On January 26, a week after labeling Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) “a nut” and a day after denying he had done so, FOX News host Bill O'Reilly admitted that his denial was false. On his radio show, O'Reilly apologized to Boxer directly, though on TV he omitted the apology, admitting only that his denial a day earlier was erroneous. On the January 26 edition of FOX News' The O'Reilly Factor, O'Reilly explained, “I forgot that I indeed did apply that word to Senator Boxer, while analyzing her strategy, or lack thereof, to fight terrorism.” As Media Matters for America documented at the time, O'Reilly's January 19 “analysis” of Boxer's terrorism strategy was riddled with lies.

On January 25, when St. Louis Post-Dispatch columnist Sylvester Brown Jr. highlighted O'Reilly's remark about Boxer to bolster his point that O'Reilly's style of rhetoric had coarsened political discourse, O'Reilly declared, “That's not true. ... I do not call her a 'nut.' And, you know, we'll pull it [the clip], and we'll show that you're wrong.” Brown challenged O'Reilly: “I suggest you play your tape. You did call Barbara Boxer a ”nut" last week. ... It's your radio program."

During the "Most Ridiculous Item of the Day" segment of the January 26 O'Reilly Factor, O'Reilly admitted, "I was wrong, which makes me the 'Most Ridiculous Item of the Day,'" though his admission was mingled with heavy criticism of Brown:

O'REILLY: Last night on The Factor, a left-wing columnist for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Sylvester Brown, demonstrated his anti-FOX News bias to the nation right here.

While Mr. Brown is generally misguided, in my opinion, he did challenge at me at one point, saying that I had called Senator Barbara Boxer a “nut.” Now, I denied doing that, and I didn't on television. But on the radio -- uh oh -- I forgot that I indeed did apply that word to Senator Boxer, while analyzing her strategy, or lack thereof, to fight terrorism.

So Brown was right and I was wrong, which makes me the “Most Ridiculous Item of the Day.” I hate that.

On his radio show earlier that day, O'Reilly also admitted that he had in fact called Boxer “a nut.” Unlike on TV, he also said “I shouldn't have” made the remark and apologized to Boxer directly, though he punctuated his conciliatory remarks with even more hostile attacks on Brown and the “liberal press.”

From the January 26 broadcast of the nationally syndicated Radio Factor with Bill O'Reilly:

O'REILLY: If you saw The Factor last night -- that was a wild program on television. Had a guy named Sylvester Brown on who's a left wing columnist for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. And, Brown is like [Ted] Turner and like many in the liberal press in that; they hate the success of the FOX News Channel and The Radio Factor. I mean they just despise it.

And, the reason is because they disagree, a lot of times, with our political point of view. So, instead of debating the issues and trying to figure out why we're so successful and the other enterprises are failing, including the St. Louis Post-Dispatch -- its losing circulation and, I think, losing money -- They attack us in all kinds of varying ways.

Anyway, one of the attacks that Brown leveled against me on television last night was that I called Barbara Boxer a nut. And on television, I did not do that. But on radio I unfortunately did (laugh). And I shouldn't have! But I didn't remember. And I said [to Brown],“No I didn't. I'll bet you a dinner.” But thank God Brown didn't take me up on the bet, 'cause I'd have to have dinner with the guy, 'cause he was right and I was wrong.

Last week, on this program, on The Radio Factor, in analyzing Barbara Boxer's solutions to terrorism -- we went over them and I said she's a nut. And I shouldn't have. I should have said her solutions to the terror problem are nuts. So, Mr. Brown was right and I was wrong. And I hate that.

LIS WIEHL [co-host]: Oooh, I can see it!

O'REILLY: Yeah, I hate that.

WIEHL: But you're admitting it.

O'REILLY: I am! But, I have to -- I mean, Brown was right and O'Reilly was wrong. Now, I also called Brown a fraud, because he is. I mean, he didn't have anything worthwhile to say other than to attack the network and attack me.

I don't think Barbara Boxer's a nut. I do believe that she has, let's say, eccentric views on how to protect this country. How's that?

WIEHL: That's good. Very PC, yes.

O'REILLY: And I think she's dangerous, quite frankly. If she were running the country, I think we'd all be in great danger. But she's not a nut -- and to Senator Boxer I apologize. And see, Mr. Brown, you were right and I was wrong.