To say Mr OReilly has had it in for me the last month or so would be an understatement. Every day he seemed to take pride in calling me every name in the book and questioning my patriotism. I've already covered my feelings on that subject in blog posts here and here. I've talked about what I, or anyone can do to serve their country here.
What I was curious about was whether this really was important to Mr OReilly, or whether he was just a ratings whore and would say whatever he needed to say to get more people to watch.
I needed to design a very simple test to determine Mr OReilly's motivation. It occured to me to see if FoxNews would take an ad for the movie Redacted.
I had someone call FoxNews and tell them specifically, unequivocally that we wanted to run an ad for the movie Redacted. The same movie Bill OReilly was so upset about.
They said no problem. Do you want to run the ads in both the live show and the repeat ?
Our first reaction was that this was just the sales department and at some point , someone at FoxNews would step in and stop the ads from running. The call to say they were stopping the ads never came.
The ad ran in both shows. Here is a link with Bill's smiling face at the end.
So Mr OReilly , the king of the OReilly Factor, the man who called this movie Anti American and said erroneously it could cause harm to American Troops, was willing to overlook those points and take our money to promote the movie.
We aren't talking about an ad in a show that Mr OReilly has an interest in. This is an ad in the TV show that bears his name. This is a show that he controls from top to bottom. He knowingly took multiple ads for a movie that he he hasnt seen, but believes to be vile. What does that say about Mr OReilly
Of course Mr OReilly can make the argument that he is not involved in the sale of ads, he leaves that to other people. OK, but lets think about the scenario at Fox News if that is the case.
If Mr OReilly doesnt know about the ads, I would think that the people at his show would know and care about his positions, wouldnt you ?" So the question is, do they know that Mr OReilly is all about the money first , last and every bit in between and thats why they took the ad ?
Or is it that they know exactly what Mr OReilly stands for and hate him for it, or could care less what he thinks and they took the ad to spite him ?
Is it that no one involved with Mr OReilly actually watches the show ? Which is why after the ad ran in the live show, no one caught it and had it replaced in the replay ?
its about responsibility Mr OReilly.
And while Im on the subject of Mr OReilly and his ethics, let me add a couple thoughts:
In response to Mr OReilly's comments that "he is going to be my worst nightmare". Well you have succeeded Mr OReilly. The people who take you literally took it upon themselves to call my businesses with bomb threats, threaten employees, myself and others with physical harm and wish every manor of death , injury and illness on us all. They also managed to fill up the telephone lines of the Fallen Patriot Fund so that we couldn't conduct business, and maybe its coincidence, but the fund's website went offline for the first time ever yesterday.
What say you Mr OReilly
Bill OReilly - Principle vs Money ?
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Reader Comments
(Page 2)22. Way to go Mark! Keep sticking it to that fascist O'Reilly. He is a charlatan, a bigot and a sexual harasser.
Posted at 7:41PM on Nov 20th 2007 by Dan B
23. Bill O'reilly is a joke and deserves to be drug into the street and beaten. Anyone who actually believes all the crap that comes out of his mouth is as bad as he is and does not deserve to breathe the air that normal humans breath. Fuck Bill O'reilly and fuck all Bill O'reilly fans.
Posted at 7:57PM on Nov 20th 2007 by matt Stevens
24. Why would someone say Mark Cuban "deserved it" or "asked for it?" The Vast Right Wing Conspiracy (yes, there is one) is doing its best to destroy it but this is still the United States of America, folks, and Mark Cuban is a citizen. He's got a right to say damn near anything. I haven't seen Redacted, either, but I plan to this weekend.
Thanks, Mark, keep up the good work.
Posted at 10:23PM on Nov 20th 2007 by J Smith
25. Mark, keep up the good fight.
BillO and his minions are losing. BillO is desperate and unhinged. His time on the American scene is coming to an end. Fifty years from now, very few will remember, much less care, about any of the things he pretends to stand for.
Posted at 11:31PM on Nov 20th 2007 by BriH
26. First of all, it is shocking that someone whose intellectual abilities are as transparently weak as your own could ever gather as much money as you. Evidently, business can be a real crap shoot, with buffoons such as yourself occasionally cashing in.
