CBS Aghast at Ted Nugent's Profanity, But Honored Bill Maher by Reading His Op-Ed
CBS was aghast at conservative rocker Ted Nugent's profane outburst during an exclusive interview, but the same network treated profane comedian Bill Maher like the voice of reason when it read from his op-ed back on March 22.
In an interview that aired on Friday's CBS This Morning, Nugent let loose at correspondent Jeff Glor when Glor suggested he was extreme. "I'm an extremely loving, passionate man, and people who investigate me honestly, without the baggage of political correctness, ascertain the conclusion that I'm a damn nice guy," he ranted before unleashing a torrent of profanity.
CBS showed its disdain for Nugent's rant. "We have no idea where that unexpected outburst came from," Glor claimed in surprise. "Kind of stunned us. Stunned our producer." Anchor Charlie Rose preached that Nugent should change his act if he wants to be remembered for his charity towards the youth.
In contrast, CBS held Bill Maher in much higher regard despite his history of vile smears of conservative women. Anchor Erica Hill read from his op-ed back on March 22's CBS This Morning, where Maher slammed the public for being too sensitive to criticism – even though he had repeatedly spewed obscene and hateful vitriol at women.
Maher also donated $1 million to President Obama's super PAC -- but CBS did not report this connection. They did, however, report that Mitt Romney "courted" and received Nugent's endorsement.
So CBS took umbrage at conservative Ted Nugent's profane outburst, but gave Maher a microphone to tell people to calm down after he had showered women with the worst of insults. It reveals a double standard toward outspoken conservatives and liberals; CBS made sure to emphasize that Nugent is not a moderate, and yet treated the profane Maher like the voice of reason.
And perhaps CBS ignored its own hand in provoking Nugent when Glor suggested that Nugent was extreme. "If Mitt Romney is to win, he needs at least some of the moderate vote," Glor told Nugent. "You are many things," he continued, pausing for effect before insisting "You are not moderate."
[Video below the break. Audio here.]
A partial transcript of the interview, which aired on May 4 on CBS This Morning at 7:30 a.m. EDT, is as follows:
[7:30]
JEFF GLOR, CBS This Morning special correspondent: Ted Nugent is loud, non-stop, never at a loss for words. He's also politically influential. Mitt Romney courted his endorsement and got it. And as we discovered firsthand during a visit to his Texas ranch, Nugent is ramping up the rhetoric again.
(...)
[7:33]
GLOR: April was one of the more interesting months I think you ever had.
NUGENT: Well, Jeff, that's where you're wrong. It's always been like this.
GLOR: It has not always been like this.
NUGENT: It has always been like this!
GLOR: You have gotten more boisterous.
(Crosstalk)
NUGENT: No way! It has always been – you go back and look at these interviews, it has always been like this!
GLOR: Politically speaking, you are more of an activist now than you were in 1970.
NUGENT: The political activism is being accelerated because the conditions demand accelerated activism, yes.
(...)
GLOR: If Mitt Romney is to win, he needs at least some of the moderate vote. You are many things. (Pause) You are not moderate.
NUGENT: But not – not very moderate. (Laughter)
GLOR: You are not moderate.
NUGENT: If you examine how I conduct myself, I don't think a day goes by in my life for many, many years now that we don't do charity work for children. I offer you this, have you done a lot of interviews?
GLOR: Decent number.
NUGENT: Call me when you sit down across from someone who has more families with dying little boys and girls who get a call to take them on their last fishing trip in life. Call me when you meet someone who does that more than I do. Because that's really moderate. In fact, you know what that is? That's extreme. I'm an extremely loving, passionate man, and people who investigate me honestly, without the baggage of political correctness, ascertain the conclusion that I'm a damn nice guy. And If can you find a screening process more powerful than that, I'll [ bleep]. Or [bleep]! How's that sound?
GLOR: We have no idea where that unexpected outburst came from.
(...)
GLOR: We released the Romney clip on our website yesterday and the Romney campaign responded by re-releasing a statement saying "Divisive language and offensive and inappropriate, no matter what side of the political aisle it comes from. Mitt Romney believes everyone needs to be civil. Not exactly the most stinging rebuke from the Romney campaign. And Ted feels that he didn't sleight them at all."
CHARLIE ROSE: Why did he go off like that?
GLOR: It’s a good question. Very good question. Kind of stunned us. Stunned our producer. His wife, a very sweet woman, did come in after the interview ended. Interview went on for ten minutes after this explosion. She said, Ted, you need to apologize to Molly.
HILL: Molly, your producer?
GLOR: And he did. He did. At first he started to back off after he apologized, then he delivered a full apology. And we went on. Yesterday he called me on the phone, after we got back to New York, and said, after our interview that he was rushed to the emergency room and had a kidney stone removed. So, that's what he said may have contributed to his high level of energy.
ROSE: When he said it's always been like this, what did he mean?
GLOR: He meant that he's always been provocative, he’s always been loud, he’s always caused controversy.
ROSE: Has he always called the President and the Secretary of State criminals?
GLOR: No. No. And that's why I pointed that out to him. And I think he acknowledged he's upped the activism and that's why the Secret Service went to visit him.
ROSE: Yeah, you know if someone cares about being known for doing things for the little kids, the better way to do that is not to talk about other people being criminals.
(Crosstalk)
GLOR: Yep. I think it’s a very good point. I think it’s a very good point.
-- Matt Hadro is a News Analyst at the Media Research Center
