Ignoring controversy over previous remarks, O'Reilly now says kidnapping victims "have been through enough"
SUMMARY: On The O'Reilly Factor, Bill O'Reilly reported that Michael Devlin had "pleaded guilty today to kidnapping and sexually brutalizing two young boys in Missouri. One of them he had held captive for four years." O'Reilly later said, "I'm not going to name the boys, because the boys have been through enough." However, O'Reilly did not address the statement he made regarding the boy who was "held for four years," Shawn Hornbeck, on the January 15 edition of The O'Reilly Factor: "[T]here was an element here that this kid liked about his circumstances."
On the October 8 edition of Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor, Bill O'Reilly reported that Michael Devlin had "pleaded guilty today to kidnapping and sexually brutalizing two young boys in Missouri. One of them he had held captive for four years." O'Reilly later said, "I'm not going to name the boys, because the boys have been through enough," adding, "I saw the [FBI] report" and "I have never, in my 30 years of doing reporting, seen worse atrocities committed on a human being that Michael Devlin committed on this boy he held for four years." O'Reilly concluded: "I don't think life in prison is enough for this guy. I wouldn't execute him. But there's got to be a hard-labor component." However, at no point during the discussion did O'Reilly address comments he made regarding the boy who was "held for four years," Shawn Hornbeck, on the January 15 edition of The O'Reilly Factor: "[T]here was an element here that this kid liked about his circumstances."
O'Reilly's January 15 comment came during a discussion of the case with Fox News host Greta Van Susteren. O'Reilly claimed: "The situation here for this kid looks to me to be a lot more fun than what he had under his old parents. He didn't have to go to school. He could run around and do whatever he wanted." When Van Susteren pointed out that "[s]ome kids like school," O'Reilly replied: "Well, I don't believe this kid did. And I think when it all comes down, what's going to happen is, there was an element here that this kid liked about his circumstances." Earlier in the program, O'Reilly stated: "And the question is, why didn't he escape when he could have? There are all kinds of theories about that. ... All right, you know, the Stockholm syndrome thing, I don't buy it. I've never bought it. I didn't think it happened in the Patty Hearst case. I don't think it happened here."
The following day, during his "Talking Points Memo" segment, O'Reilly responded to viewer mail criticizing his comments about Hornbeck. O'Reilly concluded: "I actually hope I'm wrong about Shawn Hornbeck. I hope he did not make a conscious decision to accept his captivity because Devlin made things easy for him. No school, play all day long." He added: "But to just chalk this up to brainwashing and walk away is turning away from the true danger of child molesters and abductors. All American children must be taught survival skills, must be prepared to face crisis situations. That is the lesson of the Shawn Hornbeck story."
Following O'Reilly's comments, the Collier County, Florida, branch of the Center for Missing and Exploited Children announced that it had replaced O'Reilly as keynote speaker at a fundraiser for the organization, though the organization did not cite O'Reilly's Hornbeck comments as its specific reason for doing so. Rather, its announcement stated only:
In response to the numerous e-mails and inquiries we have received, we are providing the following update regarding the Collier County, Florida branch fundraising dinner scheduled for March 9, 2007 in Naples, Florida. Bill O'Reilly, host of The O'Reilly Factor, will not be a speaker at the dinner. The dinner will be held as scheduled. John Walsh, host of America's Most Wanted, will be the keynote speaker.
We would like to thank everyone for their comments and e-mails.
As Media Matters further noted, O'Reilly vowed on the January 16, 17, and 22 editions of The O'Reilly Factor to "apologize" for his "skepticism" if his assessment proved "wrong." O'Reilly claimed on the February 20 edition of The O'Reilly Factor that Hornbeck had "Child Sexual Abuse Accommodation Syndrome" where "the child is literally tortured into accepting his circumstance." However, a Media Matters review of O'Reilly Factor transcripts* found that O'Reilly has never apologized on The O'Reilly Factor for initially commenting that "there was an element here that this kid [Hornbeck] liked about his circumstances" or for suggesting that the time in captivity "for this kid look[ed] to me to be a lot more fun than what he had under his old parents."