Second, the movie you are promiting is idiotic. Like so many other left kooks, the hate that you have for the administration leads you to believe that ANYTHING critical of the administration is true. A corollary is your evident belief that any characterization of such critiques as irresponsible or silly is based on brainwashing or censorship.
In short, your cause celebre is just dumb. But that doesn't surprise in view of your blog.
Posted at 3:59AM on Nov 21st 2007 by Drew
27. "He knowingly took multiple ads for a movie that he he hasnt seen, but believes to be vile. What does that say about Mr OReilly"
Maybe it says that Mr. O'Reilly and Fox News really do try to be "Fair and Balanced".
I don't believe you're a vile man, Mr. Cuban, and NO ONE deserves to be threatened as you and your family has, but I do have to question your timing of this movie while our brothers and sisters are in harm's way. When it comes to principle vs money, it's clear where you stand.
Posted at 8:03AM on Nov 21st 2007 by Cindy
28. Mr. Cuban,
Let's see. How does it go? "We support the troops. We think their leaders are evil and stupid liars. We think their mission is immoral. We think they behave like criminals and barbarians on the battlefield. We don't pay them enough. We don't think they are as smart as we are because they enlisted. We don't provide them with equipment that they need. They must have no other prospects, otherwise they would not be in the military. We 'redact' the truth that will inflame their enemies. But remember we support them!" Just who is redacting the truth?
If you want to know the facts, go see our military in action. You don't even have to go into a war zone. You and your dance partner can visit a military base with a USO show, or you can give basketball tickets to young enlisted. Or you can buy everyone body armor.
By the way, the incident upon which your movie was based was discovered, investigated, and made public by the military. The criminals are in jail.
Maybe we should hold our military to the high standards of morality to which you hold your basketball team. Nevermind.
We have the best performing and best behaved military in the history of the world. Let us set up a scenario: If you were in any village in any part of the world and you observed a group of armed men approaching the village, what do you think the villagers response would be? Next, take the same situation and put the American flag on the shoulders of the group of armed men. Would the villagers' response be different? I think it would.
Consider the damage you have done. Consider how you can undo the damage. I am tired of people who undercut my efforts at protecting the very freedoms they take for granted!
Would you go on Mr. O'Reilly's program?
Respectfully Submitted,
Lt. Col. Slider, USMC (retired)
"Semper Fi"
Posted at 12:35PM on Nov 21st 2007 by Lt. Col. John W. Slider, USMC (retired)
29. Because you have the means to do just about anything, sometimes you have to consider the affects of what you doing. America is a great country which are military protects. I have been in the military and still have friend in the military, why would you allow your money to be used making such a negative movie about Our troops in Iraq? Shame on you!!!!!!!! You should be greatful you have the opportunity and means to change things. Please use you abilities to help rather than hurt. People in the military are only trying to do their jobs so people like you can have the freedom to enjoy your sucess.
Posted at 12:51PM on Nov 21st 2007 by Will
30. Is it just me or is the blog getting brutal. I used to enjoy this blog because it discussed business, entrepreneurship (sp?), other interesting topics of that nature.
Between the childish feud with Trump and now Cuban's foray into the movie business this blog is almost unreadable. As for the threats to your businesses and other responses to your movie, that is what happens when you get into politics on either side of the issue. That is not O'Reilly's fault, that is just what comes with the territory. People are very passionate about this topic. It would be like opening a bar and then complaining about dealing with drunks.
Movie making used to be about entertainment. I wake up in the morning and read the newspaper and watch the news and get bombarded with Iraq and the war on terrorism (I don't have a problem with that, that's why I watch news, to be informed). I go to work and bust my ass for 8 - 10 hours a day so I can pay my bills. I get home and deal with other issues we all face like car payments, water bills, broken furnaces and on and on.
If I want to watch politics I will turn on CNN, Foxnews or the like. When I go to a movie I want to be entertained. I want a 2 hour escape from the real world and the b.s. that I face day in and day out. This movie may be delivering a powerful message but I just don't think this is the best avenue to get it out.
