Olbermann named Denver radio host "Worst Person" for mischaracterizing Gen. Clark's comment about Tillman
During the August 3 edition of MSNBC's Countdown, host Keith Olbermann named Denver radio host "Gunny" Bob Newman the "winner" of his nightly "Worst Person in the World" segment for, as Colorado Media Matters documented, mischaracterizing retired Gen. Wesley Clark's comments on the July 26 edition of Countdown about the death of Army Ranger Pat Tillman. Olbermann quoted Newman saying, "Wes Clark is claiming that former NFL player turned Army Ranger Pat Tillman may have been murdered on orders from the president of the United States. I wish I was making this up, but the thing is Clark made the claim on live TV on MSNBC. And we have him on video and we have the transcripts of the appearance to boot." Olbermann responded: "Maybe in that VCR in your mind, pal, but not in reality. You are making it up. I asked General Clark about the report that investigators weren't even permitted to inquire if Pat Tillman was murdered. He said that the cover-up of whatever really happened to the American hero must have gone up the chain of command."
Additionally, Olbermann named President Bush "runner-up" in "Worst Person" for, as Media Matters for America noted, "holding another off-the-record Oval Office chat with conservative talk show hosts Glenn Beck, Bill Bennett, Neal Boortz, Scott Hennen, Hugh Hewitt, Laura Ingraham, Lars Larson, Mark Levin, Michael Medved, and Janet Parshall." Olbermann said, "Certainly likes to hear a variety of opinions, doesn't he?"
Olbermann awarded Fox News host Bill O'Reilly the "bronze" for, as Media Matters also documented, "blast[ing] the conservative website Free Republic for permitting people to post comments there like '[Sen.] Hillary Clinton [D-NY] should be assassinated,' unquote." Olbermann said: "Bill, there have been posts threatening her life made on BillOReilly.com." Olbermann added: "Also, a reminder to conservatives: To save his skin, Bill-O will happily throw you under the bus too."
As Media Matters has documented (here, here, here, and here), Olbermann frequently names O'Reilly during his "Worst Person" segment. Recently, Olbermann named O'Reilly "Worst Person" for stating: "Most Americans don't want to hurt any poor Mexican people. They want to know who they are. They want to know where they are, what they're doing. They don't want them clustering in neighborhoods and changing the whole tempo of the neighborhood."
From the August 3 edition of MSNBC's Countdown with Keith Olbermann:
OLBERMANN: The bronze to Bill-O, trying to dig himself out of the hole that he's made about the website the Daily Kos. He has now blasted the conservative website Free Republic for permitting people to post comments there like, "Hillary Clinton should be assassinated," unquote. Bill, there have been posts threatening her life made on BillOReilly.com, right near that warning that reads that you won't, quote, "be held liable for any user activity on the message boards. We do not actively monitor user-submitted content."
Also a reminder to conservatives: To save his skin, Bill-O will happily throw you under the bus too.
The runner-up tonight: President Bush, holding another off-the-record Oval Office chat with conservative talk show hosts Glenn Beck, Bill Bennett, Neal Boortz, Scott Hennen, Hugh Hewitt, Laura Ingraham, Lars Larson, Mark Levin, Michael Medved, and Janet Parshall. Certainly likes to hear a variety of opinions doesn't he? The good news is that among them, the president and the 10 water carriers did set a Guinness Book of Records mark for most lifetime lies by 11 people in the same room.
But our winner, "Gunny" Bob Newman, Denver talker, angling for an invite to next year's event at the White House by lying entirely about what General Wesley Clark said on this newscast on the 26th of last month. Newman said, quote, "Wes Clark is claiming that former NFL player turned Army Ranger Pat Tillman may have been murdered on orders from the president of the United States. I wish I was making this up, but the thing is Clark made the claim on live TV on MSNBC. And we have him on video and we have the transcripts of the appearance to boot."
Maybe in that VCR in your mind, pal, but not in reality. You are making it up. I asked General Clark about the report that investigators weren't even permitted to inquire if Pat Tillman was murdered. He said that the cover-up of whatever really happened to the American hero must have gone up the chain of command. Here's the actual tape.