O'Reilly frequently casts himself as a champion of children. He has also suggested that he is "looking out for the kids" and attacked "the print press" for not "car[ing] about the children."
From the October 8 edition of Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor:
O'REILLY: I'm Bill O'Reilly.
In the "Unresolved Problem" segment tonight, two difficult situations, both involving torture allegations.
Forty-one-year-old Michael Devlin pleaded guilty today to kidnapping and sexually brutalizing two young boys in Missouri. One of them he had held captive for four years.
Devlin will spend the rest of his life in prison, but is that enough punishment for a monster like this?
[...]
O'REILLY: Now, Devlin. I have to tell the audience that I have seen the FBI report, because kidnapping is a federal crime. And I'm not going to name the boys, because the boys have been through enough.
But the boy -- one boy was taken to Quantico, Virginia, and put under FBI supervision to try to get him back psychologically. And I saw the report. And I have never, in my 30 years of doing reporting, seen worse atrocities committed on a human being that Michael Devlin committed on this boy he held for four years.
I don't think life in prison is enough for this guy. I wouldn't execute him. But there's got to be a hard-labor component.
But Monica, the failure of our elected officials to deal with the horror of these kind of individuals. You know, you have eight states that still haven't passed Jessica's Law here. I think it's cowardice.
Why do you think the politicians don't engage on this more?
CROWLEY: It is a very curious question that you raise, Bill. Because to me, you know, when I look at politicians running for president or other high office, it seems like an issue like child predators would be a no-brainer for them.
Very easy. Sort of a softball issue for them, that they're going to prosecute these guys to the wall.
O'REILLY: Yeah, go after them.
CROWLEY: And yet, neither Republicans nor Democrats -- I don't think I've heard a single presidential candidate talk about it yet.
O'REILLY: We had -- Ted Kennedy did the right thing, finally, after we, you know, brought it right to his doorstep on the computer setup, and we have to get these guys in a database.
But Powers, in Vermont, they actually celebrated not passing Jessica's Law. They're actually proud of the fact that they're not tough on these people.
POWERS: I mean, I can't understand it. And I don't understand, frankly, why the pedophiles get back out, because they have such a high rate of recommitting these crimes. And so why -- why are they getting out of jail in the first place? And --
O'REILLY: Well, the horror that they wreak on children is beyond anybody's comprehension.
POWERS: And there is a bizarre, like, lax attitude about it.
O'REILLY: I actually had nightmares after I read that report about this Devlin, what he did to that boy. I mean, you know, I've seen it all. I have seen it all. This guy -- Devlin is the right name for this guy, ladies and gentlemen.
CROWLEY: You know, it seems like such an obvious issue for somebody like Senator Hillary Clinton, who's running for president as sort of --
O'REILLY: They're not going to touch it. They're afraid of it.
CROWLEY: -- the nation's maternal candidate. Rudy Giuliani, former prosecutor.
O'REILLY: Well, he may. He may. But they ought to get behind it.
CROWLEY: Mitt Romney, running on family values. These guys should be talking about it.
O'REILLY: They ought to get behind it.
All right, ladies. Thanks very much. We appreciate it.
From the February 20 broadcast of The O'Reilly Factor:
O'REILLY: The issue of child rape is extremely complicated. Each situation's different. When the Shawn Hornbeck case broke, many pinheads in the media ran out screaming "Stockholm syndrome." That is the captive identifies with the captor. That's just bull. And anyone who said that's irresponsible.
What happened to Shawn Hornbeck and thousands of other kids is called child sexual abuse accommodation syndrome. That is, the child is literally tortured into accepting his circumstance. This is so evil, it's almost beyond comprehension. The guy who did this to Shawn Hornbeck, Michael Devlin, doesn't deserve to live another day in this world. That's how evil the man is.
