Fox's Asman touted Anna Benson's "wonderful," "sexy poses" during interview on Cavuto
On Fox News' Your World with Neil Cavuto, guest host David Asman interviewed Anna Benson, proprietor of Anna Benson Enterprises, a website that features a photo gallery of Benson in provocative poses. During a portion of the interview devoted to Benson's negative views on People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and filmmaker Michael Moore, Asman aired some of the site's photographs and observed, "There's some pictures of you in some very, ah, wonderful poses."
During the February 23 edition of Fox News' Your World with Neil Cavuto, guest host David Asman interviewed Anna Benson, proprietor of Anna Benson Enterprises, a website that features a photo gallery of Benson in provocative poses and that also links to a poker website with which she is affiliated. During a portion of the interview devoted to Benson's negative views on People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and filmmaker Michael Moore, Asman aired some of the site's photographs and observed, "There's some pictures of you in some very, ah, wonderful poses."
Asman suggested that some media outlets, particularly in New York, "went after" Benson for her political views and her "sexy poses." New York Times reporter Ben Shpigel wrote a January 22 article about Benson in the wake of the New York Mets' trade of her husband, Kris Benson, (career record: 57-61) to the Baltimore Orioles:
She is a rarity among today's professional men's athletes: the wife who has more of a public persona than her husband. Her time in New York was, in some ways, more remarkable than that of her husband.
Benson was moderately successful in his 18 months as a Met, but Anna stole the spotlight, sharing intimate details of their sex life, blasting the anti-establishment filmmaker Michael Moore and, more recently, criticizing the Mets for trying to trade her husband.
In response to Asman's suggestion, Benson said, "I don't have a speculation on that. They are the ones that write it, not me." Asman replied, "Well, we are glad you are happy in Baltimore. Your husband is a wonderful pitcher. And some of the things you say on the Web are fantastic."
As Media Matters for America previously noted, Your World with Neil Cavuto has often aired photographs and videos of scantily clad women and blurred images of nude women.
From the February 23 broadcast of Fox News' Your World with Neil Cavuto:
ASMAN: The gambling scandal surrounding Wayne Gretzky's wife, Janet Jones, has put the spotlight on the issue of professional sports and whether there is gambling. So, it might surprise some people that Anna Benson, who is the wife of Major League pitcher Kris Benson, is behind one of the most popular poker sites on the Web. Why does she do it? I'm joined by Anna Benson. Good to see you. Thanks for coming in.
BENSON: Thank you for having me.
ASMAN: The wife of a professional athlete running a website on gambling -- it doesn't sound like the right time for that.
BENSON: Well, it's a poker site, first of all. And, second of all, you know, we have separate careers. And just because my husband is a baseball player doesn't mean that I'm not allowed to do what I want to do.
ASMAN: But did the Gretzky thing play into what you were doing? Did you have to --
BENSON: That --
ASMAN: -- answer questions about it or anything?
BENSON: No. It has nothing to do with me. And I don't know much about it. I think people are being very harsh, and that they need to get all the facts first, before they start to judge --
[crosstalk]
ASMAN: It's getting a lot of hits, right?
BENSON: Which --
[crosstalk]
ASMAN: Your -- your website.
BENSON: I had about --
ASMAN: Your poker website.
BENSON: I had over two million visitors last -- last month.
ASMAN: All right. Well, let's talk about you and about the sport of baseball and Baltimore. You just moved to Baltimore. How is that?
BENSON: I'm very excited about that. Baltimore fans are wonderful. And I'm most excited for my husband to get to work with Leo Mazzone.
ASMAN: Now -- now -- now, a lot of people say -- or make the suggestion, sometimes very blatantly, that you are partly responsible for your husband leaving the New York Mets and going to Baltimore, because of some of the things you have said, some of the things you have done. What do -- how do you respond to that?
BENSON: You know, I don't really know what the truth is. You know, the Mets have said to me that was not the case, that it was simply a trade.
ASMAN: But your husband was doing pretty well at the Mets --
BENSON: He was doing well.
ASMAN: -- particularly in the last half of the season.
BENSON: He was doing well. And, you know, they have changed the face of their team and what they are doing. And, if they choose to dump his salary, and -- that's --
ASMAN: A lot of money.
BENSON: That's a business decision.
