be said about taking the high road while the other guys take the low road. If there is a flood, you can cover the other guy getting washed away, and your feet stay dry!
This is not about truth, truth is only what you can get away with! So if both use sloppy reporting, there is no real story. Cheap points are simply cheap points. Dan Rather got busted for the same thing. He's out of a job
because he has no credibility, so he's worthless as a news anchor. He can still work as a journalist, but nobody will pay him what he wants.
The press should be not only a collective propagandist and a collective agitator, but also a collective organizer of the masses.
Vladimir Lenin
Hah Hah Hah hah hah It just doesn't get any better than this!
"In trying to get his progressive talk radio show off the ground at the start, host Ed Schultz candidly admitted Wednesday to using fake callers to fill air time. In addition, Schultz admits congressional Democrats helped coach callers on what to say."
I'd say Air America probably did the same thing but I don't make baseless accusations....
Conservative 1
Liberals 0
BTW - Are you going to go off on your guy now?
I'm not a supporter of someone who puts himself in the news, and becomes part of the story the way Schultz and Beck both did on 8-28 last year.
You have not addressed the double standard I keep pointing out: what CJR and C & L did with this story is exactly what Beck did in his Crime Inc series. Beck pointed his angry finger at Joel Rogers, the "wizard" of Crime Inc, and he never bothered to contact him for an interview or for any discussion at all.
That ties the score, but lets be honest about who the teams are:
Reactionaries 1
Liberals 1
The first side to update their story wins this battle: will Madrak indicate what I found below or will The Blaze cop to having double standards. Credibility is at stake here.
"The antidote to bad speech is more speech." ~~J.S. Mill
I contacted Premiere On Call to see if the supply plants to Hannity, Beck or Limbaugh. Rachel Nelson replied:
This doesn't diminish that fact that The Blaze is using double standards when criticizing the Columbia Journalism Review and C & L, but it does point to something that detracts from journalistic credibility. When you make a mistake, admit it. Update a story with the facts and move on to the next scoop.
It's not like Madrak isn't aware of this because I BCC'd her on my correspondence with Premiere On Call and with the editor at CJR. Credibility is at stake here. I think we on the left need to admit to our errors or insufficient research and fact-checking BEFORE moving on to the next story. Otherwise we lose credibility.
"The antidote to bad speech is more speech." ~~J.S. Mill
1), The piece here doesn't assert that Beck, Limbaugh or Hannity used the service.
2). I wouldn't trust what Premiere says about it without being able to look at all the books and talking to all of the actors first. Non-disclosure statements and scrubbing web pages after they're noted publicly and questioned is just too damned suspicious.
Don't try to confuse the issue with half-truths and gorilla dust.
I'm not in position to audit Premier On Call's books, but I'd interview one of their actors if I knew who they are.
Thing is, Rachel's answer corresponds with my expressed, initial doubt (below). Think about it: why would these massively popular programs NEED paid plants unless the reactionaries calling in come across as consistently deranged or idiotic?
In my piece on truth and post-truth politics, it was stated that sometimes you can detect a false statement without having knowledge on a topic. Madrak didn't claim Beck, Limbaugh and Hannity did hire actors, just that they may hire actors. It didn't ring true to me.
Andy, maybe you can get Premiere On Call to divulge the names of their hired actors. Sometimes, the information path stops when the representatives say, "Premiere On Call is not utilized by any of Premiere’s nationally syndicated talent, including Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and Glenn Beck." I'd love to dig deeper, but I don't see how to.
"The antidote to bad speech is more speech." ~~J.S. Mill
Thank you!!!! Finally a voice of reasonableness! (Maybe you can try to learn something from him Ms Kitty...)
And while I was specifically talking about and only about the Crooks and Liars article that tries to make people think (as most all of you have proved) Glenn Beck and others use or have used fake call-in services without one shred of evidence other than a parent company connection; I will read up on the claims your making on your topic and if you like, be happy to comment back.
Thanks again,
Jim
Still a shame all we hear is the sound of crickets from Crooks and Liars.... That really says a lot about them...
Go down to my first comment; I expressed skepticism from get-go.
I'm a harsh critic of Mr. Beck, but I'm profoundly fair. On those rare occasions when Beck gets his criticism of the President Obama right, I'll note it.
Most of the time Beck is a deceitful and manipulative propagandist.
Jim, you are now free to get off your high horse.
"The antidote to bad speech is more speech." ~~J.S. Mill
Good article -- I give tastier details here:
Limbaugh / Hannity Parent Company Admits Hiring Actors to Call Radio Shows: Sean Hannity program busted using 'fake' callers
http://GordonWatts.com/HealthCareQuestionTooH...
or
http://GordonWayneWatts.com/HealthCareQuestio...
-G.W. Watts (R-FL - uber-conservative)
I'm Gordon Wayne Watts of Lakeland, Fla - between Orlando & Tampa - want to know more? Google me.
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