"Talking Points" is not going to report specifics about the Devlin case. I'm going leave that to the authorities. But everybody should know this is beyond horrifying. And no rehab should ever be in play.
The bottom line is that every American must understand child molestation is evil, not a disease, not an aberration. It's evil, and it must be punished as harshly as possible. I hope you watch the Oprah program tomorrow. And we'll discuss it later on that night on the Factor. OK? Right here tomorrow evening. And that's the "Memo."
* A review of Fox News transcripts in the Nexis database for terms "show: (O'Reilly Factor) and Hornbeck or Devlin" yielded these results.
It would be nice to say that Bill O'Reilly has grown to understand how rong his previous comments were. However, in BiilloWorld his previous comments did not happen. Every day is a new day; every show is a new show; yesterday's show is gone, it doesn't exist.
rong=wrong...sorry.
I'm sure he won't remember them, even if pointed to them on this site...
Oh come on I am sure he was taken out of context. ;-)
And what about, too, his constant insistence that other people be held accountable for THEIR actions/comments. This, Im saying, while, at the same time, he never, ever gives a solitary inch. Textbook hypocrisy, me-buckos.
Oh Bill, it must suck knowing you are now about to be passed in the viewing audiance numbers by Ed Schultz!
I wish it was Ed Shultz during the mornings rather than Joe Scarborough at MSNBC. If Dan Abrams and MSNBC were smart they'll replace Scarborough with Shultz and fire Tucker Carlson, which will give Scarborough an open slot during the evenings. Sadly, I don't see that happening.
Ed Shultz during the mornings
Doing, I mean. My bad.
Pssst...Snoop...."viewing audience" on radio? :)
absolutely! It goes with the braille on drive through ATM's.
Ed Schultz? Wasn't he in the A-Team?
Be sure to read what Michael Devlin confided to the judge.
I would love to hear O'Reilly repeat his assertion that Shawn Hornbeck enjoyed this ordeal after having heard what Devlin devulged as part of his plea.
Doh! 'confided' isn't the term I was looking for.
BILLDO: These molesters are scum. We have to watch out for the sake of the children. What these monsters do is depraved and disgusting. It seems like this kid kinda liked it.
WTF?
After the boy, then 11, was abducted at gunpoint while riding his bike in rural Washington County, Devlin took him to his apartment in suburban St. Louis and repeatedly sexually assaulted him. Days later, Devlin took Shawn back to Washington County in his pickup truck, apparently intent on killing the boy.
He said he pulled Shawn from his truck and began to strangle him. Shawn resisted.
“I attempted to kill (Shawn) and he talked me out of it,” Devlin said Tuesday.
Devlin stopped the choking, but then sexually assaulted the boy again. Prosecutors say it was at that point that Shawn told Devlin he would do whatever was asked of him to stay alive.
It was a “devil’s bargain” that kept Shawn under Devlin’s sway, even as the boy had phone and Internet access, said Shawn’s stepfather, Craig Akers.
“We know now the details that made him not run away,” Akers said after the hearings.
That is so sad. It makes my blood boil just reading that. I’m not for the death penalty, but in this case, I would make an exception. And to think this monster did this to a poor innocent child for YEARS outrages me even more. Rotting in jail is not enough for me.
I'm sure he won't rot for long. I'd assume he'll be up for the Jeffrey Dahmer treatment.
How long until someone pops up to tell us that Billdo was only joking?
Wouldn't have thought it would be too long...
I'm sure our resident apologists will be along any time now.
Well, MMFA is just trying to "smear" him, ya know.
lufa boy is an evil man
he isnt misguided, or looking to up ratings...he is evil
he has pushed laws regarding sex offenders that cannot be upheld...im sorry, but jessica's law makes it an almost certainty that many molesters will reoffend...and it includes those that never molested a child in their lives
and his attack on hornbeck and his family was beyond the pale...and yet he just goes on as if he never said or did anything
he must be held accountable
I'm sure I could google something up, but what's BilldO's beef with Brian DePalma? I turned on the TV earlier, and flipping by Fox, I heard BO refer to DePalma as a "villain".Is he "on Notice"?
