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| nationality = American
| nationality = American
| occupation = [[Political commentator]], [[author]], [[media proprietor]], entertainer
| occupation = [[Political commentator]], [[author]], [[media proprietor]], entertainer
| salary = [[United States dollar|US$]] 32 million (2009–10)<ref name = "Forbes410" /><ref name = "Forbesslides">[http://www.forbes.com/2010/04/07/glenn-beck-fox-news-business-entertainment-beck_slide.html In Pictures: How Glenn Beck Makes His Money] slideshow by ''[[Forbes magazine]]''</ref>
| salary = [[United States dollar|US$]] 32 million (2009–10)<ref name = "Forbes410"/><ref name = "Forbesslides">[http://www.forbes.com/2010/04/07/glenn-beck-fox-news-business-entertainment-beck_slide.html In Pictures: How Glenn Beck Makes His Money] slideshow by ''[[Forbes magazine]]''</ref>
| spouse = Claire (1983–1994)<br>Tania (m. 1999)
| spouse = Claire (1983–1994)<br>Tania (m. 1999)
| children = 4
| children = 4
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'''Glenn Lee Beck''' (born February 10, 1964) is an American [[Conservatism in the United States|conservative]] radio personality and television host, as well as a political pundit, author, and entrepreneur. He is the host of ''[[The Glenn Beck Program]]'', a nationally syndicated talk-radio show that airs throughout the [[United States]] on [[Premiere Radio Networks]]; he is also the host of an [[Glenn Beck (TV program)|eponymous cable news show]] on [[Fox News Channel]]. As an author, Beck has had six [[New York Times Best Seller List|''New York Times''-bestselling books]], with five debuting at #1. Beck is also the founder and CEO of Mercury Radio Arts, a multimedia production company through which he produces content for radio, television, publishing, the stage, and the Internet.
'''Glenn Edward Lee Beck''' (born February 10, 1964) is an American [[conservative]] [[radio personality|radio]] and [[presenter|television host]], [[author]], [[entrepreneur]] and [[political pundit|political commentator]]. He is the host of ''[[The Glenn Beck Program]]'', a [[radio syndication|nationally syndicated]] [[talk radio|talk-radio show]] that airs throughout the [[United States]] on [[Premiere Radio Networks]]; he is also the host of a [[Glenn Beck (TV program)|cable news show]] on [[Fox News Channel]]. As an author, Beck has had six [[New York Times Best Seller List|''New York Times''-bestselling books]], with five debuting at #1.<ref name = "Forbes410">[http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2010/0426/entertainment-fox-news-simon-schuster-glenn-beck-inc_print.html Glenn Beck Inc] by Lacey Rose, ''[[Forbes magazine]]'', April 26, 2010</ref> Beck is also the founder and CEO of Mercury Radio Arts, a multi-media [[production company]] through which he produces content for radio, television, publishing, the stage, and the Internet.


⚫
Beck's range of media outlets have brought him wealth and fame, along with recurring controversy and criticism. His supporters praise him as a [[United States Constitution|constitutional]] stalwart defending traditional [[American values]] from [[secular]] [[Progressivism in the United States|progressivism]],<ref>Eric Deggans, [http://www.tampabay.com/features/media/glenn-beck-fans-say-he-represents-their-american-values/1035513 Glenn Beck Fans say he Represents their American Values] by Eric Deggans, ''[[St. Petersburg Times]]'', September 11, 2009</ref> while his critics contend he promotes [[conspiracy theories]] and employs incendiary rhetoric for ratings.<ref>[http://mediamatters.org/research/200909040030 Glenn Beck no Stranger to Conspiracy Theories or Incendiary Rhetoric] by ''[[Media Matters for America]]''</ref>
He was born in [[Everett, Washington]] and raised as a Roman Catholic. Beck landed his first broadcast job as a disc-jockey for his hometown radio station at the age of 13 after winning a contest. When his mother died, Beck moved to [[Bellingham, Washington|Bellingham]], where he attended high school. After graduation, he worked at radio stations in [[Provo, Utah]], [[Washington D.C.]] and [[New Haven, Connecticut]]. Along the way, Beck married and divorced his first wife. He also struggled with [[attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder]] and [[substance abuse]], and went through recovery in the mid 1990s. After marrying his second wife Tania in 1999, the couple joined [[The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]].

⚫
Beck's array of media outlets have brought him wealth and popularity, along with recurring controversy and criticism. His supporters praise him as a [[United States Constitution|constitutional]] stalwart defending traditional [[American values]] from secular [[Progressivism in the United States|progressivism]], while his critics contend he promotes [[conspiracy theories]] and employs incendiary rhetoric for ratings.


== Personal life ==
== Personal life ==

Revision as of 13:51, 8 January 2011

Glenn Beck
Beck at the Time 100 Gala, 2010
Born
Glenn Edward Lee Beck[1]

(1964-02-10) February 10, 1964 (age 60)
Everett, Washington, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
EducationSehome High School
Occupation(s)Political commentator, author, media proprietor, entertainer
Spouse(s)Claire (1983–1994)
Tania (m. 1999)
Children4
Websitehttp://www.glennbeck.com/

Glenn Edward Lee Beck (born February 10, 1964) is an American conservative radio and television host, author, entrepreneur and political commentator. He is the host of The Glenn Beck Program, a nationally syndicated talk-radio show that airs throughout the United States on Premiere Radio Networks; he is also the host of a cable news show on Fox News Channel. As an author, Beck has had six New York Times-bestselling books, with five debuting at #1.[2] Beck is also the founder and CEO of Mercury Radio Arts, a multi-media production company through which he produces content for radio, television, publishing, the stage, and the Internet.

