May we actually see Glenn Beck removed from airwaves?

According to Alternet.org, it seems Glenn Beck's television show has gone nearly a week with not a single advertiser. They've apparently been running weather reports during regularly scheduled commercial spots. While this is great news for all, especially for brainwashed listeners of his vitriolic soothsaying, two things are unclear; will Fox actually remove Beck's show from it's UK lineup or keep him on the air at a loss, simply to further their corporate agenda; and will all of Beck's stateside advertisers be shamed into standing against the show as they were overseas.

While sites like StopBeck.com keep a running tally of the advertisers that have jumped ship and the ones still remaining, I don't expect the battle to be as easily won here in the US. For one thing, I listen to Beck's radio show and pay attention to who advertises (specifically so that I can avoid them), and there are several advertisers who blatantly side with Beck. Even going so far as to say they will stand by Beck during their 30 second radio spot. Think about that...these folks are paying money to advertise during Beck's show, they get about 20-30 seconds to sell their product or get their message across and they are using some of that time to shill for Beck!

While the fight to encourage advertisers to distance themselves from right-wing propaganda shows like Beck's will not be short or easy, there are still plenty of ways to help. You can start by signing the petition at ColorOfChange.org (the folks that started the campaign against Beck that has led to over 90 sponsors disassociating themselves with the vile program. But more than anything else...talk about it. Write about it. Make people aware. Question people when they say they are a Beck follower.

I often get asked why I bother, when the types of people who follow Beck will never change their minds and I, and the sources I cite, are often criticized for being "just the same" with a opposing view (i.e. O'Reilly vs Olbermann). My answer to those naysayers would be to raise awareness, just like you would for any other good cause; from women's rights to seat belt & helmet laws. But I think I'll reword a passage by Richard Dawkins from the Prelude to the paperback version of The God Delusion to best sum it up. -- When two opposite points of view are expressed with equal force, the truth does not necessarily lie midway between them. It is possible for one side to be simply wrong. And that justifies passion on the other side. It is all too easy to mistake passion that can change it's mind for fundamentalism, which never will. Beck is passionate, as are his fans. But Beck is also an infamous liar and has proven himself a historical ignoramus; there is vast amounts of evidence to prove so. It is for these reasons that I argue against anyone listening to anything Beck has to say; with a passion that matches the passion of those who promote his rhetoric. My passion is based on evidence. Theirs, flying in the face of of evidence as it does, is truly fundamentalist. -- To let it slide, to dismiss these people as unimportant & ineffectual, to ignore misinformation, half-truths, historical revisionism & out right lies, is a disservice to ourselves, our country, the world and worst of all, our children & other impressionable minds.

"Seize every opportunity to ram it home." -Richard Dawkins