NPR 'ref' sides with O'Reilly in 'Air' battleBecause he knows he'll get an apology from you wimps after he slammed the phone down because he didn't like the questions. Boo-freaking-hoo.
The ombudsman for National Public Radio agrees with Bill O'Reilly that Terry Gross was "carrying Al Franken's water" when she interviewed O'Reilly Oct. 9 on "Fresh Air."
O'Reilly eventually hung up on the interview, charging that Gross was using it not to discuss O'Reilly's new book but to pelt him with charges from the liberal Franken, a frequent O'Reilly antagonist.
NPR ombudsman Jeffrey A. Dvorkin noted NPR received a number of listener responses, many agreeing with O'Reilly. Dvorkin himself found some fault with the conduct of both participants.
"Although O'Reilly frequently resorts to bluster and bullying on his own show," said Dvorkin, "he seemed unable to take her tough questions." But he laid most of the blame on Gross. She is "one of the best interviewers anywhere in American journalism," Dvorkin said, but this one failed.
"I believe listeners were not well served by this interview," he said. "It may have illustrated the 'cultural wars,' [but it] only served to confirm the belief, held by some, in NPR's liberal bias."
He particularly faulted Gross for reading a critical quote after O'Reilly had left. "That was wrong," Dvorkin said. "It's known in broadcasting as the 'empty chair' interview, and it is considered an unethical technique and should not be used on NPR."
Dvorkin also confessed he's puzzled by a larger question.
"O'Reilly often loves to use NPR as his personal political pinata, and NPR keeps helping him by inviting him to appear."
Why are they scared of the liberal label? Does NPR think for one second that anyone outside of their liberal listener base will donate a stinkin' nickel to their network? Way to stand by your folks, Mr. Dvorkin. Now quit and go work for Fox News if that's what you're gunning for. Send him a job referral:
National Public Radio
635 Massachusetts Avenue N.W.,
Washington, D.C. 20001