Beck's range of media outlets have brought him wealth and fame, along with recurring controversy and criticism. His supporters praise him as a constitutional stalwart defending traditional American values from secular progressivism,[5] while his critics contend he promotes conspiracy theories and employs incendiary rhetoric for ratings.[6]

Personal life

Early years

Glenn Lee Beck was born in Everett, Washington, to William and Mary Beck, who lived in Mountlake Terrace, Washington.[7] The family later moved to Mount Vernon, Washington,[8] where they owned and operated City Bakery in the downtown area.[9] He is descended from German immigrants who came to the United States in the 1800s.[10] Beck was raised as a Roman Catholic and attended Immaculate Conception Catholic School in Mount Vernon.

Glenn and his older sister moved with their mother to Sumner, Washington, attending a Jesuit school[11] in Puyallup. On May 15, 1979, his mother drowned in Puget Sound, just west of Tacoma, Washington. A man who had taken her out in a small boat also drowned. A Tacoma police report stated that Mary Beck "appeared to be a classic drowning victim", but a Coast Guard investigator speculated that she could have intentionally jumped overboard.[11] Beck has described his mother's death as a suicide in interviews during television and radio broadcasts.[11][12]

After their mother's death, Beck and his older sister moved to their father's home in Bellingham, Washington,[13] where Beck graduated from Sehome High School in June 1982.[14] In the aftermath of his mother's death and subsequent suicide of his stepbrother, Beck has said he used "Dr. Jack Daniel's" to cope. At 18, following his high school graduation, Beck relocated to Provo, Utah, and worked at radio station KAYK. Feeling he "didn't fit in," Beck left Utah after six months,[15] taking a job at Washington D.C.'s WPGC in February 1983.[13]

Adulthood

While working at WPGC, Beck met his first wife, Claire.[16] In 1983, the couple married and had two daughters, Mary and Hannah. Mary developed cerebral palsy as a result of a series of strokes at birth in 1988.[16] The couple divorced in 1994 amid Beck's struggles with substance abuse. A recovering alcoholic and drug addict,[17] Beck has been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.[18][19]

By 1994, Beck was suicidal, and imagined shooting himself to the music of his fellow Washingtonian, Kurt Cobain.[18] However, he cites the help of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) in his sobriety and attended his first AA meeting in November 1994, the month he states he stopped drinking alcohol and smoking cannabis.[18] Beck would later claim that he had gotten high every day for the previous 15 years, since the age of 16.[13]

In 1996, while working for a New Haven-area radio station, Beck took a theology class at Yale University, with a written recommendation from an alum who was a listener at the time, Senator Joe Lieberman.[20] The class was called "Early Christology", but Beck soon dropped out, and that marked the extent of Beck's post secondary education.[18][21]

This was followed by Beck going on a "spiritual quest" where he "sought out answers in churches and bookstores."[18] As Beck later recounted in his books and stage performances, his first attempt at self-education involved six wide-ranging authors, comprising what Beck jokingly calls "the library of a serial killer": Alan Dershowitz, Pope John Paul II, Adolf Hitler, Billy Graham, Carl Sagan, and Friedrich Nietzsche.[18][20] During this time, Beck's Mormon friend and former radio partner Pat Gray argued in favor of the "comprehensive worldview" offered by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, an offer that Beck rejected until a few years later.[18]

In 1999, Beck married his second wife, Tania.[18] After they went looking for a faith on a church tour together, they [18] joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in October 1999, partly at the urging of his daughter Mary.[22][23] Beck would be baptized by his old friend, and current-day co-worker Pat Gray.[18] Beck and his current wife have had two children together, Raphe (who is adopted) and Cheyenne. The couple live in New Canaan, Connecticut, with the four children.[24]

Beck announced in July 2010 that he had been diagnosed with macular dystrophy, saying "A couple of weeks ago I went to the doctor because of my eyes, I can't focus my eyes. He did all kinds of tests and he said, 'you have macular dystrophy ...you could go blind in the next year. Or, you might not." [25] The disorder can make it difficult to read, drive or recognize faces.[26]

Career

"Glenn Beck has managed to monetize virtually everything that comes out of his mouth."

— Forbes magazine, April 2010[2][3]

In 2002 Beck created Mercury Radio Arts, a media platform he named after Orson Welles's seminal Mercury Theatre on the Air, which produced live theatrical broadcasts during the 1930s. Beck's company's president and chief operating officer was Chris Balfe and as of September 2010, employed more than 40 people[20][27] in the production of Beck's broadcast, publishing and online projects, as well as his live performances.

In June 2009, estimators at Forbes calculated Beck's earnings over the previous 12 months at $23 million, with 2009–2010 revenues on track to be higher.[28] In April 2010, Forbes calculated Beck's earnings for the previous year (March 2009 - March 2010) to be $32 million.[2]

Radio

See also: Glenn Beck Program

In 1983 he moved to Corpus Christi, Texas, to work at radio station KZFM.[16] In mid-1985, Beck was hired away from KZFM to be the lead DJ for the morning-drive radio broadcast by WRKA in Louisville, Kentucky.[16] His four-hour weekday show was called Captain Beck and the A-Team.[29] Beck had a reputation as a "young up-and-comer". The show was not political and included the usual off-color antics of the genre: juvenile jokes, pranks, and impersonations.[20] The show slipped to third in the market and Beck left abruptly in 1987 amid a dispute with WRKA management. [citation needed]

Months later, Beck was hired by Phoenix Top-40 station KOY-FM, then known as Y-95. Beck was partnered with Arizona native Tim Hattrick to co-host a local "morning zoo" program.[18] During his time at Y-95, Beck cultivated a rivalry with local pop radio station KZZP and that station's morning host Bruce Kelly. Through practical jokes and publicity stunts, Beck drew criticism from the staff at Y-95 when the rivalry culminated in Beck telephoning Kelly's wife on-the-air, mocking her recent miscarriage.[16] In 1989, Beck resigned from Y-95 to accept a job in Houston at KRBE, known as Power 104. Beck was subsequently fired in 1990 due to poor ratings.[16]

