Despite claim that “context matters,” Beck played heavily edited Sherrod clip on radio

Written by Christine Schwen

Published

On Fox, Glenn Beck said that because he didn't have the “full context” of the clip of Shirley Sherrod speaking to the NAACP, “this is something that I wouldn't air and demand a resignation on.” However, earlier that day on his radio show, Beck played the clip and suggested it indicated that America has “transported into 1956 except it's the other way around.”

Beck only discovered that “context matters” after his radio show

Beck on 5 p.m. Fox show: “Based on the facts that we have right now, this is something that I wouldn't air and demand a resignation on.” On the July 20 edition of his Fox News show, Beck said:

BECK: Here's my take on Shirley Sherrod: I don't think Shirley should have been fired -- or, I'm sorry, forced to resign. Based on the facts that we have right now, this is something that I wouldn't air and demand a resignation on. No, I wouldn't. Why? You know when we did Van Jones and we had all those clips of Van Jones, do you know how many audio pieces we have that we could've run, but we couldn't get the full context of the speech? Context matters.

But on 9 a.m. radio show, Beck played heavily-edited clip and attacked Sherrod. On the July 20 edition of his radio show, Beck says that they “have video tape of a USDA administration official discriminating against white farmers.” He then asked, “Have we suddenly transported into 1956 except it's the other way around? ... Does anybody else have a sense that there are some that just want revenge? Doesn't it feel that way?” After playing the audio of the tape, Beck said, “You tell me what part of the gospel is teaching that.”