CLARK: [video clip] Where did the idea that you shouldn't give any indication of what happened to Tillman? Just go ahead and go through with the burial ceremony. Give him the Silver Star. Where was that idea blessed? You can be sure that that idea did not originate or stop at the two- or three-star level. That was -- someone approved that all the way to the top, because Pat Tillman was a political symbol used by the administration when it suited their purposes.
OLBERMANN: This idiot Newman called General Clark a bizarre conspiracy-theorist crackpot. No, sir. A conspiracy-theorist crackpot is somebody who takes the plain facts that are right in front of them on tape and deliberately alters them to fit their own paranoia. Somebody like "Gunny" Bob Newman, today's Worst Person in the World.
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That guy deserved WPITW award. These things need to be highlighted as much as possible. Thanks to Keith Olbermann for doing a great job every night. He is intelligent and entertaining. I like that he has Rachel Maddow on his show quite a lot. I like Wesley Clarke also.
Keith Olberman is quite the man
He can sure count on me as a fan
He is splendid, adoit
Talking points he exploits
The corrupted media he pans
Olbermann is an idiot, a joke, a MORON! He belongs on MSNBC. I disliked him when he did sports, and now he truly sucks. Other than that, he's alright.
What does how you feel about Olbermann have to do with the point he made?
What does your question to me have to do with the post?
Do you really not understand his point?
You typically express your dislike of Olbermann on threads like this. He was making a joke that if we were quiet, you might not hear that there was a thread about Olbermann, and therefore might not comment on how terrible Olbermann is.
You really didn't understand that?
"Maybe in that VCR in your mind, pal, but not in reality. You are making it up. I asked General Clark about the report that investigators weren't even permitted to inquire if Pat Tillman was murdered. He said that the cover-up of whatever really happened to the American hero must have gone up the chain of command. Here's the actual tape."
And this is why Keith continues to provide a public service. Ponting out the wing nut cases that literally pollute the air waves with true propaganda.
If a person were to read (with comprehension) the "who we are" part of this website, they'll understand why MMfA posts stories like this.
They're documenting the reporting of like-minded groups when they 'out' a spreader of conservative misinformation.
MMfA covers this story, and highlights items in their own way. Olbermann might also cover this story, and come at it from a different angle, highlighting another aspect of it or ridiculing it in another way, and that ammunition is great for those of us who want fairness and balance in the media.
Go ahead, "why is this here" people. Read the "about us" section of this website. The rest of us already understand why this is here. It's because Olbermann gives us an additional viewpoint to use as ammo. This is a war between people who will use misinformation to further their cause and people who will use the truth to further their cause. I'm proudly in the second group.
From a charter member of the "Why is this here?" fraternity:
As I read on the sidebar to the right:
MSNBC viewerservices@msnbc.com MSNBC TV One MSNBC Plaza Secaucus, N.J. 07094 MSNBC">[link to www.msnbc.msn.com] contacts
When contacting the media, please be polite and professional. Express your specific concerns regarding that particular news report or commentary, and be sure to indicate exactly what you would like the media outlet to do differently in the future.
===============================
What should I tell MSNBC to do differently in the future?
Don't you understand that by taking action, you can praise MSNBC too? Taking them to the woodshed is not the only option.
Tell MSNBC to expand KO's show to two hours. : )
Quiet! Sueeld is gonna hear us. Look out Keith.....
What is your point?
Do you really not understand his point?
You typically express your dislike of Olbermann on threads like this. He was making a joke that if we were quiet, you might not hear that there was a thread about Olbermann, and therefore might not comment on how terrible Olbermann is.
You really didn't understand that?
NomoBush
Did I comment on this particular thread, or is this an attempt to start a fight that is not there?Are you that much of a bombthrower?
First off, I didn't mention your name first, so you're totally out of line to accuse me of being a bombthrower.
Secondly, I was explaining to you why someone might have brought up your name after you said that you couldn't understand why they did it. I did not insult you. So, no, I'm not looking to start a fight. The fight starter would be you! Someone else made a joke, a joke based on reality, the reality that you dislike Olbermann and regularly express that dislike for Olbermann. Then you either didn't understand or pretended to not understand their point. I explained it. You then insulted me for no good reason after I simply explained something to you that you said you didn't understand.