Beck then moved on to Baltimore, Maryland and the city's leading Top-40 station, WBSB, known as B104. There, he partnered with Pat Gray, a morning DJ. During his tenure at B104, Beck was arrested and jailed for speeding in his DeLorean.[18] According to a former associate, Beck was "completely out of it" when a station manager went to bail him out.[18] When Gray, then Beck were fired, the two men spent six months in Baltimore, planning their next move. In early 1992, Beck and Gray both moved to WKCI-FM (KC101), a Top-40 radio station in Hamden, Connecticut.[18] When Gray left the show to move to Salt Lake City, Beck continued with co-host Vinnie Penn. At the end of 1998, Beck was informed that his contract would not be renewed at the end of 1999.[18]

The Glenn Beck Program first aired in 2000 on WFLA (AM) in Tampa, Florida, and took their afternoon time slot from eighteenth to first place within a year.[30][31] In January 2002, Premiere Radio Networks launched the show nationwide on 47 stations. The show then moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, broadcasting from new flagship station WPHT. On November 5, 2007, The New York Times reported that Premiere Radio Networks was extending Beck's contract. By May 2008, it had reached over 280 terrestrial stations as well as XM Satellite. It was ranked 4th in the nation with over six and a half million listeners.[32] Glenn Beck is number three in the ratings behind Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity.[33]

Television

See also: Glenn Beck (TV program)

In January 2006, CNN's Headline News announced that Beck would host a nightly news-commentary show in their new prime-time block Headline Prime. The show, simply called Glenn Beck, aired weeknights. CNN Headline News described the show as "an unconventional look at the news of the day featuring his often amusing perspective." [34] At the end of his time at CNN-HLN, Beck had the second largest audience behind Nancy Grace.[35] In 2008, Beck won the Marconi Radio Award for Network Syndicated Personality of the Year.[36]

In October 2008, it was announced that Beck would join the Fox News Channel, leaving CNN Headline News.[37] After moving to the Fox News Channel, Beck hosted Glenn Beck, beginning in January 2009, as well as a weekend version.[38] One of his first guests was Alaska Governor Sarah Palin [39] He also has a regular segment every Friday on the Fox News Channel program The O'Reilly Factor titled "At Your Beck and Call."[40] As of September 2009 Beck's program drew more viewers than all three of the competing time-slot shows on CNN, MSNBC and HLN combined.[41][42]

His show's high ratings have not come without controversy.[37] The Washington Post's Howard Kurtz reported that Beck's use of "distorted or inflammatory rhetoric" has complicated the channel's and their journalist's efforts to neutralize White House criticism that Fox is not really a news organization.[37] Television analyst Andrew Tyndall echoed these sentiments, saying that Beck's incendiary style had created "a real crossroads for Fox News", stating "they're right on the cusp of losing their image as a news organization."[37]

Books

"You cannot take away freedom to protect it, you cannot destroy the free market to save it, and you cannot uphold freedom of speech by silencing those with whom you disagree. To take rights away to defend them or to spend your way out of debt defies common sense."

— Glenn Beck, Common Sense, 2009[43]

Arguing with Idiots

As an author, Beck has reached #1 on the New York Times Bestseller List in four separate categories as of 2010: Hardcover Non-Fiction,[44][45]), Paperback Non-Fiction,[44]), Hardcover Fiction,[46]), and Children's Picture Books.[47]

  • The Real America: Messages from the Heart and Heartland, Simon & Schuster 2003. ISBN 978-0-7434-9696-4[48][49]
  • An Inconvenient Book: Real Solutions to the World's Biggest Problems, Simon & Schuster 2007. ISBN 978-1-4391-6857-8
  • The Christmas Sweater, Simon & Schuster 2008. ISBN 978-1-4165-9485-7
  • America's March to Socialism: Why We're One Step Closer to Giant Missile Parades, 2008 (Audiobook)[50]
  • An Unlikely Mormon: The Conversion Story of Glenn Beck, Deseret Book 2008 (Audiobook). ISBN 978-1-59038-944-7[51]
  • The Christmas Sweater: A Picture Book Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing 2009. ISBN 978-1-4169-9543-2
  • America's March to Socialism: Why We're One Step Closer to Giant Missile Parades Simon & Schuster Audio 2009 (Audio CD). ISBN 978-0-7435-9854-5
  • Glenn Beck's Common Sense: The Case Against an Out-of-Control Government, Simon & Schuster 2009. ISBN 978-1-4391-6857-8[52][53][54]
  • Arguing with Idiots: How to Stop Small Minds and Big Government, Simon & Schuster 2009. ISBN 978-1-4165-9501-4
  • Idiots Unplugged, Simon & Schuster 2010 (Audio CD). ISBN 1-4423-3396-0
  • The Overton Window, Threshold Editions 2010. ISBN 1-4391-8430-5[55][56][57][58]
  • Idiots Unplugged, 2010 (Audiobook)[59]
  • Broke: The Plan to Restore Our Trust, Truth, and Treasure, Simon & Schuster 2010. ISBN 1-4423-3457-6.[60]

Stage shows and speeches

"When Beck meets his fans, he does so with the gusto of a public figure engaging his constituents. People he meets often give him presents and notes. He signs autographs, poses for photos. He has perfected the Everyman shtick that presidential candidates spend years trying to master in places like Iowa."

— New York Times Magazine[20]

Since 2005, Beck has toured American cities twice a year, presenting a one-man stage show. His stage productions are a mix of stand-up comedy and inspirational speaking. In a critique of his live act, Salon Magazine's Steve Almond describes Beck as a "wildly imaginative performer, a man who weds the operatic impulses of the demagogue to the grim mutterings of the conspiracy theorist."[61] A show from the Beck `08 Unelectable Tour was shown in around 350 movie theaters around the country.[62]

In Beck's hometown of Mt. Vernon, Washington, supporters and detractors hold handmade signs on the day Beck was honored by the mayor.