HBL, I noticed that tonight, too. I think we better brace ourselves for another one of O’Reilly’s successful “boycotts.” I think DePalma should listen to O’Reilly if he knows what’s good for ‘em! ;)
Apparently DePalma has made an anti-war film that shows the soldiers in a bad light (I believe one scene O'Reilly described was a solider terrorizing and raping civilians, of course he didn't see the movie and he's basing this on hear-say). Thus, DePalma is the new anti-American, anti-military lefty that's on O'Reilly's hit list.
De Palma's new film, Redacted, is based on the true story of the U.S. Army soldiers who raped a 14-year-old Iraqi girl and then slaughtered her family.
This is the Reuters blurb on the actual crime:"Abeer Qasim Hamza al-Janabi was gang raped, killed and burnt by American soldiers in Mahmudiya, south of Baghdad, in March 2006. Her parents and younger daughter were also killed. Five soldiers have since been charged with the attack. Four of them have been given sentences of between 5 and 110 years."
Thanks for that, CC. It’s funny because O’Reilly didn’t mention anywhere in his rant that the movie is based on a true story. If one took only O'Reilly's word, one would come away thinking that DePalma made this entire story up just to sell tickets and pander to the terrorists. I actually want to see the movie because DePalma is a good storyteller and film stylist. I’m a big fan of his past films (e.g., "Carrie," "Hi, Mom," "Sisters," "Scarface," "Blow Out," etc.), and I’m sure this one will be quite interesting.
Thanks, Preston & Clams. I should have guessed that the latest villain is somebody who's blatantly trafficking in reality.That really pisses BilldO off.
Umm maybe he was reporting on this:
http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/01/15/missouri.boys/index.html
[quote]
Bill Romer, Devlin's landlord, said the suspect had identified Shawn as his son and listed him as a second occupant in the unit.
"I don't know what I would have or could have done differently," he said. If he had run a background check on Devlin, it would have only shown traffic violations.
Romer said other residents also believed the story. "They actually said, 'You look exactly like Shawn Hornbeck.' Shawn blew it off and said, 'Whatever.' It is all really strange," he said.
Psychologists who study kidnappings say abductors sometimes convince children that they are their real parents or that their real parents aren't coming for them.
[/quote]
Or maybe you people are all really smart and O'Reilly is the devil.
Pathetic.
I'm unclear as to the point you're trying to make referencing an 8-month-old article, but I really think you need to get up to date:
After the boy, then 11, was abducted at gunpoint while riding his bike in rural Washington County, Devlin took him to his apartment in suburban St. Louis and repeatedly sexually assaulted him. Days later, Devlin took Shawn back to Washington County in his pickup truck, apparently intent on killing the boy.
He said he pulled Shawn from his truck and began to strangle him. Shawn resisted.
“I attempted to kill (Shawn) and he talked me out of it,” Devlin said Tuesday.
Devlin stopped the choking, but then sexually assaulted the boy again. Prosecutors say it was at that point that Shawn told Devlin he would do whatever was asked of him to stay alive.
It was a “devil’s bargain” that kept Shawn under Devlin’s sway, even as the boy had phone and Internet access, said Shawn’s stepfather, Craig Akers.
“We know now the details that made him not run away,” Akers said after the hearings.
The bottom line is that O'Reilly incompetently attempted to psychoanalyze Hornbeck from his news desk and blame the victim when many details of the case were still unknown. Now that we have the information that Devlin divulged to the judge (above) as part of his plea deal, it turns out O'Reilly is an even bigger idiot than previously thought.
Devil, indeed.