In what alternative universe is explaining something to someone trying to start a fight? On what planet is it starting a fight to ask someone if they really didn't understand a point, or if there's something else going on in their comment?
Yep, if you ask a person who still supports BushCo why they hold a certain right wing opinion, it's because they've been listening to Faux News or all the wacko radio hosts who spout misinformation like koolade. Thus important to keep pointing it out.
These people aren't very bright, really. NO matter how talky they are, they don't understand some basics; like what you put out, you get back (Karma,eh?)
Never heard of Bunny Bob Newman...and would really worry about his "fans". And here is a guy (seems to have never seen combat) who has called for the execution or imprisonment of Rep. Murtha, John Dean and Sen Kerry. Bunny Boy Newman could not even shine the boots of Kerry.
But Bunny Boy has called people "vermin" in the past(according to Wikipedia) and that puts him right up there next to Doc Savage. And those two have never been seen together in public. Oh, I am sorry, he is Gunny Bob...my fault.
I've never heard of him either, but there are hundreds like him on local talk radio stations across the country. That's why, when our conservative comrades poo poo the idea that Talk Radio is a potent political tool of the GOP, they are being either naive, or disingenuous.
Reminds me of Quinn and Rose from Pittsburgh...had this BIG scoop about the Dems in Kansas? concerning flooding or something...Had their Deep Throat but would not release any name. Back into obscruity went Quinn...just like after his sexual harassment debacle. Ooops, sorry, didn't mean to get personal...ala Bunny Boy.
The problem is that these propaganda parrots are all singing from the same set of talking points. Even though they may appear and disappear from the national stage, they continue to regurgitate their lies on their local stations. Multiply that by the hundreds of conservative talk stations...and you might as well have one voice telling those lies all across the country.
Hey Prince, you're from "The 'Burgh"? Can you tell me why KDKA dropped Chris Moore on Saturday evenings in favour of that insipid "Life Lounge" program. Was he making too much sense?
KNOWLIES, Chris Moore was dropped because he makes sense and the Con leaning KDKA cannot have him on two(2) nights in a row..he now on Sundays but his show is still the best they have to offer...Re: Boortz rerun@7:00pm followed by O'Reilly@10:00..need I say MOORE..
Sad. The guy is truly one of the smartest people on the radio. I'd put him up against O'Reilly, Boartz, or any of those other clowns any day of the week.
He is having some type of program on Public TV sometine this year...
problem with Newman is he is on a true clear channel station - 50KWatts with about a 15-20 state coverage at night. That's massive.
Gunny Bob proudly refers to himself as a marine. If my late father (who served as a corporal during WWII) were alive to hear the crap Gunny Bob spews on a regular basis, he'd want to kick the snot of of him for being a disgrace to the Corps.
Semper fi to all Marines except Oliver North and Gunny Bob.
What can we expect? Newman obviously studied at the knee of the Greatest Liar of all time, Rush Limbaugh. He's perfected the art of telling a lie and sticking to it, even in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary. To be effective, "The Big Lie" must take on a life of its own, regardless of the facts.
"Sticking to a lie" is company policy at Gunny Bob's radio station, KOA 850AM in Denver (a Clear Channel radio cesspool). For additional lies, follow th4e link on MMFA's home page to go to the Colorado Media Matters page.
Quote: "You really do find itself incumbant on you to take your own network to the same degree of task...(or) it dosen't say much for your manhood." -Keith Olbermann Nov 16, 2006
Keith made a big deal about Bill O'Reilly when the O.J. book controversy erupted. In addition to lying that O'Reilly didn't criticize his own network, Keith insisted that anyone who is critical of others should be just as critical of his own network, or he has "no manhood". So we should hold Keith Olbermann to his own standards. He attacks Fox (and occasionally CNN) based on items he lifts from his favorite blue blog sources, but you won't find him going after MSNBC, despite the fact that those same sources routinely do.
This all adds up to Keiths manhood quotient (as usual) : LIMP!
Tweak, okay, you are right, next!!