The finale of 2009's Common Sense Comedy Tour was simulcast in over 440 theaters.[63] The events have drawn 200,000 fans in recent years.[28]

In March 2003, Beck ran a series of rallies called Glenn Beck's Rally for America in support of troops deployed for the upcoming Iraq War. On July 4, 2007, Beck served as host of the 2007 Toyota Tundra "Stadium of Fire" in Provo, Utah. The annual event at LaVell Edwards Stadium on the Brigham Young University campus is presented by America's Freedom Foundation.[64] In May 2008, Beck gave the keynote speech at the NRA convention in Louisville, Kentucky.[65]

In late August 2009, the mayor of Beck's hometown, Mount Vernon, Washington, announced that he would award Beck the Key to the City, designating September 26, 2009 as "Glenn Beck Day". Due to local opposition, the city council voted unanimously to disassociate itself from the award.[66] The key presentation ceremony sold-out the 850 seat McIntyre Hall and an estimated 800 detractors and supporters demonstrated outside the building. Earlier that day, approximately 7,000 people attended the Evergreen Freedom Foundation's "Take the Field with Glenn Beck" at Seattle's Safeco Field.[67]

In December, 2009, Beck produced a one-night special film titled "The Christmas Sweater: A Return to Redemption." [68] In January and February 2010, Beck teamed with fellow Fox News host Bill O'Reilly to tour several cities in a live stage show called "The Bold and Fresh Tour 2010." The January 29th show was recorded and broadcast to movie theaters throughout the country.[69]

Projects and rallies

9-12 Project and Tea Party protests

Main article: 9-12 Project

In March 2009 Beck put together a campaign, the 9-12 Project, that is named for nine principles and 12 values which he says embody the spirit of the American people on the day after the September 11 attacks.[70]

Restoring Honor rally

Main article: Restoring Honor rally

The Restoring Honor rally was promoted by Beck and held at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. on August 28, 2010. The religiously and patrioticly themed rally was co-sponsored by the Special Operations Warrior Foundation, promoted by FreedomWorks, and supported by the Tea Party movement.[71]

Political views

Beck has described himself as a conservative with libertarian leanings.[72] Among his core values Beck lists personal responsibility, private charity, the right to life, freedom of religion, limited government, and family as the cornerstone of society.[73] Beck also believes in low national debt, and has said "A conservative believes that debt creates unhealthy relationships. Everyone, from the government on down, should live within their means and strive for financial independence."[74] Beck supports individual gun ownership rights and is against gun control legislation.[75]

Beck believes that there is a lack of evidence that human activity is the main cause of global warming.[76] He also says there is a legitimate case that global warming has, at least in part, been caused by mankind, and has tried to do his part by buying a home with a "green" design.[77] He also views the American Clean Energy and Security Act as a form of wealth redistribution, and has promoted a petition rejecting the Kyoto Protocol.[78]

Countering progressivism

"What’s the difference between a communist or socialist and a progressive? Revolution or evolution? One requires a gun and the other eats away slowly."

— Glenn Beck, keynote address at the February 2010 Conservative Political Action Conference[79][80]

File:GlennBeckTreeOfRevolution.jpg
Glenn Beck's progressive "Tree of Revolution" chalk board, from the September 18, 2009, episode of his television show. The "roots" of the tree (from L to R) are made up Che Guevara, Woodrow Wilson, and Saul Alinsky, while the "trunk" is the Students for a Democratic Society and Cloward–Piven strategy. Comprising the "money leaves" of the tree (from L to R) are Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), Wade Rathke, Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Dale Rathke, President Barack Obama, Bill Ayers, Valerie Jarrett, Apollo Alliance, Van Jones, Leo Gerard, Carl Pope, Ruben Aronin, and Jeff Jones.[81]

During his 2010 keynote speech to Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), Beck wrote the word "progressivism" on a chalkboard and declared, "This is the disease. This is the disease in America", adding "progressivism is the cancer in America and it is eating our Constitution!"[79][80] According to Beck, the progressive ideas of men such as John Dewey, Herbert Croly, and Walter Lippmann, influenced the Presidencies of Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson; eventually becoming the foundation for President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal.[79] Beck believes that such progressivism infects both main political parties and threatens to "destroy America as it was originally conceived."[79] In Beck’s book Common Sense, he argues that "progressivism has less to do with the parties and more to do with individuals who seek to redefine, reshape, and rebuild America into a country where individual liberties and personal property mean nothing if they conflict with the plans and goals of the State."[79]

A collection of progressives whom Beck has referred to as "Crime Inc", comprise what Beck contends is a clandestine conspiracy to take over and transform America.[82][83][84] Some of these individuals include Cass Sunstein, Van Jones, Andy Stern, John Podesta, Wade Rathke, Joel Rogers and Francis Fox Piven.[82][85] Other figures tied to Beck's "Crime Inc" accusation include Al Gore, Franklin Raines,[86] Maurice Strong, George Soros,[87] John Holdren and President Barack Obama.[83] According to Beck, these individuals already have or are surreptitiously working in unison with an array of organizations and corporations such as Goldman Sachs, Fannie Mae, ACORN, Apollo Alliance, Tides Center, Chicago Climate Exchange, Generation Investment Management, Enterprise Community Partners, Petrobras, Center for American Progress, and the SEIU; to fulfill their progressive agenda.[83][87] In his quest to root out these "progressives", Beck has compared himself to Israeli Nazi hunters, vowing on his radio show that "to the day I die I am going to be a progressive-hunter. I’m going to find these people that have done this to our country and expose them. I don’t care if they’re in nursing homes."[20]

Historian Sean Wilentz has denounced Beck's progressive-themed conspiracy theories and "gross historical inaccuracies", countering that Beck is merely echoing the decades-old "right-wing extremism" of the John Birch Society.[88] According to Wilentz, Beck's "version of history" places him in a long line of figures who have challenged mainstream political historians and presented an inaccurate opposing view as the truth, stating:

Glenn Beck is trying to give viewers a version of American history that is supposedly hidden. Supposedly, all we historians — left, right and center — have been doing for the past 100 years is to keep true American history from you. And that true American history is what Glenn Beck is teaching. It's a version of history that is beyond skewed. But of course, that's what Beck expects us to say. He lives in a kind of Alice in Wonderland world, where if people who actually know the history say what he's teaching is junk, he says, 'That's because you're trying to hide the truth.'[88]

Conservative David Frum, the former speechwriter for President George W. Bush, has also spoken of Beck's propensity for negationism, remarking that "Beck offers a story about the American past for people who are feeling right now very angry and alienated. It is different enough from the usual story in that he makes them feel like they’ve got access to secret knowledge."[20]

Ideological influences

Political and historical

"The old American mind-set that Richard Hofstadter famously called the paranoid style – the sense that Masons or the railroads or the Pope or the guys in black helicopters are in league to destroy the country – is aflame again, fanned from both right and left ... No one has a better feeling for this mood, and no one exploits it as well, as Beck. He is the hottest thing in the political-rant racket, left or right."