ASMAN: What is it, $23 million or something, over three years? More than that, right?
BENSON: It was $22-and-a-half [million] over three, and then an option for a fourth.
ASMAN: So, why do you think they did it? Why do you think the Mets traded him to Baltimore?
BENSON: Well, they have told me they traded because of a salary dump. And, so, I choose to believe that.
ASMAN: Now, you -- you talked a lot about sex with your husband, which you're -- you are -- you know, you are not a prude. You're -- you're not afraid to talk. But you also made some political points. There's some pictures of you in some very, ah --
BENSON: Thank you.
ASMAN: -- wonderful poses. But you -- you make some political statements on your website. You have talked about PETA. You are no fan of PETA, the animal rights group --
BENSON: No fan of PETA.
ASMAN: -- are you? You are no fan of the gun -- of the anti-gun lobbyists, right?
BENSON: No. No fan.
ASMAN: You -- you're a gun owner, and proud of it.
BENSON: Yes.
ASMAN: And -- and you're no fan of Michael Moore.
BENSON: No fan.
ASMAN: So, what was more responsible for you getting in trouble with the press? Was it -- was it these sexy poses and the things you had to say about sex, or your liberal -- your -- your -- your attacks of the liberal media?
BENSON: I'm not attacking anyone. I mean, these are on my site. And these are my opinions. And if you don't want to come on my site and read them, then don't come.
ASMAN: But, again, the media went after you in certain ways, particularly in New York. There were some people, in particular, that -- that made some nasty comments about it. Was it because of your stance on PETA and guns and Michael Moore, or because of what you said about sex?
BENSON: You would have to ask them that. I really -- I --
ASMAN: All right.
BENSON: I don't have a speculation on that. They are the ones that write it, not me.
[laughter]
ASMAN: Well, we are glad you are happy in Baltimore. Your husband is a wonderful pitcher. And some of the things --
BENSON: Thank you.
ASMAN: -- you say on the Web are fantastic.
BENSON: Thank you.
ASMAN: I -- I haven't gambled, by the way, so --
BENSON: Thank you.
ASMAN: -- I can't say anything about that.
BENSON: Thank you.
ASMAN: Anna Benson --
BENSON: You should come play some hold 'em with me, because I'm a mean player.
ASMAN: All right. Anna Benson, thanks very much.
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Can someone explain to me how and why this is conservative misinformation?
Is it because they are subconsciously associating sex with her conservative ideals?
Dialogue like this seems lifted from the film, Running Man, where the Richard Dawson character would say or do anything to make money.
This is not too closely related to the subject but I will note it anyway, given that Anna Benson is a conservative: Anna Benson's husband, pitcher Kris Benson, has been a Bad pitcher throught his career. He's been in the majors for 6 years, in 2 of which he has had a record over .500. His overall record is 57 wins, 61 losses. :-)
I'm a life long Maryland native, Orioles fan and conservative. But yes, Kris Benson is crappy pitcher and his wife just says crap. I wish Anna Benson would just go away. Unless of course, Kris Benson cheats on her and I'm one of his teamates.
I've been reading your posts and am learning to appreciate them. Thanks for the laugh.
Drooling over a sexy girl may be rude and crude, but I fail to see why it is conservative misinformation. Unless the woman has implants, falsies, cosmetic things, etc. Nor is Ann Coulter dressing like a dominatrix conservative misinformation, because that is exactly what she is.
I agree. What purpose is served by posting this on-air ogling during a softball (no pun intended, really) interview?
Conservatives talk a great game when it comes to morals, marrriage, monogamy, abstinence until marriage, etc.
In the end, they are perverted humans just like the rest of us.
We all know about Bill O'Reilly's phone calls and his dirty-old-man innuendo that he projects at his radio sidekick.
In regard to Cavuto's show, as of late it's been packed with lots of T&A: [link to mediamatters.org]
Oh, and one more little tidbit just in case that's not enough:
Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, parent company of Fox News, distributes hard and softcore porn to American homes via it's subsidiary, Direct TV.
Murdoch also runs that web site, which is constantly in trouble for the potential danger it poses to teenaged girls. Christ, with O'Lielly's sexual fantasies, Cavuto's constant T&A "business" segments, "Page 3", and the semi-porn papers he owns in England... and he's the voice of reason and propriety?
think the poses are not wonderful or sexy?
