On April 23, Bill O’Reilly, in a bizarre rant worthy of the most paranoid of conspiracy theorists, devoted an entire segment to what he sees as a devious collaboration of progressive donors and nonprofit groups.
Referring to us as "the vile propaganda outfit Media Matters, which specializes in distorting comments made by politicians, pundits, and media people," O’Reilly placed Media Matters for America at the center of a sinister web of organizations out to "impose a radical left agenda on America," while failing to identify a single instance when Media Matters has distorted his words or those of others.
We certainly got his attention. And it isn’t just Bill O’Reilly. In just the past few weeks, Media Matters has been attacked by a veritable who’s who of right-wing media and political figures:
On the same day as O’Reilly’s attack, disgraced former House Majority Leader TOM DeLAY wrote in The Politico:
"George Soros, upset with the slight inroads conservatives have made recently, has funded an organization called Media Matters for America, led by liberal muckraker David Brock. Brock’s job is to serve as a constant rapid responder to any media report that fails to follow Soros’ Shadow Party agenda. Brock is there to crack the whip any time a ‘one of us’ liberal reporter steps out of line and to make sure reporters are instructed on how to take down any conservative leader or idea that starts gaining traction with the American people."
In fact, Soros has never given money to Media Matters, either directly or through another organization.
RUSH LIMBAUGH on April 16:
"I’ll tell you who’s out there doing all this monitoring, and then reporting things out of context, and that’s our old buddies at Media Matters for America."
"I’m not going to let the Democrat Party or the left or some lackey watchdog group or a couple of race hustlers dictate my speech."
"This is Stalinist, folks. This is an attack on certain kinds of information that is protected by a template which says, ‘All conservative information is misinformation.’ "
Nationally syndicated radio host NEAL BOORTZ said on his April 18 show:
"When the history of this event [the Virginia Tech shootings] is written ... we will have 25 students standing meekly waiting for this guy to execute them."
When his comments, which were accompanied by an instrumental version of the Pat Benatar song "Hit Me With Your Best Shot," appeared in The New York Times, Boortz said on April 20:
"[S]omebody out there feeds this, because I know damn well [Times reporter] Jacques Steinberg wasn't listening to The Neal Boortz Show. ... So my guess is Media Morons, I mean Media Matters. My guess is it was them. Because they specialize in disinformation."
On the April 13 broadcast of his nationally syndicated radio show, MICHAEL SAVAGE said of Media Matters:
"They’re people who attack me. It’s run by a homosexual activist who hates anybody in the media who does not kowtow to the homosexual agenda."
Referring to Media Matters’ CEO and President David Brock, Savage added,
"The man who runs it is, in my opinion, a straight-out maniac. He would belong much more happily in the ex-Soviet Union."
San Francisco radio host and frequent cable news guest MELANIE MORGAN compared Media Matters to the Virginia Tech killer in an April 20 column:
"Like that mentally unbalanced and angry gunman at Virginia Tech, they’ll methodically march through the domiciles of the conservative movement, targeting the movement’s leaders for career elimination."
Given the bizarre anger that Media Matters inspires from the far right, it’s clear we’re being effective. By identifying and refuting conservative misinformation and exposing the unending stream of ugliness and hatred that characterizes so much of the right-wing media, we’re making a difference in the national debate every day.
The likes of Bill O’Reilly, Rush Limbaugh, and Michael Savage sure sound like they’re afraid. They’re afraid of having their deceptions corrected, afraid of being exposed, and afraid of being held accountable. If they had their way, Media Matters would just disappear. That isn't going to happen!
That is why we thank you for your continued support. Thank you for coming to our site, for writing about us on your blogs, and continuing to fund our efforts.
As always, you can find more examples of conservative misinformation from Bill O'Reilly, Tom Delay, Rush Limbaugh, Neal Boortz, Michael Savage, Melanie Morgan, and many, many others on our website.