— David Von Drehle, Time Magazine[28]

An author with ideological influence on Beck is W. Cleon Skousen (1913–2006), a prolific conservative political writer, American Constitutionalist and faith-based political theorist.[89][90] As an anti-communist supporter of the John Birch Society,[91] and limited-government activist,[92] Skousen, who was Mormon, wrote on a wide range of subjects: the Six-Day War, Mormon eschatology, New World Order conspiracies, even parenting.[92] Skousen believed that American political, social, and economic elites were working with Communists to foist a world government on the United States.[79] Beck praised Skousen's "words of wisdom" as "divinely inspired", referencing Skousen's The Naked Communist[93] and especially The 5,000 Year Leap (originally published in 1981),[92] which Beck said in 2007 had "changed his life".[92] According to Skousen's nephew, Mark Skousen, Leap reflects Skousen's "passion for the United States Constitution", which he "felt was inspired by God and the reason behind America’s success as a nation."[94] The book is touted by Beck as "required reading" to understand the current American political landscape and become a "September twelfth person".[92] Beck authored a foreword for the 2008 edition of Leap and Beck's on-air recommendations in 2009 propelled the book to number one in the government category on Amazon for several months.[92] In 2010, Matthew Continetti of the conservative Weekly Standard criticized Beck's conspiratorial bent, terming him "a Skousenite."[79] Additionally, Alexander Zaitchik, author of the 2010 critical book Common Nonsense: Glenn Beck and the Triumph of Ignorance, which features an entire chapter on "The Ghost of Cleon Skousen",[95] refers to Skousen as "Beck's favorite author and biggest influence", while noting that he authored four of the ten books on Beck's 9-12 Project required-reading list.[96]

In his discussion of Beck and Skousen, Continetti also stated that one of Skousen's works "draws on Carroll Quigley’s Tragedy and Hope (1966), which argues that the history of the 20th century is the product of secret societies in conflict",[79] noting that in Beck's novel The Overton Window, which Beck describes as "faction" (fiction based on fact), one of his characters states "Carroll Quigley laid open the plan in Tragedy and Hope, the only hope to avoid the tragedy of war was to bind together the economies of the world to foster global stability and peace."[79]

Princeton University historian Sean Wilentz postulates that alongside Skousen, Robert W. Welch, Jr., founder of the John Birch Society, is a key ideological foundation of Beck's worldview.[97] According to Wilentz:

The popularity of Beck’s broadcasts, has brought neo-Birchite ideas to an audience beyond any that Welch or Skousen might have dreamed of ... He (Beck) attacks all the familiar bogeymen: the Federal Reserve System (which he asserts is a private conglomerate, unaccountable to the public); the Council on Foreign Relations (born of a "progressive idea" to manipulate the media in order to "let the masses know what should be done"); and a historical procession of evildoers, including Skousen’s old target Colonel House and Welch’s old target Woodrow Wilson. His sources on these matters, quite apart from Skousen’s books, can be unreliable. (For example) on September 22nd, 2010, amid a diatribe about House, Beck cited a passage from Secrets of the Federal Reserve, by Eustace Mullins. The book, commissioned in 1948 by Ezra Pound, is a startlingly anti-Semitic fantasy of how a Jewish-led conspiracy of all-powerful bankers established the Federal Reserve in service of their plot to dominate the world.[97]

Other books that Beck regularly cites on his programs are Amity Shlaes’s The Forgotten Man, Jonah Goldberg’s Liberal Fascism, Larry Schweikart and Michael Allen’s A Patriot's History of the United States, and Burt Folsom Jr.’s New Deal or Raw Deal.[79] Beck has also urged his listeners to read The Coming Insurrection, a book by a French Marxist group[79] discussing what they see as the imminent collapse of capitalist culture.[98]

In addition, on June 4, 2010, Beck endorsed Elizabeth Dilling's 1936 work The Red Network: A Who's Who and Handbook of Radicalism for Patriots, remarking "this is a book, The Red Network, this came in from 1936. People — (Joseph) McCarthy was absolutely right ... This is, who were the communists in America."[99] Beck was criticized however by an array of people, including Menachem Z. Rosensaft and Joe Conason, who noted that Dilling was a proud anti-semite and Nazi sympathizer.[100][101][102]

Religious

"It is likely that Beck owes his brand of Founding Father-worship to Mormonism, where reverence for the founders and the United States Constitution as divinely inspired are often-declared elements of orthodox belief ... Many Mormons also believe that Joseph Smith prophesied in 1843 that the US Constitution would one day 'hang by a thread' and be saved by faithful Mormons." (See White Horse Prophecy.)

— Joanna Brooks, religious scholar[89]

Beck during his religiously-themed speech at the Restoring Honor rally on August 28, 2010.

