What it takes to make O’Reilly’s enemies list

December 1, 2005

Like a lot of people, I was a little curious about Bill O’Reilly’s highly-touted “enemies list.” The Fox News “personality” pledged to publish a list of media operations he considers “guttersnipes” and “smear merchants,” and given O’Reilly’s perceived adversaries, I assumed it’d be quite a directory of allegedly-liberal news outlets.

Alas, like so many mysteries, this turned out to be pretty anticlimactic. O’Reilly finally unveiled his list of news outlets that have “regularly helped distribute defamation and false information supplied by far left,” and it turned out to be … pretty short. There were a grand total of three: the New York Daily News, MSNBC, and The St. Petersburg Times.

That’s it. O’Reilly said he expects to add more “in the months to come,” but assured his fans that these three “are the worst offenders.”

There are any number of ways to approach such an odd list — O’Reilly couldn’t even be bothered to attack the New York Times or CBS? — but I had a different reaction. The St. Petersburg Times?

It’s not that the Times is a bad paper; it’s easily one of Florida’s best and most reliable news outlets. So how is it, exactly, that this mid-size paper has managed to infuriate Bill O’Reilly so much that he wants his legions to boycott it and its advertisers?

As it turns out, for O’Reilly, it’s personal.

“[O’Reilly] seems to have disliked our work for some time,” replied [Times Executive Editor Neil Brown]. He declined to say what specific work O’Reilly disliked, but several possible examples came up in a Google search.

For instance, Times columnist Eric Deggans — in a Sept. 14, 2005, piece — criticized O’Reilly for what Deggans felt were insensitive post-Hurricane Katrina comments about poor people in New Orleans.

“Deggans is a dishonest, racially motivated correspondent writing for perhaps the worst newspaper in the country,” O’Reilly responded on his Fox News program. “They don’t get more ridiculous than the St. Petersburg Times,” he said, calling it “the worst newspaper in the United States of America.”

In fact, the Times’ Deggans — who is African American, thus getting the “racially motivated” attack — was also pretty thorough in covering the sexual harassment case filed against O’Reilly by a female producer at Fox News.

So that’s what it takes to make O’Reilly’s enemies list. It’s not about liberal news, it’s about hurting O’Reilly’s feelings. I didn’t realize the guy had such delicate sensibilities.

One of the many things I enjoy about Stephanie Miller’s Air America show (6-9 am here on the Left Coast) is her constant ridiculing of Bill O’Reilly. Most of the ridicule comes by way of simply playing tapes of what he said the night before. It is truly hilarious.

  • I read elsewhere that the New York Daily news dropped his column. So that explains two of ’em. MSNBC is there probably because Olberman calls O’Reilly on his bullshit damn near daily now…

  • It is always personal with this asshole. He is simply a schoolyard bully in nice clothes hosting a television show. If you need evidence I think you can still hear his NPR interview with Terry Gross. Apparently, Terry was too aggressive for him, he couldn’t take it and walked off the show.

  • I think the St. Petersburg Times should consider it a badge of honor to be on this particular list.

    Why O’Reilly’s opinion is of interest to anyone is beyond me. All these guys – O’Reilly, Rush, Tucker Carlson – have such thin skins and such over-inflated egos. It’s surprising two of them can be in the same room at the same time (and if that room has only one mirror – watch out!). I’d compare them to a group of pre-school kids, but that would be an insult to the kids.

  • Re Yam’s comment, this from Olbermann’s show last night:

    “But first, time for COUNTDOWN‘s list of today‘s three nominees for the coveted title of “Worst Person in the World.”

    “The bronze goes to Bill O‘Reilly. He has solidified in his status as this generation Joe McCarthy. Just like the “Red Baiter,” he now has his own list. His Web site reads the following media operations have regularly helped distribute defamation and false information supplied by far left Web sites. The list, “The New York Daily News, “The St. Petersburg Times,” and MSNBC! You call it defamation, Bill. We call it precise quotes from your show.

    “The runner up. Bill O‘Reilly. On “The Today Show,” no less. Now how did that happen? Says, quote, “these pinheads running around going, get out of Iraq now, don‘t know what they‘re talking about. These are the same people before Hitler invaded in World War II that were saying, he‘s not such a bad guy.” Watch. That will turn up tomorrow on his list of defamations.

    “But tonight‘s winner, Bill O‘Reilly! You know this whole attack on Christmas nonsense that he made up? Some sort of fantasy in which the liberals are coming to your town to force you and your family to not call it Christmas anymore? The fantasy that we can‘t say Merry Christmas, but you can only say Happy Holidays? The thing designed to stir up religious hatred and paranoia in this country? Guess what they‘re selling over at the FOX News online store? The FOX News holidays ornament? And the O‘Reilly Factor Holiday ornament. Who is trying to change Merry Christmas into Happy Holidays? Bill O‘Reilly, that‘s who. Today‘s worst person in the world!”

  • Ya know it doesn’t surprise me that this is personal hit-list and not related to politics. O’Reilly has always struck me as someone who could dish it out but not take it, someone who takes everything personally, and in general a petty little man.

  • O’Reilly is rapidly turning into a public joke; particularly as he flails about like a caricature trying to reverse his fortunes.

    I really hope we’re beginning to witness some sort of very public mental meltdown on his part; for if anyone ever truly deserved to have their mental meltdown put on display, it would be Bill O’Reilly.

  • As a Tampa Bay area lifelong resident, I am continually amazed at the right wing reactions to the St Pete Times. In my opinion, it is a pretty conservative paper. but compared to the rag published here in Tampa (the Tribune), it does lean left.
    Actually, I am amazed that MediaMatters.org didn’t make the hit list. O’Reilly has spewed (figuratively, and probably literally) just about every invective possible against this site, whenever it calls him on his idiocy.
    But, hey, I think that Al Franken is actually a smart guy, so what do I know?

  • Only in America can a sexually deviant, mysoginistic, racist, loufa abusing jerk continue to work a lucrative tv job. Go ahead, put me on your list, O’Wrongly.

  • I am amazed that MediaMatters.org didn’t make the hit list. – Buzzmon

    Kim Jung Bill doesn’t want to be kicking any red ant beds. The initial announcement from poo poo head generated a tsunami of scorn and insult and applications to be included on The List from posters and commentors across the blogosphere. If he picks a blog, (or two), of note or Air America, the shitstorm of derision will blow him away.

    Let’s all hope he feels a strong need to prove his manhood. Make our day Bill.

  • It’s amazing the brazenness of this clown. After all, here’s a guy who sexually harassed a female subordinate while masturbating over the phone talking about loofahs (or falafels, apparently he thinks they’re synonyms). And everybody knows it. How can he even show his face in public, much less attack others for ANY reason? And why doesn’t every guest on his show just repeat, like the previous poster’s mantra, “loofah loofah loofah” until his pinhead explodes?

  • Why O’Reilly’s opinion is of interest to anyone is beyond me.

    I grew up in a largely blue collar (steel and coal) area. You could find people like O’Reilly in every bar, gas station, and supermarket and at most family dinning tables in the area. These people cultivated an audience by playing to prejudices and a sense of being wronged by powers beyond their control. In the 70’s one these characters made it to television in the form of Archie Bunker. I think the success of “All in the Family” was not just due to progressives who loved to hate Archie. There were also those who sided with him when he called Mike a meathead. These are the same people that watch and agree with O’Reilly.

    There you have it O’Reilly the Archie Bunker for the new millennium.

    PS. Ed it’s good to see you’re back.

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