We have had a 6 year glimpse of the limp chimp who was a wimp (Vietnam) and who wants to pimp (his war). Enough of the manhood talk.
Don't feed the gimp. In the end, he's just an imp.
Let's get back to what matters, like hopefuls who don't scrimp when they primp.
http://insidecable.blogsome.com/2007/07/24/keith-olbermann-apologizes-for-wendy-vitter-countdown-segment/
They call him the tweaker. Dude, I know yo have a low opinion of Olberman but if you are co concerned with his antics why don't you target people who are much much worse? Like Gunny Bob for example.
Don't know the man....never heard of him or his program down here under the bridge?????
Tweak, meet Sueeld. Sue, Tweak...
Let me see if I've got this correct: You're pissed at Keith Olbermann because he is limp.
Thanks for clearing that up.
Did hell freeze over?!?
Nice to see an Olbermann thread here that isn't a repeat of a MMFA thread on a topic already discussed.
While I find these awards rather meaningless since Keith can't include everyone that should be in contention [like folks that are employed by MSNBC]......still for what it [the award] is worth, "Gunny" Bob Newman was a good pick.
Hell will freeze over the day Tucker Carlson, Chris Matthews or Joe Scarborugh are named Worst Person in the World.
Even though they all deserve it....
You just wonder how Olbermann will react in 2009 when President Hillary Clinton invites him to the White House with other pro Hillary candidates. Or President Edwards or President Obama. The idea of inviting these media types stinks but a partisan hack is a hack.
That said I don not know this Newman , but I can see why Clark is being protected by Olbermann , he works for MSNBC now. If Clark said those things while he was a FOX analyst would Olbermann mention this? No.
Sad and Shameful.
You fail to suggest what shameful thing Wes Clarke said. Apparently you have not seen what he actually said or are being intentionally obtuse. Your slip is showing. And your post makes no sense as usual.
Julia
General Clark said no such thing, so I am not sure what your point is.
Reread my post above. Your response makes zero sense again.
Sorry I still do not understand your point, and I do not believe Clark said anything shameful.
Also most of my post had to do with this comment
The runner-up tonight: President Bush, holding another off-the-record Oval Office chat with conservative talk show hosts Glenn Beck, Bill Bennett, Neal Boortz, Scott Hennen, Hugh Hewitt, Laura Ingraham, Lars Larson, Mark Levin, Michael Medved, and Janet Parshall. Certainly likes to hear a variety of opinions doesn't he? The good news is that among them, the president and the 10 water carriers did set a Guinness Book of Records mark for most lifetime lies by 11 people in the same room.
You implied that Olbermann was defending Wes Clarke because he works for MSNBC and not because he never said any such thing. I think that was the point.
I do not believe i implied that but however you want to see that is fine.
fair enough, I perceived the implication from what you wrote.
You said that Clark is being protected by Olbermann.
If Clark did or said nothing wrong, then there's no protecting needed and there's no protection happening.
See, that's the problem with being dishonest. You have to remember all your deceit. You were the one who said that Olbermann was protecting Clark, remember?
Ellie/Sue
General Clark is an American hero and needs no ones protection. My point is if this were last year and he were a FOX news analyst would this bozo from Colorado been named "Worst Person in the World". No.
Looks like your trying to make me anti General Clark. That will not work, your smears are not accepted anymore. We learned from your previous name.
You are the one who said "...but I can see why Clark is being protected by Olbermann, he works for MSNBC now."
You are the one who said that Clark was being protected by Olbermann. Whether he's protecting one of his own or simply protecting someone who deserves it without regard to his employer, you said that Clark was being protected.
You are being "attacked" by someone who is using your own words against you. You're delusional like Tommy in that you accuse me of being someone I'm not, and you are really losing it here too by ignoring your own words and how those very words are what are indicting you.
I see no evidence that only people who are contracted to work with MSNBC are protected by Olbermann. I see no evidence that if Olbermann was aware of the false charges by the Denver radio talk show host he would not cover them.
Do you have any proof that Olbermann has chosen to fail to "protect" someone who works or worked for FoxNews? Any evidence besides your dislike of Olbermann? Any at all?