Spiritually, Beck has credited God for saving him from drug and alcohol abuse, professional obscurity and friendlessness.[103] In 2006, Beck performed a short inspirational monologue in Salt Lake City, Utah,[104] detailing how he was transformed by the "healing power of Jesus Christ," which was released as a CD two years later by the publishing company owned by the Mormon Church.[105]

Religious scholar Joanna Brooks contends that Beck developed his "amalgation of anti-communism" and "connect-the-dots conspiracy theorizing" only after his entree into the "deeply insular world of Mormon thought and culture."[89] Brooks theorizes that Beck's calls to fasting and prayer are rooted in Mormon collective fasts to address spiritual challenges, while Beck's "overt sentimentality" and penchant for weeping represent the hallmark of a "distinctly Mormon mode of masculinity" where "appropriately-timed displays of tender emotion are displays of power" and spirituality.[89] Philip Barlow, the Arrington chair of Mormon history and culture at Utah State University, has said that Beck's belief that the U.S. Constitution was an "inspired document," his calls for limited government and for not exiling God from the public sphere, "have considerable sympathy in Mormonism."[106] Beck has acknowledged that the Mormon "doctrine is different" from traditional Christianity, but said that this was what attracted him to it, stating that "for me some of the things in traditional doctrine just doesn't work." [107]

Particularly as a consequence of Beck's Restoring Honor rally in 2010, the fact that Beck is Mormon caused concern amongst some politically sympathetic Christian evangelicals on theological grounds.[108][109][110][111] Tom Tradup, vice president at Salem Radio Network, which serves more than 2,000 Christian-themed stations, expressed this sentiment after the rally, stating "Politically, everyone is with it, but theologically, when he says the country should turn back to God, the question is: Which God?"[103] Subsequently, a September 2010 survey conducted by the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) and Religion News Service (RNS) found that of those Americans who hold a favorable opinion of Beck, only 45% believe he is the right person to lead a religious movement, with that number further declining to 37% when people are informed he is Mormon.[112][113] Daniel Cox, Director of Research for PRRI, summed up this position by stating:

The disparity between Glenn Beck's favorability ratings and how people feel about him as a religious leader suggests that people are more drawn to him for political reasons than religious ones. Many of Beck's strongest supporters, such as Republicans and white Evangelicals, perceive real differences between their own faith and Beck's Mormon faith, and this may become a liability in his efforts to lead as a religious figure.[112]

Pete Peterson of Pepperdine's Davenport Institute said that Beck's speech at the rally belonged to an American tradition of calls to personal renewal. Peterson wrote: "A Mormon surrounded onstage by priests, pastors, rabbis, and imams, Beck [gave] one of the more ecumenical jeremiads in history."[114] Moderately progressive evangelical pastor Tony Campolo said in 2010 that conservative evangelicals respond to Beck's framing of conservative economic principles, saying that Beck's and ideological fellow travelers' "marriage between evangelicalism and patriotic nationalism is so strong that anybody who is raising questions about loyalty to the old, laissez-faire capitalist system is ex post facto unpatriotic, un-American, and by association non-Christian.” Newsweek religion reporter Lisa Miller, after quoting Campolo, opined, "It’s ironic that Beck, a Mormon, would gain acceptance as a leader of a new Christian coalition. ... Beck’s gift...is to articulate God’s special plan for America in such broad strokes that they trample no single creed or doctrine while they move millions with their message."[115]

Public Reception

"To his admirers, Glenn Beck has been a voice crying in the wilderness, a prophet who warns us that we have been wandering in darkness too long. To detractors, he is a clown and a buffoon, at best, a dangerous demagogue, at worst."

—  Lee Harris, The Weekly Standard[116]

In 2009, the Glenn Beck show was one of the highest rated news commentary programs on cable TV.[117][118][119][120] For a Barbara Walters ABC special, Beck was selected as one of America’s "Top 10 Most Fascinating People" of 2009.[121] In 2010, Beck was selected for the Times top 100 most influential people under the "Leaders" category.[122]

Beck has referred to himself as an entertainer,[123] a commentator rather than a reporter,[124] and a "rodeo clown".[123] He has said that he identifies with Howard Beale, a character portrayed by Peter Finch in the film Network: "When he came out of the rain and he was like, none of this makes any sense. I am that guy."[125]

Time Magazine described Beck as "[t]he new populist superstar of Fox News" saying it is easier to see a set of attitudes rather than a specific ideology, noting his criticism of Wall Street, yet defending bonuses to AIG, as well as denouncing conspiracy theories about the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) but warning against indoctrination of children by the AmeriCorps program.[126] (Paul Krugman[127] and Mark Potok,[128] on the other hand, have been among those asserting that Beck helps spread "hate" by covering issues that stir up extremists.) What seems to unite Beck's disparate themes, Time argued, is a sense of siege.[126] An earlier cover story in Time described Beck as "a gifted storyteller with a knack for stitching seemingly unrelated data points into possible conspiracies", proclaiming that he has "emerged as a virtuoso on the strings" of conservative discontent by mining "the timeless theme of the corrupt Them thwarting a virtuous Us."[28]

Beck's shows have been described as a "mix of moral lessons, outrage and an apocalyptic view of the future ... capturing the feelings of an alienated class of Americans."[123] One of Beck's Fox News Channel colleagues Shepard Smith, has jokingly called Beck's studio the "fear chamber", with Beck countering that he preferred the term "doom room."[28]

Republican South Carolina U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham criticized Beck as a "cynic" whose show was antithetical to "American values" at The Atlantic's 2009 First Draft of History conference, remarking "Only in America can you make that much money crying."[129] The progressive watchdog group Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting's (FAIR) Activism Director Peter Hart argues that Beck red-baits political adversaries as well as promotes a paranoid view of progressive politics.[130] Howard Kurtz of The Washington Post has remarked that "Love him or hate him, Beck is a talented, often funny broadcaster, a recovering alcoholic with an unabashedly emotional style."[37]

Glenn Beck was honored by Liberty University during their 2010 Commencement exercises with an honorary Doctoral Degree. During his keynote address to the students, he stated "As a man who was never able to go to college — I’m the first in my family that went; I went for one semester; I couldn’t afford more than that — I am humbly honored."[131]

