Book Review: Bill O'Rielly's "Culture Warrior"

[Canadiens1131]

I don't understand the h8 directed towards Bill O'. His show's really funny, and I love his interview tactics. If you just watch it thinking of it as newstertainment from another network talking-head pundit - he trumps them all.

Who else are you going to watch? Hannity and Comes look like Nathan Lane and Christopher Reeves on coke, and Keith Obermann looks and sounds like he has a stick up his ass for the entirety of his snarky BS half hour.

Don't even get me started about Anderson Cooper - shoulda stuck to the mole, moleman.

 

[Irvine511]

O'Reilly was smart enough to not hang his hat on one political party so didn't have to do credibility straining cartwheels or make absolutely absurd statements which would lose your possibly rightleaning but not quite true believer audience. He was smart enough not to focus on the conservative vs. liberal philosophy. Instead he couched it in traditional vs. secular progressive, gut issues. (He's puts himself on the side of the traditionalists--no surprise there.) Rush and Hannity's fortunes lie with the Republicans' performance (or perceived performance) and their shows border on almost pure propaganda. O'Reilly has left himself escape hatches. If the Republicans up and start murdering children, Rush and Hannity will have to scramble to convince their audience that murdering children has some kind of moral superiority. O'Reilly's not in danger of that.

very smart analysis.

 

[BVS]

I don't understand the h8 directed towards Bill O'. His show's really funny, and I love his interview tactics. If you just watch it thinking of it as newstertainment from another network talking-head pundit - he trumps them all.

What tactics? Not listening to them?

If you just watch it thinking of it as newstertainment from another network talking-head pundit - he trumps them all.

I think here in lies the problem. Is that most don't see him as just entertainment, including himself. Just look at the O' Reiley for president thread. Look at this thread, people actually consider him a serious author...

 

[indra]

Who else are you going to watch?

None, perhaps?

 

[martha]

None, perhaps?

Maybe even turn the TV off?!

 

[redsox04]

Re: Re: Book Review: Bill O'Rielly's "Culture Warrior"

This is so wrong, on so many levels.

Bill wants a real true civil war. He wants to see libruls dying in the streets from gunfire. In what way does he differ from the eliminationist fascism of Ann Coulter and all the rest who are busy feeding the fires of hate?

What do these people stand for, beyond white-hot rage and hatred toward, well I'm not sure toward what.... plenty of genuine old-time conservatives would have little in common with their raving rhetoric.

One day, if Bill and the rest of us are unlucky, his culture war might turn hot. What then? Do you want to be a 'traditional warrior', Boosterjuice? Can I have some of what you're drinking?

I take people like Bill O'Reilly very seriously indeed... and I am terrified. OF them.

Is he any more terrifying than, say, Michael Moore?

 

[verte76]

I never watch TV. I get all of my news from the Internet.

 

[Kieran McConville]

Re: Re: Re: Book Review: Bill O'Rielly's "Culture Warrior"

Is he any more terrifying than, say, Michael Moore?

Are you kidding? I know the "Moore and Coulter/O'Reilly/etc are just as bad as each other" meme gets legs around here, but about the worst you could accuse Moore of being is a somewhat sensationalist documentary-maker.

Like O'Reilly, Moore strikes me as quite serious about what he does, and almost certainly does not see himself as an entertainer... that's the similarity between them.

Do you see Moore saying we should round up half the country and shoot them? Cause that's what O'Reilly's 'traditional warriors' schtick is about.

Last I heard, Moore's big sin was making a movie saying they lied us into war with Iraq...

 

[A_Wanderer]

Where is he advocating culturecide.

 

[Canadiens1131]

Maybe even turn the TV off?!

How do...how does this work?

What tactics? Not listening to them?


I think here in lies the problem. Is that most don't see him as just entertainment, including himself. Just look at the O' Reiley for president thread. Look at this thread, people actually consider him a serious author...

I think he probably thinks of himself as a brand, as already discussed in this thread. He may as well milk it while he's in the public eye.

 

[maycocksean]

Irvine, you've made a pretty compelling argument for why Bill O' Reilly is reprehensible and argued it consistently through this thread. I have nothing more to add.

Well said.

 

[Irvine511]

^ how was the Japan concert?

 

[maycocksean]

^ how was the Japan concert?

Amazing!!! I was right on the front rail in front of Adam! I wrote up a full account in my Interference Journal and there are pictures on my blog.

You know I've been on Interference basically since the show but I didn't come back to FYM till yesterday. I was focused more on reveling in my experience over in the tour forums.

But it's good to be back.

Good to see you're still fighting the good fight!

 

[Irvine511]

^ just posted in your journal.