I guess I will keep staring at them to see what your point is.
The photos were irrelevant to what they were talking about during at least the first half of the interview. Obviously Fox could have cared less if you were actually listening to the report since the photos were so distracting. Maybe Fox will show the photos during Hume's next interview of Dick Cheney. It will take your mind off any of Cheney's loose comments like "I had a beer before shooting the guy".
I don't know why anyone should be surprised that he showed the pictures during the interview.
After all, he is an Asman...
You know, I think it took Murdoch a few years, but he finally figured out how to get "Page 3" girls on FNC.
This is THE business show on Fox? This is where I should go to get views of the economy, business, finance, global trade, etc.?
Or is it where I go to get views of cheesecake photos?
How can anyone take the FNC seriously? How can you believe anything it reports or decides? It's like thinking you know what's going on in the world by reading the NY Post.
What ever happened to decorum? Class? Taste? I mean, I like a girl in a bikini as much as the next guy, but during a financial news show? Don't Cavuto's people think this hurts their credibility just a wee bit?
For that matter, what do all the holy rollers who regularly appear on Fox to tut-tut against our declining "family values" have to say about the soft-core porn broadcast on FNC?
but she has built a small empire of $$$ and fame. It is a perfect entrepeneur story and a perfect fit for a business show. I'll agree they cheesecaked it when they could have had more business questions.
Yeah, looks like Anna really had the deck stacked against her. No looks and a poor share-cropper husband just picked themselves up by their bootstraps. No doubt Anna owes her success to her obviously towering intellect.
Someone should sell the rights to Hollywood. Even better material than Coalminer's Daughter.
I detect a hint of jealousy!!
Do you think Anna Benson would be anything without her looks? I am not fooled by a pretty face and 20 or so pounds of silicone.
I don't find any of her thoughts that she chooses to share worthy of note. It is difficult to conclude that anyone else would either except that she has a large chest and a pretty face.
I think you are simply too blinded by her fake headlights to notice how ordinary her thoughts are.
If any of my daughters ever ended up like Anna Benson (or Paris Hilton is in the same league), I would consider myself an utter failure as a father.
You've answered my original question.
I like to associate with the winners, not the MSNBC losers.
I'm gonna start watching FOX news all the time now! I don't care if they're biased.
I don't have cable, so the only time I see it is in the lunch room and the gym. From what I see (the sound is thankfully turned off in both places), Fox is really trying to become the T&A network. Cavuto reports frequently on sexy subjects. Fox also did an extensive preview of the lingerie bowl and the Victoria's Secret show. I don't really watch Fox and I know this. Edward R Murrow would be so proud.
I wonder how religious conservatives respond to all of this? Any fundies out there?
Asman does not even have his baseball knowledge correct. He states that Benson did particulary well in the last half of the season, but check the statistics:
[link to sports.espn.go.com]
Before All-Star break: 6 wins, 3 losses, 3.65 ERA. Opposing batters had a .244 average against him.
After All-Star break: 4 wins, 5 losses, 4.55 ERA. Opposing batters had a .261 average against him.
In Asman's effort to try to spin the NY Mets trading her husband as some kind of conspiracy to silence her, he lied to portray the trade as not having to do with his performance on the field.
Also, the Mets are known to be a very conservative team overall. I believe they had a Bill O'Reilly day last season, or at least had a day where they honored him. Several Mets players were interviewed praising O'Reilly.
The Mets this off-season made a trade for a player named Carlos Delgado. One of the conditions they made is that Delgado, a staunch opponent of the Iraq War who chose not to stand for the National Anthem in protest, would instead stand for the anthem while playing for the Mets.
Many Mets players have even directly campaigned for Republicans, to the point Mets beat writer Marty Noble wrote this article entitled "Are the Mets the GOP's Team?" in 2004:
[link to www.newsday.com]
Their owner Fred Wilpon also donated the maximum to G.W. Bush:
[link to www.fundrace.org]
Not only did Fox throw in the T&A, they also completely mislead their viewers on the political angle of this story.
... and can say for a fact that Kris Benson has talent, but also had a wretched run after the All-Star Break.
As for the GOP character of the Mets, I know that was true back in 2000. Al Leiter, one of their starting pitchers that year (in which they went to the World Series) has been rumored to want to run for Senate in his home state of New Jersey.