Critical biographies

In June 2010, investigative reporter Alexander Zaitchik released a critical biography titled Common Nonsense: Glenn Beck and the Triumph of Ignorance, with a title mocking Beck's work, Common Sense.[132] In an interview about the book, Zaitchik theorized that "Beck’s politics and his insatiable hunger for money and fame are not mutually exclusive", while stating:

Beck’s true religion is not Patriotism, Mormonism, or Conservatism. His true religion is cross-platform self-marketing ... According to Beck’s worldview, there’s no inherent contradiction between his sophisticated instinct for self-promotion, his propagandist rodeo clown act, his self-image as a media mogul, and his professed belief system. I think he actually believes that God wants him to make a ton of money and become this huge celebrity by fear mongering and generally doing whatever it takes in the media to promote right-wing causes.[133]

In September 2010, Philadelphia Daily News reporter Will Bunch released The Backlash: Right-Wing Radicals, High-Def Hucksters, and Paranoid Politics in the Age of Obama.[134] One of Bunch's primary theses is that Beck is nothing more than a morning zoo deejay playing a fictional character as a money-making stunt.[134] Writer Bob Cesca, in a review of Bunch's book, compares Beck to Steve Martin's faith-healer character in the 1992 film Leap of Faith, before describing the "derivative grab bag of other tried and tested personalities" that Bunch contends comprises Beck's persona:

His (Beck's) adenoidal 'Clydie Clyde' voice is based on morning zoo pioneer Scott Shannon's "Mr. Leonard" character. His history is borrowed from the widely debunked work of W. Cleon Skousen. His conspiracy theories are horked from Alex Jones and maybe Jack Van Impe. His anti-Obama, anti-socialist monologues are pure Joe McCarthy. His chalkboard is stolen from televangelist Gene Scott. His solemn, over-processed radio monologue delivery is a dead ringer for Eric Bogosian in Talk Radio. This is all well-worn stuff, but no one has drawn it all together and sculpted it for the purpose of conning an especially susceptible audience during turbulent racial and economic times.[134]

In October 2010 a polemical biography by Dana Milbank was released: Tears of a Clown: Glenn Beck and the Tea Bagging of America.[135]

Satire, spoof and parody

Beck has been the subject of mockery and ridicule by a number of humorists. In response to Beck's animated delivery and views, he was parodied in an impersonation by Jason Sudeikis on Saturday Night Live.[136] The Daily Show's Jon Stewart has spoofed Beck's 9-12 project with his own "11-3 project",[137] impersonated Beck's chalk board-related presentation style for an entire show,[138] and quipped about Beck "finally, a guy who says what people who aren't thinking are thinking."[139] Stephen Colbert of The Colbert Report satirized Beck's "war room" by creating his own "doom bunker."[140] Through the character Eric Cartman, South Park parodied Beck's television program and his commentary style in the episode "Dances with Smurfs".[141] The Onion, a satirical periodical and faux news site, ran an Onion News Network video "special report" where it lamented that the "victim in a fatal car accident was tragically not Glenn Beck."[142] Meanwhile, the Current TV cartoon SuperNews! ran an animated cartoon feature titled "The Glenn Beck Apocalypse", where Beck is confronted by Jesus Christ who rebukes him as the equivalent of "Sarah Palin farting into a balloon."[143] Political comedian and satirist Bill Maher has mocked Beck's followers as an "army of diabetic mallwalkers",[144] while The Buffalo Beast, named Beck the most loathsome person in America in 2010, declaring "It’s like someone found a manic, doom-prophesying hobo in a sandwich board, shaved him, shot him full of Zoloft and gave him a show."[20] The October 31 Rally To Restore Sanity and/or Fear in Washington, hosted by Comedy Central personalities Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert, was conceived as a parody of Beck's earlier Rally to Restore Honor, and drew a crowd estimated at over 200,000 people, more than double the low attendance estimate of Beck's rally.[145]

Public disputes

Several incidents involving Beck and President Barack Obama have resulted in notable public controversy. In response to Obama's remarks on the Henry Louis Gates controversy, Beck argued that Obama has repeatedly shown "a deep-seated hatred for white people or the white culture," saying "I'm not saying he doesn't like white people. I'm saying he has a problem. This guy is, I believe, a racist."[146] These remarks drew criticism, and resulted in a boycott promulgated by Color of Change.[147] In 2009, the boycott resulted in at least 57 advertisers requesting their ads be removed from his programming, to avoid associating their brands with content that could be considered offensive by potential customers.[148][149][150] He later apologized for the remarks, telling Fox News Sunday anchor Chris Wallace that he has a "big fat mouth" and miscast as racism what is actually, as he theorizes, Obama's belief in black liberation theology.[151]

In July 2009, Glenn Beck began to focus what would become many episodes on his TV and radio shows on Van Jones, Special Advisor for Green Jobs at Obama's White House Council on Environmental Quality. Beck was critical of Jones' involvement in STORM, a left wing non-governmental group, and his support for death row inmate Mumia Abu-Jamal, who had been convicted of killing a police officer. Beck spotlighted video of Jones referring to Republicans as "assholes", and a petition Jones signed suggesting that George W. Bush knowingly let the 9/11 attacks happen. In September 2009, Jones resigned his position in the Obama administration, after a number of his past statements became fodder for conservative critics and Republican officials.[152] Time magazine credited Beck with leading conservatives' attack on Jones.[28] Jones characterized the attacks from his opponents as a "vicious smear campaign" and an effort to use "lies and distortions to distract and divide."[153]

In 2009, Beck and other conservative commentators were critical of Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) for various reasons, including claims of voter registration fraud in the 2008 presidential election.[154] In September 2009, he broadcast a series of heavily edited undercover videos by conservative activists James O'Keefe and Hannah Giles, which seemed to portray ACORN community organizers offering inappropriate tax advice to people who said they were engaged in illegal activities.[155] Following the videos' release, the U.S. Census Bureau severed ties with the group while the U.S. House and Senate voted to cut all of its federal funding.[28]

In 2009, lawyers for Beck brought a case (Beck v. Eiland-Hall) against the owner of a satirical website named GlennBeckRapedAndMurderedAYoungGirlIn1990.com with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). The claim that the domain name of the website is itself defamatory was described as a first in cyberlaw.[156] Beck's lawyers argued that the site infringed on his trademarked name and that the domain name should be turned over to Beck.[157] The WIPO ruled against Beck, but Eiland-Hall voluntarily transferred the domain to Beck anyway, saying that the First Amendment had been upheld and that he no longer had a use for the domain name.[158]

Websites

Main article: The Blaze (blog)

As of 2009, GlennBeck.com was estimated to receive 5-million unique visitors per month.[28] Included in its subscription service:

In August 2010, Mercury Radio Arts also launched the independent political blog, The Blaze.