I have to agree, Pete. I'm trying to figure out the point Ashley is attempting to make in her post. Is she suggesting that O'Reilly had a valid point that Shawn ENJOYED being held captive because he had a lip ring and played video games all day?
The pathetic thing, Ashley, is that you appear to have literally no clue about the facts of this case, as they relate to O'Reilly's statements.
Bill's comments about the Shawn Hornbeck kidnapping case cost Bill a paid speaking engagement. Also, it can cost the lost of an advertiser, right Bill!
This worthless media hack continues to put his foot in his mouth, drawing the ire of viewers.
Soon, Bossman Murdock will tire of Bill's antics and not renew his contract.
What Bill said about Shawn Hornbeck was nothing short of horrific. He should of apologized back then and he should now. The problem is the FOX machine loves to turn these things he says around, blame the main stream media.
Subject: "the boys have been through enough" Sent: Thu 10/11/07 11:54 AM To: oreilly@foxnews.com "I'm not going to name the boys, because the boys have been through enough." --Bill O'Reilly, October 8 Thanks for being such a stand up guy, Bill. Thanks for looking out for the kids. Oh, wait: "The situation here for this kid looks to me to be a lot more fun than what he had under his old parents." --Bill O'Reilly, January 15 You should apologize, Bill. Plain and simple. It's not too late to make right, but if you refuse to apologize, the very least you could do is pray that the poor kid does not listen to your show. What you said on January 15th is FAR more damaging than anything the FCC takes issue with.
Someone please explain this to me...O'rielly is lways screaming about the justice system is so great, except when the results are'nt ones he agrees with... ie, OJ< Michael Jackson, Robert Blake, Phil Spector....Yet, all these men were accused, went to trial, and found not guilty. Bill is accused of sexually harassing a co worker, says he didnt do it, then settles days later, then says he will never talk about it again!! Wow, you love the justice system, why didnt you have your day in court, Billy??
MMFA is a disgrace. You cannot even understand that the facts of the prior case made a distinctive difference.
You're going to have to explain yourself in more than the two sentences you have here. You leave too much room for interpretation.
You are a moron and NEVER know what you are talking about.
"I don't think life in prison is enough for this guy. I wouldn't execute him. But there's got to be a hard-labor component."
It's odd that Bill wouldn't execute a sexual predator of children, but would kill smear merchants if he could get away with it.
To back-up my previous statement.
http://mediamatters.org/items/200709270017
I do not support the Death Penalty but this Devlin guy would be one that deserves it .
I would agree. I'm not really for the death penalty, but there are times when I read about some psychopaths that I think they are just too dangerous to be left on this Earth.
How about MMfA sticks to the issues...right or wrong, this article is meant to be a smear, and does nothing for MMfA's credibility.
What exactly is the smear? And as everyone knows I am always questioning MMFA motives, but I see no issue with this thread .
right or wrong, this article is meant to be a smear, and does nothing for MMfA's credibility.
I hope you were being sarcastic with this post, Dex.
No, I believe Dexteritis is in with the LeatherHelmet and Tommy crowd.
I gotta disagree, Dex. O'Reilly has now been shown the light and knows he was wrong. He has suddenly become an advocate for the victims when he clearly criticized at least one them back when he didn't know squat about the case.
O'Reilly needs to fess up and admit he was wrong. But he prefers to play dumb hoping no one will notice.
I don't see how quoting O'Reilly's own contradictory statements is a smear. He's the one who made them, and he's the one who is blatantly ignoring his own vow to retract/apologize for his original statement.
Why is it a "smear" to look at both of Bill O's assessments of this case? Bill closed his January 15 show stating, "if I'm wrong" [that the kid liked being kidnapped] then he would "play this tape". Can he smear himself?
I cant wait for the Book .. I hope it's honest and forthcoming so that all the questions I personally have regarding this case can be answered ..
I STILL think theres ALOT more to this then we the public are hearing ..