Just my opinion.
Posted at 1:05PM on Nov 21st 2007 by Adam
31. im not an american but know the place quite well and i regulary watch fox news , i guess i must have some twisted fetish in that i enjoy being enraged , i know america is a big place and where there is a big population , there is a market for almost everything but i cannot for the life of me understand how many americans actually beleive what they hear on fox news , it is so clearly a propoganda machine for the republican party from beginning to end , that it is owned by rupert murdoch should be itself enough reason to not trust it , the guy has never been about anything but money and i believe the reason he and in turn fox support the repubicans is down to one thing , the republicans are the party most likely to reward the super duper rich like good ol aussie rupert , i believe if a party run by satanists were to form a party that reduced taxes for someone of murdochs wealth , then we would quickly see lucifer declared an american hero on fox
the whole operation at fox is one big phoney showpiece and o reilly is the high priest of insincerity , the man is a charlatan of epic proportions , while he demonises the likes of mark cuban as being someone who puts american troops in danger , it is o reilly and his water carriers for the bush adminisration who drummed up support for this war of choice who have done exactly what o reilly accuses mark cuban of having done , put american troops in danger
i could cite numerous examples of fox news and o reillys blatant dishonesty and parisanship but as it is well documented and my post is already getting too long , i wont , as i said in the begining of my post , america is a big place and there is bound to be a customer for all sorts of ideas but if the majority of americans were ever to take there world view from fox news , then that would be a scary day for us all
Posted at 1:15PM on Nov 21st 2007 by irish bob
32. I came to this site from True Hoop reading about your ideas on D Harris and All Star voting. Then I saw the Bill O link and decided to read it. I was not surprised or anything when I read about the situation and the hypocritical advertising dollars to morals and principles denouement, but what did surprise me was the first post associated with your post.
That someone would get on your site and write about your children sickens me. I am literally repulsed by such spiteful ignorance. It was a letter of vengeance for some perceived disconnect between your situation and her own, which she assumed to be of superior vantage and integrity. Anyone with a modicum of self reflection should pause after a rant of vitriol like that and be stunned by the intensity of the sentiment, as if to realize “geez, what about his writing and stance and life makes me feel so attacked and threatened (insecure) that this aggression was required”
to the second poster:
“From my experience in TV, it's entirely possible--and likely-- that he or his staff have no knowledge of what ads will be run in the breaks of his show--live or replay.”
First off, this is flat out wrong. On a show as politically ambitious and paranoid as Bill’s, there is a great (strategic) awareness of the content of advertising. This is not just some show with a paid host, like an American Idol. Bill has a great deal of responsibility for the content of his show, dwarfed only perhaps by the wishes of those at the very top of the food chain.
If Bill were hooked up to a polygraph, he wouldn't be lying if asked if he thought your movie could hurt America or our troops.
Just because it is possible to conceive of a warped reality in complicated and paranoid abstract attacks on certain demographic situations, and to improperly conceptualize from that flawed sense of context what is ultimately in the best interest of America, does not mean the man is simply trying to do good. The root of his nature is more complex than that. It’s not as if Bill is some priest in quiet contemplation of peace or unity. Following that line of reasoning, his delusions about what should constitute morality and decency in America are the result of a fictitious notion that forms of entertainment (which make money), are proof of a lack of some fundamental good that America previously possessed but is in possession of no longer. Bill is not trying to do good, he is trying to broaden the reach of his interests and the (in my opinion largely poisoned) positions he champions and which reflect a minority view of all people.
Posted at 5:13PM on Nov 21st 2007 by Thomas Whigham
33. How ironic that you, Mr. Mark Cuban, would question principle vs. money! Is not the sole reason for making an anti-American movie and using the new ad techniques to make a profit? You placed the viewpoint of the director and yourself over the importance of glorifying our soldiers for your quick buck. What say you, Mr. Mark Cuban?
