Beck: He's a loser, baby

Well, the race to the bottom continues on cable news. CNN's Headline News announced it is hiring radio hatemonger Glenn Beck to host a primetime show beginning in April.

The Headline News announcement proudly proclaims the hour long program "will be an unconventional look at the news of the day featuring Beck’s unique and often amusing perspective."

Oh yes. He's a very amusing guy. Here are just some of the bon mots that have slipped past his lips, as recorded by the great Media Matters site:


On families of the victims of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks: "[T]his is horrible to say, and I wonder if I'm alone in this -- you know, it took me about a year to start hating the 9-11 victims' families? Took me about a year."

On Hurricane Katrina survivors who remained in New Orleans: "And that's all we're hearing about, are the people in New Orleans. Those are the only ones that we're seeing on television are the scumbags..."

On filmmaker Michael Moore: "Hang on, let me just tell you what I'm thinking. I'm thinking about killing Michael Moore, and I'm wondering if I could kill him myself, or if I would need to hire somebody to do it. No, I think I could. I think he could be looking me in the eye, you know, and I could just be choking the life out -- is this wrong?"

On the father of Nick Berg, American civilian executed in Iraq: "I'm sorry, I don't buy it. I think he is grieving, but I think he's a scumbag as well. I don't like this guy at all."

Hmm, let's see, by my count, he called Katrina victims and the father of a man horrifically beheaded by Islamic terrorists "scumbags," said he "hated" family members of 9-11 victims, and fantasized about killing a film maker whose views he disagrees with.

Yes, that's what you call amusing!

The only show that gets any kind of ratings on Headline News is Nancy Grace's legal hour, so I suppose they're trying to get some sort of buzz going, to try to compete with Fox's rightwing schtick. But, jeez, haven't these cable people learned anything from the trainwreck that was Michael Savage, the snarling MSNBC host hired to desperately try to get some conservative cred. That lasted about 4 months, until he told a gay caller he hoped he would get AIDS and die.

Let's see how long the oh-so-delightful Mr. Beck lasts. Ted Turner must be bursting with pride.