However, since then, the entire roster has flipped. None of those players are still here, and we have had an influx of younger players and especially a lot of Latin American players who presumably don't have too many strong views about American politics. I mean, the 23 year old, Dominican-born Jose Reyes is probably too busy enjoying what New York has to offer to worry about the GOP!
The Delgado thing is ridiculous though; people were getting on his case about his opposition to US foreign policy, and people were implying that he wasn't patriotic, etc. The funny thing about this is the fact that he isn't from the US (he is from Puerto Rico, though), but at the time of his protest, he didn't even WORK in the US (having spent most of his career with the Toronto Blue Jays).
All that said, Anna Benson was a huge distraction and Kris Benson wasn't good enough to deal with her. I mean, the Mets are retooling and she is coming out and complaining about getting Delgado? The guy who hits .300, with 30 homers and 100 RBI every year? The lefty first baseman that fill every offensive hole we had? Yeah, I can see why she had such a problem getting him! Oh, right, it was because he wouldn't stand for God Bless America, because POLITICS is the main critereon one uses when trying to build a championship calibur ball club!
There it is again... the trolls telling MMFA how to run their site.
HEY, TROLLS!! HERE'S A QUOTE FROM ANNA BENSON:
"I mean, these are on my site. And these are my opinions. And if you don't want to come on my site and read them, then don't come."
It is "Fox" News. Although, she's not a Fox. In fact, her web site's front page has an animation that slings America's leading racial epithet - that better suits her than anybody else. Isn't it time she and her mediocre pitching husband scurry back to the trailer from where they came? That way "Fox" News can engage is "News" again!
I've wondered the same thing. Fox appeals to the alleged conservatives, but it's also the racy network. Maybe it works for the Right because women are reduced to eye candy, which is a 1950s role and to conserve means to maintain what was.
When Benson said, "You should come play some hold 'em with me, because I'm a mean player," that double entendre suggests adultery. And the Bible says that a sin contemplated is the same as a sin committed. Plus, adultery, according the Old Testament, is a stoning and damning sin. So, how does Fox's viewership reconcile Benson damning herself by gambling and adultery on the righteous (Okay, self-righteous) channel?
I've be thinking that too. The right is so wrapped up with the fundamentalists, yet they don't seem to mind the mixing of gambling and sex. Just like the mixture of alcohol & firearms was judged to be acceptable by a lot of people on the right. I think it all comes down to money. But you're right, how do they reconcile these things.
In response to Fox's behavior in this matter, I'd like to paraphrase Maude Flanders from one of the only good things to come from Fox, "The Simpsons".
"I won't judge Fox, I'll leave that to a vengeful God"
Fox should incorporate flat-out porn into the "news"... Why not? Would it change anything? Rup Murdoch is a cutting-edge capitalist. He's just testing the waters.
Just go away. I was so glad when her husband (what's his name?) was traded away...now the local newpapers (the Daily News, and the New York Past) will stop featuring her, and her incredibly stupid comments. She's one of those 'celebrities' who will open her mouth and offer her opinion about Anything - even (and maybe esp.) if she knows nothing about the subject. During her time in New York, she just came across a spotlight-seeking, loudmouth, trash-talking slu-...uh, not so nice a woman.
Meanwhile, over at Faux news - Perky, Topless headlines at 11:00! The decline of America's morality discussed by three Penthouse Pets! Ann Coulter's leather wardrobe hints!....
Neo-family-values for the neo-cons.
Of which this specific guest "embodies" a nice subset: Gambling, sex-related business, hate speech (check her "rants"), guns (a necessity in that line of business?), etc.
Isnt that "fantastic"? Well, you would not expect any lesser from the fantastic "Your world with Neil Cavity".
With such models, no wonder the whole world envies the USA as they are today. Think about it: you have as many religious fanatics as any other country on the globe, and, cherry on the cake, you even provide paid war-time for your poors! (isnt that better than social security)
Ah, thanks Fox for showing us the right, for exposing the gift that keeps giving.
A cursory search for [link to www.krisbenson.com] Anne's"charity" , shows "No web site is configured at this address". Once they got the national recognition they wanted, the charity vanishes...maybe the funds were gambled away.
I think MM posted this clip because it's a soft-porn gambling commercial posing as news.
