Glenn Beck has been laughing all the way to the bank for years as he knowingly and cement-headedly stirs up ratings garnering controversies. Fox News’ Roger Ailes must be down on his knees now thanking God that he parted ways with Beck given this one:
Controversial talk show host Glenn Beck has sparked outrage by comparing the 68 young victims of the horrific shooting on the Norwegian island of Utoya to the Hitler Youth.
Speaking on his radio programme yesterday, he said the teenagers attending the Labour youth camp on the idyllic island were like the Nazi leader’s infamous young followers, and branded any kind of political trip for youngsters as ‘disturbing’.Yet the Tea Party darling is the man behind the 9/12 Project, an organisation which runs politically-minded camps for young people across the U.S.
This is so indicative over how blind partisan ideology works. Outrage and scorn is only for those with whom someone disagrees or is perceived to disagree. If someone used the same phrase for Beck’s camp he’d be outraged and rightfully so.
Described as ‘a new low’ by a former press secretary to Norway’s prime minister, the comments come just days after 76 people died in Oslo and Utoya in a double attack by far-right extremist Anders Breivik.
Beck said: ‘As the thing started to unfold and there was a shooting at a political camp, which sounds a little like the Hitler Youth. Who does a camp for kids that’s all about politics? Disturbing.’
Does Beck own a mirror?
After making the controversial comments, Beck was at pains to point out he hadn’t blamed the shooting on Islamic extremists when the news first broke.
Condemning Breivik as a ‘mad man’, he said: ‘There is no difference between him and the 9/11 bombers. No difference. He is just as bad as Osama Bin Laden. Period.’
Fair enough.
But he said he had predicted last year Europe ‘is going to go into problems with radical Islam.’
Citing Dutch far-right politician Geert Wilders, he said: ‘Political correctness and multiculturalism is killing Europe, and he’s right.
Oh.
Torbjørn Eriksen, a former press secretary to Norway’s prime minister, described the remarks as a ‘new low’.
Eriksen is wrong.
Beck went below low years ago — which is why Ailes is now down on his knees chanting “Oh, thank you, God!!”
UPDATE: Time Magazine’s Glen Levy:
Understandably, his comments were quickly condemned. Torbjørn Eriksen, a former press secretary to Norway’s prime minister, Jens Stoltenberg, said, “Young political activists have gathered at Utoya for over 60 years to learn about and be part of democracy, the very opposite of what the Hitler Youth was about. Glenn Beck’s comments are ignorant, incorrect and extremely hurtful.”
Admittedly, Beck did label the killings “the work of a madman” and called Breivik “as bad as Osama bin Laden,” but not until after his inflammatory remarks had been made. And what appears most puzzling is why Beck is perturbed by the purpose of the camp: politically-oriented camps are organized in several U.S. states by chapters of the “9/12 Project,” which is an organization founded by Beck back in 2009.
If Beck harbored any fears that his voice wouldn’t have the same kind of reach in light of his show on Fox News recently coming to an end, he needn’t have worried.
Indeed: perhaps this will be Beck’s business model: say outrageous things that get pitchforked into the headlines. It’s a (sad) fact that controversy, rage, conflict is what sells in America. Notoriety pays off. Beck doesn’t have respect as much as he has notoriety.
And he will…again…be laughing all the way to the bank. Who care’s who’s offended — or grieiving?
Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.