In his New Book, O'Reilly admits he is both "Bitter" and "may sound Delusional"

Media Matters Releases Comprehensive Analysis of Culture Warrior

Vitriolic, Inaccurate and Paranoid, Culture Warrior says more about O'Reilly than America

September 22, 2006 (Washington, DC) - Today, Media Matters for America released a comprehensive review of Bill O'Reilly's soon to be released book, Culture Warrior, despite the fact that O'Reilly recently bragged that he thwarted an attempt by Media Matters to review Culture Warrior prior to its release date.

In fact, on the September 21 edition of Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor, he taunted that his publisher had refused a request to provide an advance copy to "a guy who writes for the left-wing smear site Media Matters." "Nice try," O'Reilly said, "no book."

But, Media Matters had already been working on the analysis for several days, which is now available on www.mediamattters.org. Nice try, Mr. O'Reilly.

Brief Analysis Summary:

Media Matters' analysis shows the book to be replete with factual errors, rank hypocrisy, and ad hominem attacks directed at anyone who has crossed swords with O'Reilly. In his book, O'Reilly presents himself as an independent, someone who opposes any ideological extremes and purports to "expose the secular-progressive movement in our country for exactly what it is, to explain why it is so harmful for America, and to identify the movement's top leaders."

But, in actuality, the book is little more than a hypocritical string of attacks against people O'Reilly doesn't like, as the following excerpt from Media Matters' analysis shows.

"O'Reilly writes, "It is flat-out wrong to question the loyalty of any American unless there is rock-solid proof that the person is trying to damage the country" (Pages 190-91). Yet O'Reilly has engaged in precisely that behavior time and again; although never does he elaborate on what "rock-solid proof" of treason entails. In the book, he accuses secular progressives of not believing in "America's nobility, and so the battle rages on," without providing any examples. He writes that there are "fanatics who genuinely believe America is a wicked country that must be reformed in any way possible short of violence" and that this is "what the Soros crowd believes" (Page 191), offering no evidence."

Throughout Culture Warrior, O'Reilly makes provocative claims against his enemies. But a closer look at the book reveals that many of his accusations are groundless, and many of his criticisms of his opponents may just as easily apply to him as well. O'Reilly also peppers his book with lessons and principles for his readers. But the principles he preaches seem to be ones that he practices only selectively.

This should not come as a surprise, considering in the last five months, Media Matters has documented more than 160 instances where O'Reilly has peddled falsehoods and/or omitted pertinent information on his show.

Below Media Matters has compiled just some of the highlights from our analysis of the soon to be released Culture Warrior

O'Reilly on O'Reilly in Culture Warrior: Delusions of Grandeur

• "Because of the very personal nature of the battle I have chosen to fight, this is a difficult book to write. I don't like to sound bitter, but the truth is, I am bitter to some extent."
• "What I am about to say might sound delusional, but I believe the genesis of the O'Reilly loathing [people loathing him, not the other way around] lies in the fact that I win most of my battles in the culture war..." (Pages 150)
• "The culture war has also made me perhaps the most controversial broadcaster in the country. That hot-button label 'controversial' gives my enemies, they think, the right to attack me and my enterprises ceaselessly, unfairly, even dementedly. I truly drive the opposing forces nuts!" (Page 2)
• "I can tell you truthfully that I never envisioned myself crusading against establishment forces like the New York Times and today's vast armies of far-left and far-right zealots. Coming out of Boston University with a master's degree in broadcast journalism in 1975, I wanted to be one of the Woodward and Bernstein guys. You know, do serious investigative work and right wrongs by exposing corruption. I also wanted to cover war and study human conflict firsthand. In my journalistic career, I succeeded in reaching those goals and count myself very fortunate to have done so." (Page 3)
• At work, every call I receive is monitored and every interaction I have has to be witnessed. I am never off the job and am always on guard. Would you want to live that way?
• "Still, to quote Hyman Roth in The Godfather II, 'This is the business we've chosen.' And it's true. I don't have to be a culture warrior. I could make millions doing straight anchor work or just writing books. But I'm on a mission, one that I'm going to define for you throughout this book, and the mission is important." (Pages 3-4)

The Bill O'Reilly 'Enemies List'

• Throughout the book, O'Reilly attacks, disparages or criticizes almost anyone who has ever had a critical word for him: nearly 80 prominent American and Canadian mainstream personalities and institutions

• In Culture Warrior, O'Reilly either maligns attacks or criticizes a shockingly wide range of individuals, from journalists and political leaders to celebrities and media outlets. He even attacks Jeremy Glick, the son of a 9-11 victim.
• Included in his expansive enemies list are respected, mainstream professional and personalities such as Walter Cronkite, Matt Lauer, Tom Brokaw, David Letterman, George Clooney and even the late Peter Jennings. Organizations like Media Matters for America, New Orleans Times-Picayune, Kansas City Star, CNN and 'The "majority" of the Vermont press' all come under his wrath...just to name a few. A comprehensive list is included in our analysis.
• Of the nearly 80 people and institutions on his enemies list, O'Reilly only takes aim at two recognized conservatives: Ann Coulter and Michael Savage.

Mission NOT accomplished...Bill O'Reilly on Page 5: "I will try to avoid cheap shots and vindictiveness,"

"I will try to avoid cheap shots and vindictiveness," and, "As a traditionalist who wants to win the fight, I try to avoid the personal stuff." - Bill O'Reilly on Page 5

• "As the aforementioned NPR ombudsman Jeffrey Dvorkin wrote about the vile Web sites Media Matters and Think Progress ..."

• "I sincerely feel that many of these newspaper people are jealous, mean-spirited, petty, and cowardly."
• "[Harold] Meyerson seems to be, well, a bit unhinged."
• "He [Al Franken] was just another rabid show business liberal with a mean streak."
• "Finally, for the last piece of [George] Lakoff's apple pie, we are served with 'jobs that pay a living wage to everyone who works.' Pardon me, but isn't this right out of the Mao playbook? [...] This is called 'socialism.' "

O'Reilly on Media Matters and the Internet: "Vile web sites"

• Media Matters has been a frequent target of O'Reilly's ire on his various media megaphones, and Culture Warrior continues that tradition. He refers to us and the weblog Think Progress as "vile web sites" (Page 144), and though this is the only time he mentions us by name, on a number of other occasions he is clearly referring to Media Matters when he attacks "smear sites."

O'Reilly quotes that say a lot more about O'Reilly than anyone else:

• "Secular progressives drive on a one-way street all the time. If you don't agree with them totally, you are the enemy" (Page 60)

• "I mean, what I don't get about Susan Sarandon and her fellow S-P travelers," Bill O'Reilly writes in Culture Warrior, "is the constant anger" (Page 161).
• "Because I criticize what I consider to be dishonest and unfair media, and extremist pundits on both the right and the left as well as corrupt and/or ineffective politicians," he writes, "there is no shortage of people trying to marginalize me, or worse, destroy me" (Page 4).
• "If you are on the traditionalist side, the S-Ps will reject you and perhaps try to inflict pain upon your person," he writes (Page 168). He laments his current lifestyle, claiming, "My family also has been threatened and I've had to change every aspect of my life. ... No longer can I even engage a stranger in conversation -- there are too many crazies out there. ... I am never off the job and am always on guard" (Page 4).

To read the full Media Matters analysis, click here.