CNN’s Soledad O’Brien just loves hate group leader Tony Perkins.
Or at least that’s how it would seem, judging by her Twitter banter with him after an appearance on her show last week. Blogger Matt Algren has the details and the screen captures:
Awfully friendly, aren’t we, Soledad? Rather disturbing, if you ask me. Also, I’d really like to know why she pooh-poohed Algren for calling her out on her dangerously irresponsible reporting.
As Matt points out, I can’t think of a more timely illustration of the problem with the media’s stubborn insistence on portraying issues of LGBT rights as having two equally legitimate “sides,” and their willingness to seek the opinion of anti-gay hate groups in the pursuit of that false equivalency. The networks wouldn’t dare consult David Duke in order to appear “balanced” on African-American civil rights or include Matt Hale in a panel discussion on anti-Semitism, but apparently, even the vilest of anti-LGBT bigots are still entitled to a television platform for the spreading of their dangerous views.
Many thanks to Faithful America for its campaign calling on MSNBC to drop Perkins as a contributor. Thanks also to GLAAD for launching its Commentator Accountability Project in order to educate the media about the extremist rhetoric and history of hate behind TV’s anti-LGBT talking heads. As GLAAD’s Herndon Graddick said, “Hate is not an expert opinion.”
We couldn’t agree more. The media must stop legitimizing extremists and hate groups in the name of a false “balance” on basic LGBT rights.
You might also want to credit Algren & his blog for the story and screen capture shown above.
http://blog.mattalgren.com/2012/03/cnns-soledad-obrien-proves-the-need-for-glaads-new-commentator-accountability-project/#.T2oJdxEgcZm
Sorry. . . oversight on my part.
Thanks, C.J.! As you saw, that was in there from the start ;-) Would never cite someone’s work or use an image they obtained without giving proper credit. We even do hat tips (h/t) whenever another blogger alerts us to a particular story! Courtesy and accuracy are important to us.
Time to get back on Twitter, apparently.
And yet this is the same Tony Perkins who rails incessantly about the “gay friendly media.” Yah, right.
As for “anti-gay” or “hate” or “homophobic” — oh, such weak terms for a man who wants to expel us from the nation, presumably denying us our citizenship and our right of return, or our incarceration for the rest of our natural lives, or our forced conversions like we were Medieval Jews in Torquemada’s Spain, or even our extermination if those don’t work to rid us from this land. How ’bout “The genocidal lunacy of Tony Perkins…”?
CNN’s coverage is more suspect all the time. On the north side of your border, Croc tv made a point of carrying CNN feed of this:
http://www.cnn.com/video/?hpt=hp_c3#/video/bestoftv/2012/03/20/pkg-moos-hockey-girls-proposal.cnn
Pay careful attention to the language used in trying to describe the situation of shirts….
Comment made here on Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/SoledadOBrienCNN
When Soledad O’Brien interviews the gay-bashing hate group leader Tony Perkins, as though his form of gay-bashing lies, calumnies and defamation were acceptable, she is empowering Perkins to continue hate-mongering against innocent gay human beings all over the country. When you are an accessory to deliberate lies and hatred spread against a minority, then you bear some of the responsibility for the results of the anti-minority hatred and lies that you are helping to spread. Hate speech lies are not an acceptable part of news reporting or news broadcasting. When are you going to do an in-depth report of Tony Perkins’s documentable falsehoods told against gay human beings. Huhn? When? The blood of gay-bashing victims is dripping off of your fingers, Soledad O’Brien.
What else would one expect from Roland Martin’s best friend at CNN. Two peas in a pod
as david Boise has said Over and Over – put Perkins on the stand under Oath – and see his LIES fade away!
I wonder if she realizes Tony is pals with people like David Duke and other KKK folks who think she’s subhuman because she’s black and would have saw to it that her marriage to her husband never would have happened.
I was thinking the same thing Kevin. She’s a woman with a ‘Spanish’ first name. Does she really thing the right-wingers would give her the time of day if she weren’t carrying water for them?!
I’m not at all certain that Tony Perkins wouldn’t lie under Oath.