Posted at 9:18PM on Nov 21st 2007 by Jennifer
34. I can't believe that people are excusing the threats against Mr. Cuban and his interests. I thought you loyal Bill-O watchers were "good Christians." And of course, you all make the claim that this movie "hurts the troops," as if it was so blatantly obvious as to not require any sort of justification. Thanks Bill, but no thanks, go back to talking dirty to your co-workers instead of trying to censor films. Anybody who seriously watches his show needs to remember that he's a sex offender and a repeat liar. Good wholesome Christian values.
Posted at 3:17PM on Nov 22nd 2007 by MS
35. Hollywood is constipated for lots of reasons. Self-censorship. The city is filled with war-hawks (compare war movies with peace movies). With US military footage usually comes the censorship of the US military. Hollywood has never been a merit-based industry full of made-men and they are threatened by the self-made.
Redacted fills a much needed void in popular culture.
Thank You !
Posted at 6:01PM on Nov 23rd 2007 by Leonard Haggstrom
36. oops. copy/paste error. I meant to say,
Hollywood has never been a merit-based industry in fact, it is full of made-men and they are threatened by the self-made.
and I'll add that Bill O'Reilly is a war-hawk and according to some definitions, a war-criminal for his incite-ful lies. The only way to keep a loud-mouthed war-hawk bully like Bill-O in check, is to hold up a mirror and show everyone the reality on the ground.
Thanks (again) for that !!
Posted at 6:09PM on Nov 23rd 2007 by Leonard Haggstrom
37. Mr. O'Reilly has been prostituting himself for the television dollar for quite some time now. He magically turns insulting comments into gold bricks. And like all other jerks, he probably doesn't believe he's at all responsible for the threats made to your staff. Mark, do me a favor, just buy FOX and send O'Reilly packing with all the other trash!
38. Mr. Cuban, better yet, Jerk! When your little basket ball team comes up to Minnesota which I will admit is not a good team, please join your players court side so I can come down to your seat and spit in your face for being such a disgrace to our country. I wish I could tape you on one of the guided missles that my younger brother shoots off from his F-18 jet, protecting our country, and your fricken ego.
Posted at 10:27PM on Nov 25th 2007 by Murray
39. O'Reilly is a talking head. If you think for one minute he would refuse money to oust Cuban's film which technically represents nothing more than freedom of speech, when it is in the best interests of the people making money off this war and waging it to keep America one sided....think again.
You guys crack me up. Cuban, I admire you, but sometimes I wish you would just flat out tell these people that the government and bankers own public tv and that the erosion of the constitution has taken place. O'Reilly takes orders and defines the line of liberalism. That line is slowly receding and with that, so is America.
Watch O Reilly and call Cuban with a bomb threat. Might that say something about the people that Watch O Reilly?
God Bless the Talking Heads and all who pay their salaries- oh yeah and America.
Posted at 12:11AM on Nov 26th 2007 by Clayton Silva
40. We should thank Cuban, because Cuban has balls. Cuban takes his criticism like a man. Any one of you would snap in half like a twig with what Cuban defends. If any of you jack offs had any idea what America was, you'd realize he's trying to defend your freedom and tax dollars. Take this approach on your blog Cuban, defend yourself in this way, and I guarantee you'll convert the catatonics posting death threats.
Cuban, I am going to be just like you, and I'm going to fund 10x as many projects on stopping mass ignorance.
If you wanna talk about it email me at pricelessproperty@gmail.com
I know it's easy to get caught up in belly of the beast...but I think you can turn this into opportunity and understanding. It's not your fault America is conditioned to blindly follow.
Posted at 12:20AM on Nov 26th 2007 by Clayton Silva
21. When I heard about the ad all I could think was that it was a brilliant maneuver.
It's also an experiment that in a broader sense reveals quite a bit about the state of media and how to speak the language of anyone involved with (or controlled by) a conglom.
"By holding out advantages to him, he can cause the enemy to approach of his own accord"
Classic. The op. for defeating an enemy is always provided by the enemy himself. Or so I've heard.
Posted at 6:54PM on Nov 20th 2007 by j