Ms. Benson flashes that she's a Rightie. We learn that she's no fan of PETA, no fan of anti-gun lobbyists, and no fan of Michael Moore. There's no justifying of those positions. She flashes more of her seemingly surgically altered breasts than she does of her ideology. Okay, Ms. Benson, you bought 2 big boobs and you wanna make money and you love when people gawk at you, but why is that news?
MM posted this because this is news without news.
It's Fox's no-news news. Nothing new there, eh?
I mean, come on . . . we're talking about a former stripper whose only media "exposure" prior to Faux was spreads in FHM magazine . . . who gets nuveau-rich by marrying a s0-so pitcher . . . then plays the discrimination card when her right-wing views come up surrounding her husband's trade . . .
Gimme a break . . .
I wrote this about Mr. Limbaugh: Ms. Benson and many on the Right have got to stop playing the victim card. The Right is the ruling elite. They aren't the oppressed. To suggest that they were railroaded because of her politics is, like everything else she said, unfounded. If I were a coach, I wouldn't want to keep a pitcher whose wife kept flashing her crotch. How can a player keep his mind and eye on a 90 mph fastball when Ms. Benson desires so many eyes on her...and will do whatever she can to garner such attention? I don't know if she's an attention junky or just wants to be richer and richer, but again, she's not news. You have to achieve something other "sexy poses" to be newsworthy, don' cha?
So you admit the right was oppressed during the Clinton years?
proving my point. You feel oppressed, like Ms. Benson. She spews hatred and the suggests that she's a po', to-be-pitied thing. What's it gonna be, Ms. Benson? Do we pity your oppression or oogle your arse? Ah, I know: we do both. That way, you get to be the po', little rich girl.
Ms. Benson, your parting shot to that make-believe journalist hints at S & M. As I wrote in my first post, your dialogue could fit into the movie, Running Man. Anything for ratings.
And Leatherhelmet, what's with the Right and its fantasy of oppression? Why is being oppressed precious to the Right? It's time for the Right to leave behind the notions of boyhood, such as polar truths and poor, little rich boys, and take life like grown-ups. There aren't good guys and bad guys. And rich people everywhere should have the good form to whine in private about their alleged oppression, as should acolytes of the party that controls the Senate, House, the Executive, and the Supreme Court. Of course, since the Right's control is complete, whatever goes wrong falls on the Right's shoulders. And the deficit? Education? Healthcare?
ASMAN: But, again, the media went after you in certain ways, particularly in New York.
Maybe when Anna said stuff like this...a letter to Moore on her website.
"You are a selfish, pathetic excuse for an American, and you can take your formerly big, fat ass over to Iraq and get your pig head cut off and stuck on a pig pole. Then, you can have your equally as fat wife make a documentary about how loudly you squealed while terrorists were cutting through all the blubber and chins to get that 40 pound head off of you."
She could post on this site and be right at home with the MMFA trolls here.
Look how silly Anna Benson look when she shows us how consumed she is by looks. A good 90% of her hate-filled spewage is about Michael Moore and his wife's weight? If she disagrees with his politics, shouldn't she stick to that instead of showing how shallow and materialistic she is.
I congratulate Anna on how well the surgery (from what I can tell) went and that she is absolutely stunning on the outside. However, I wish she could improve her equally stunning pedestrian outlook.
We should remember to not allow ourselves to make childish arguments like Anna does when we post about Limbaugh or someone else who is not attractive. We should let this be a reminder to keep this about ideas.
that's ugly, ugly prose by Ms. Benson. How do fellas desire her? It would be like biting into a bright, red apple loaded with worms.
Ohhh, Anna...(moans)...er, um, what I mean is will you dump your no-talent husband for me, no, that's not it! Damn! Trying...not...to...look...at...ta-tas...and...voluptuous...lips (desperately reaches for utility belt, for spray bottle of Clear Progressive Thinking, barely makes it, one squirt and all is well…realizes that doesn’t sound at all right)
There. What I meant to say is the whole Fox crew ought to don trench coats and be done with it. Republicans are as, if not more, perverted than liberals. The aggressive behavior, the hatred. Sexually repressed, all the way, like 14 year olds ogling a Playboy or Oui they found in a tree stump...wait a second, that was me! Doh!
I think Fox has found their calling. Hard peddling smut. It's better than soft peddling lies.