Posted on 09/26/2007 4:00:36 PM PDT by ElkGroveDan
NEW YORK - Fox News Channel's Bill O'Reilly said Wednesday his critics took remarks he made about a famed Harlem restaurant out of context and "fabricated a racial controversy where none exists." He criticized the liberal group Media Matters for America as "smear merchants" for publicizing statements he made on his radio show last week.
O'Reilly told his radio audience that he dined with civil rights activist Al Sharpton at Sylvia's recently and "couldn't get over the fact that there was no difference" between the black-run restaurant and others in New York City.
It was just like a suburban Italian restaurant, he said. "There wasn't any kind of craziness at all," he said.
O'Reilly told The Associated Press that Media Matters had "cherry-picked" remarks out of a broader conversation about racial attitudes. He had told listeners that his grandmother — and many other white Americans — feared blacks because they didn't know any and were swayed by violent images in black culture.
"If you listened to the full hour, it was a criticism of racism on the part of white Americans who are ignorant of the fact that there is no difference between white and black anymore," he told the AP. "Circumstances may be different in their lives but we're all Americans. Anyone who would be offended by that conversation would have to be looking to be offended."
His radio show was a conversation with Fox News contributor Juan Williams, author of a book about the coarseness of some black culture. Williams defended O'Reilly during a Tuesday appearance on "The O'Reilly Factor."
"It's so frustrating," Williams said. "They want to shut you up. They want to shut up anybody who has an honest discussion about race."
The controversy was similar to one that enveloped presidential candidate Joe Biden last winter. When Biden praised rival Barack Obama as "articulate" and "clean," many saw this as a way of conveying these were unusual characteristics for blacks.
Sylvia's manager Trenness Woods-Black told the New York Daily News that O'Reilly's remarks were "insulting" and showed he has little knowledge of the black community.
At one point on the radio show, Williams mentioned that too many people see little else in black culture beyond profane rap. "That's right," O'Reilly said. "There wasn't one person in Sylvia's who was screaming, `M.F.-er, I want more iced tea.'"
Karl Frisch, spokesman for Media Matters, said it is typical for O'Reilly to criticize his group for merely reporting what he says.
"We didn't call him a racist," Frisch said. "We said his comments were ignorant and racially charged and we stand by that."
O'Reilly said the Williams conversation was carried on more than 400 radio stations and there wasn't one complaint from a listener.
"This isn't about a racially insensitive remark," he said. "Anybody can listen to the unedited version of the conversation on billoreilly.com. You want to think I'm insensitive to race, you go right ahead."
The real story, he said, was about the "corrupt media culture" where outlets like CNN and MSNBC do stories about his remarks "because they're getting killed in the ratings."
"The O'Reilly Factor" is seen by more people — 2.2 million average this year — than its direct competitors on MSNBC and CNN combined. MSNBC's "Countdown" with Keith Olbermann averages 721,000 viewers in the time slot while CNN's 8 p.m. show averages 611,000, according to Nielsen Media Research.
Can’t you post your thoughts without taking the Lord’s Name in vain??? I find that extremely offensive.
O’Reilly used Freerepublic to pull up his rating.
I don’t understand FR sometimes at all.
We don’t always agree with BOR, and he’s been unfair to us. But he is a powerful voice against the secular progressive left, and one of the few main broadcasters to take on the ACLE and the attacks against Christianity and Christmas.
The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Especially when he has such a powerful pulpit. And he WAS smeared.
After all, this assclown is an arrogant, bombastic RINO from NYC (bluest-of-blue Nanny/Police-State), just like rudolph-the-rino.
That “little girl” was a 37 yr. old MBA, and it was phone necking, nothing physical. What does that have to do with this budding witch hunt?
BOR was smeared.
I was flipping channels this evening and saw the CNN Hit Piece and that is what it was pure and simple, a CNN hit piece aimed at knocking their competition off the air.
I long ago stopped watching BOR, but there is a huge difference between his hard style of reporting, when he goes after someone, vs. CNN purposefully running around a Harlem restaurant and looking for people to attack BOR.
CNN is desperate and despicable.
How are their ratings, btw?
He’s right, he is getting smeared. And he is a thin-skinned crybaby, and he did smear the Swifties, and FR. It’s all true, but at least O’reilly has a huge platform to fight back from, unlike the average American, who is smeared and insulted by the left every day.
Thanks Still Care for coming to Bill’s defense. While he may not take the right’s position every time, I do believe he is one in the media who still looks for the truth.
He’s been coming down on Soros pretty heavy in recent weeks, this Media Matters smear is no surprise.
People, people, people. You might hate O’Reilly with a passion. Stand in line. There is something far more insidious going on here.
First, you take out Imus. That’s easy. He’s paid to make crude, inflamatory, bigoted statements. Out he goes. You try to get Savage for some minor quibble, surround his studio with illegal immigrant supporters, scream and yell. It doesn’t work; maybe next time. Now aim for O’Reilly. He’s a big, bloated target who sometimes doesn’t exactly match his opinions to the facts. Call him a racist. Wear him down. You’ll notice that O’Reilly has few fans in the corner of the political spectrum which defends free speech. I’ve read the gleeful commentary here about how this couldn’t happen to a nicer guy. Those targeting O’Reilly know this, which is why he is the target.
Will someone out there kindly quote Saul Alinsky about the use of character assassination and rumor to destroy the opposition? Nah, it feels too good to watch O’Reilly squirm.
This is a pattern of behavior targeting people perceived to be conservatives, in my opinion. If I’m wrong, good. If not, God help us.
Not to mention that report by the Clintonista who said talk radio was unbalanced and needed reform, and all the mention of bringing back the Fairness Doctrine.
(in my very best Bob Dylan voice...)
How does it feeeeaallll?
Mark
Wasn’t he using a loofa? Or was it a loufa?
Yes, she did disappear quickly.
His audience from FR disappeared even faster.
“This is a pattern of behavior targeting people perceived to be conservatives, in my opinion. If I’m wrong, good. If not, God help us.”
Why can’t people look through the forest and past the trees ... Soros!
...and Freepers, don;t forget Freepers who are routinely and unfairly smeared every day.
>>Why can’t people look through the forest and past the trees ... Soros!<<
Yep
Bill OReilly has been THE biggest & most decent
commentator on Traditional issues, morality
& 90% fair in general.
With 80% of AIR TIME & print, & Hollywood these days taken up by extreme Left Wing radicals,, why can’t u reconcile
his occasional screw up?
I’ve been a lurker here & even sent some $ from day one!
I am baffled at the stubbornness on this self destructive stance on OReilly.
Love u people, love this Forum, but please rethink this,, please!
It's really, really easy to find "the truth" about FreeRepublic and he went out of his way to ignore it in order to facilitate an imaginary story for his stupid idea of "balance."
LOL!!! Touche!
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