Sue/Ellie/Notthatgeorge
I am not sure what your point is other than to imflame the board. I have made my statements clear, and never smeared General Clark despite your attempts to claim I did.
Sure, that's the ticket.
How many people commented on your comment that Olbermann was protecting Clark?
You're the one who said that. You're the one who attacked Olbermann rather than commenting on what was being covered here.
It would be you who was trying to enflame the board with your delusions as well as with your dislike for Olbermann.
I think you're jumping to two conclusions, both not entirely accurate. No one is suggesting your slamming Clarke, two you are assuming that Olberman is picking on Wes' critic because he works for the same network. That could be true, but who really cares? It's mind reading. I think the main issue here is Gunny Bob, another "independent" who never met a liberal he didn't hate and his putting words in the mouth of Wes Clarke.
I live in the Denver area and hear this guy. Thankfully we have a progressive radio station with a host who works out of the same clearchannel studios. AM760's Jay Marvin to counter this and several other idiots.
I had a little email exchange with Gunny. The guy is certifiable. he called me a bigot because I calmly and politely took exception to his assertion that liberals celebrate when our soldiers die in Iraq. It went down hill from there.
This Gunny guy sounds like a real slimeball. His attack on General Clark is disgraceful.
If you're remotely interested there is a Colorado version of Media Matters that does the community a great service. Unfortunately we have a plethora of absolute right wing nuts over at KOA that are local. Another guy Bob Caldera, loves to have Ann Coulter on. He fawns over her and flirts with her, the thought gives me the heebee jeebees. Mike Rosen too. Another nut I've "corresponded" with. No reasoning with these guys.
Thanks for the tip, I will check it out.
All the self-respecting slimeballs in the world cringe at the thought of being compared to Gunny Bob. He's lower than whale poop, and whale poop sinks to the bottom of the ocean...
Note to self - no more responses to schizo posters. No disrespect to anyone with a real disease. Just using a colloquial term.
Julia
Sorry I still do not understand your point. I love your poems , I guess I will only comment on how I love them in interactions to you.
A partisan hack is a hack.
That doesn't mean that Keith Olbermann is a partisan hack, however.
It also doesn't mean that Hillary would invite partisan hacks to the White House like Bush invited partisan hacks to the White House.
It also doesn't mean that if it were to happen, that we would approve of it because it was done by a Dem. Some of us are appropriately upset by misdeeds from any quarter, and the facts are that right now it's the darn Republicans who are the biggest offenders.
Like JuliaJayne said, your slip is showing. Your dislike for Olbermann obscures your ability to see reality and think logically.
Thanks Sue/Ellie
I commented on this earlier. Your slip is also showing.
I have no idea what your point is here. Your delusions are rampant today.
You mentioned partisan hacks, and I replied to that post and referenced your comments on purpose. I know that you already talked about partisan hacks, but you did not address what I said above. Why would you claim that you've already addressed an issue when you didn't? That's what delusional people do.
You tried to claim that Olbermann is and would be a hypocrite. You claimed that all partisan hacks are the same. You claimed that no one on the left, or at least no supporter of Olbermann would object if the same thing happened with a Democrat in office.
None of the above claims from you were accurate. You pulled them from the ether because of your dislike for Olbermann.
Sue/Ellie/Notthatgeorge
Again you are making no sense, if you want me to claim I am smearing General Clark which I did not than you have failed. Stop playing your games and comment on the context, some of us make take you more seriously.
"Sue/Ellie/Notthatgeorge"
This is getting really tired. Can you please address the comments and stop smearing other posters without evidence?
Again you are making no sense, if you want me to claim I am smearing General Clark which I did not than you have failed. Stop playing your games and comment on the context, some of us make take you more seriously.
--- CaseySpring
It is you who is not making sense.
I never said anything that would lead anyone with a lick of common sense to think that I was claiming you were smearing Clark. That is evidence of your delusions!
I did comment on the context. It was you who didn't comment on the context when you talked about how Olbermann wouldn't protect Clark if Clark were still with Fox News. That comment from you was off topic.