See also

References

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  4. ^ Steve Rabey (2009-10-08). "Exploring Glenn Beck's beliefs". GetReligion. Retrieved 2009-10-11.
  5. ^ Eric Deggans, Glenn Beck Fans say he Represents their American Values by Eric Deggans, St. Petersburg Times, September 11, 2009
  6. ^ Glenn Beck no Stranger to Conspiracy Theories or Incendiary Rhetoric by Media Matters for America
  7. ^ Everett Herald - October 2, 2009
  8. ^ Ganser, Tahlia (September 27, 2009). "Beck charms while protesters vent". Skagit Valley Herald.
  9. ^ The Skagit Valley Herald, Tahlia Ganser, 9/27/09
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  131. ^ "News and Events - Glenn Beck delivers keynote address". Liberty University. Retrieved 2010-07-20.
  132. ^ Interview: Alexander Zaitchik on his new Biography of Glenn Beck, Common Nonsense by David Weigel, The Washington Post, June 2, 2010
  133. ^ Deconstructing Glenn Beck - The Author of a Recent Glenn Beck Biography Reveals what he's Learned about the Conservative Pundit due to Speak in Anchorage on September 11 by David Holthouse and Brendan Joel Kelley, Anchorage Press, September 8, 2010
  134. ^ a b c Glenn Beck the Faith-Healer Continues to Scam His Followers by Bob Cesca, The Huffington Post, September 1, 2010
  135. ^ Milbank (October 5, 2010). "Mormon Prophecy Behind Glenn Beck's Message". Huffington Post. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |firt= ignored (help)
  136. ^ Knickerbocker, Brad (2009-09-26). "Glenn Beck goes home to face - what else? - controversy". The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved 2009-10-01.
  137. ^ Video: The 11/3 Project by The Daily Show with Jon Stewart aired on November 5, 2009
  138. ^ Video: Conservative Libertarian by The Daily Show with Jon Stewart aired on March 18, 2010
  139. ^ Stossel, John (2009-06-17). "A Refreshing Spin on Cable TV". RealClearPolitics (originally broadcast by 20/20). Retrieved 2009-10-01.
  140. ^ Video: Doom Bunker, Glenn Beck's "War Room" from The Colbert Report, aired on March 4, 2009
  141. ^ Good, Chris (November 12, 2009). "South Park Does Glenn Beck". The Atlantic. Retrieved April 23, 2010.
  142. ^ Video: "Victim in Fatal Car Accident Tragically Not Glenn Beck by the Onion News Network
  143. ^ Video: "The Glenn Beck Apocalypse" by Current TVs SuperNews!
  144. ^ Bill Maher Talks Glenn Beck's 'Diabetic Mall-Walkers,' Summer Of Racism (VIDEO) by Bill Maher, The Huffington Post, September 15, 2010
  145. ^ Meena Hartenstein, "Jon Stewart's 'Rally to Restore Sanity' drew 200,000, beating estimated attendance at Glenn Beck's", New York Daily News, 31 October 2010
  146. ^ Bauder, David (2009-07-28). "Fox's Glenn Beck: President Obama is a racist". CBS News. Associated Press. Retrieved 2009-07-29. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  147. ^ Ariens, Chris (2009-07-28). "Glenn Beck's 'Racist' Comment Sends Advertisers Elsewhere". TVNewser. Retrieved 2009-08-12. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  148. ^ Hein, Kenneth (2009-07-12). "Fox News' "Glenn Beck" loses advertisers". Reuters. Retrieved 2009-07-13.
  149. ^ Siemaszko, Corky (2009-09-03). "Advertisers continue to abandon Glenn Beck after pundit had called President Obama a 'racist'". Daily News (New York). Retrieved 2009-09-03. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  150. ^ Jones, Sam (4 October 2009). "Waitrose dumps Fox News in protest over remarks about Barack Obama". The Guardian. London, UK: Guardian Media Group. Retrieved 2009-10-06.
  151. ^ Beck: “I have a big fat mouth”
  152. ^ Brodey, John (2009-09-06). "White House Official Resigns After G.O.P. Criticism". The New York Times. Retrieved 2009-09-22.
  153. ^ Wilson, Scott (2009-09-06). "White House Adviser Van Jones Resigns Amid Controversy Over Past Activism". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2009-09-22. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  154. ^ Montopoli, Brian (2009-09-16). "ACORN Sting Lands Housing Group in Conservative Crosshairs". Political Hotsheet. CBS News. Retrieved 2009-10-02.
  155. ^ Shifrel, Scott (2010-03-01). "B'klyn ACORN cleared over giving illegal advice on how to hide money from prostitution". New York Daily News. Retrieved 2010-03-24.
  156. ^ Bremer, Jack (September 11, 2009). "Fox's Glenn Beck fights 'rape and murder' website". The First Post. Dennis Publishing. Retrieved 2009-10-04.
  157. ^ Nate Anderson, Can a mere domain name be defamation? Glenn Beck says yes, Ars Technica, 2009
  158. ^ Nate Anderson, Glenn Beck loses domain dispute, still ends up with domain, Ars Technica, 2009
  159. ^ "About the Glenn Beck Program: About Stu - Executive Producer / Head Writer". GlennBeck.com. Mercury Radio Arts. Retrieved October 22, 2010.

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