I don't need schooling from you on how to keep on topic. You are the one who repeatedly has addressed your dislike for Olbermann (attacking the messenger) rather than commenting on his message. That's what loses you credibility, along with your delusions about me being someone else. You have been told by countless other posters to drop the allegations and comment on the content of the posts. Those have been fair accusations when they have been aimed your way. It's not fair to tell me that responding to and debunking your off topic rants related to your dislike of Olbermann makes me off topic, and it ignores the fact that I have commented on this topic and many others in a substantive way!
I guess because the above item is essentially about Keith Olbermann and his show, it wasn't necessary to include who this guy bob newman is, or who he works for... so I was glad that I got that information from the link to the Colorado Media Matters item... which for those of you interested, the guy is apparently a local radio hack at "Newsradio 850 KOA", and (much more important I think) that radio station is owned by Clear Channel.
Clear Channel: The most influential "media" corporation currently abusing our Public Property, the PUBLIC AIRWAVES (radio band), by using their FCC License to broadcast the political opinions of that "media" company's owners.
And while the item clearly demonstrates how Gen. Clark never said any such nonsense about anybody being murdered, it does appear (from my reading of the item) that Keith Olbermann did use the word murder or murdered, in a question he posed to Gen. Clark, on the matter of Corp. Tillman's tragic death.
So as far as I can tell, the Clear Channel hack's issue was with something Keith Olbermann said, not Gen. Clark.
This Clear Channel seems very dangerous. Frighteneing that they have that much control and are pursuing pushing a Conservative Agenda.
It's not called "pursuing pushing a conservative agenda", it's called:
Using an FCC License to use the PUBLIC AIRWAVES to broadcast the political opinions of the owners of the broadcast company that holds that License.
Me, I don't really think that use of Public Property, the PUBLIC AIRWAVES, serves the American People whose property it is... I don't think that's what We the People License those broadcasters for, to broadcast their political opinions, on our PUBLIC AIRWAVES.
I saw this show as I do every night. The Prez wants to keep this on the lowdown and there has been speculation about Tillman being fragged. There were no accusations, just suppositions and possibilities. They even mentioned Tillman's mom who said she isn't ruling it out because Tillman had an unpopular view of the Iraq war. Olbermann, Clarke and Mary Tillman have never stated that that this was murder. The option is just being discussed and is not off the table. Since the WH is not releasing secret documents on this case, and there were 2-3 bullet shots within close range, I don't think it's not in the realm of possibility. So why should it not be talked about as being one of many options?
Wes Clarke said the decisions being made about the release of information most likely went up the chain of command. He didn't agree or disagree with KO on whether or not it might be a murder. But it can't be investigated without documents and it should be investigated thoroughly.
This is the problem with black and white thinkers. Newman has taken a suggestion that the President may have authorized the squelching of a murder investigation and morphed it into a suggestion that the President ordered the murder. This is the same type of thought process that has gotten us bogged down in an unnecessary war. That's why we're doomed unless the thinkers can outnumber the non-thinkers.
Slow down. Clear Channel also owns the local prog station AM760 in the same town. I think they own 80% of the stations Air America is on.
This is one of Keith's best...
Priceless.
"The good news is that amoung them, the president and the 10 water carriers did set a Guinness Book of Records mark for most lifetime lies by 11 people in the same room."
He's just tellin' it like it is.
Olbermann tells a lie, about so-called liars.
Now THAT'S funny!
No, he didn't.
A lie is intended to deceive. He was not trying to deceive anyone.
Bush giving his group of mini-Goebbels marching orders might have been closer to gold. But the Gunny incident did directly misrepresent something on the very show, so it had a home-field advantage.
I'll take Gunny Bob's word over this hack, Olbermann. Newman served and knows more about Weasly Clark than Olbermann could ever guess.
Olbermann: you are a pitiful arse.
You don't need to believe anyone's word. Just read the transcript.
There is no way (if you have basic comprehension of English) that you cannot conclude that gunny boob distorted Clark's words.
Being a retired member of the USAF, I would agree with Gen. Clark about the level of approval the Silver Star would require to be awared to Pat Tillman. It would have gone to a senior 4 star. Though the President of the United States would not be in the approval process. Even the President can only present the Medal of Honor after Congress approves the award. Clearly someone is making things up in order to make himself the next Limbough or O'Reilly.