Who is Bill O'Reilly and what is he like?

TOOTSTOOTS Posts: 114MI6 Agent
in Off Topic Chat
Who is Bill O'Reilly and what is he like? I have never seen his show but keep reading about it. For anyone who has access to this show, is it really confrontational and serious? From what I have read, I cannot imagine the show. Can someone share their thoughts on this chap, please?

Comments

  • HardyboyHardyboy Posts: 5,882Chief of Staff
    Well, TOOTS, the easiest way to experience his show is to go to YouTube and do a search under Bill O'Reilly. Is he confrontational? Oh, yes. Is the show serious? I guess that depends on the viewer. Personally, I find O'Reilly to be pompous, self-important, and entirely humorless--although he claims to have a great sense of humor. See for yourself.
    Vox clamantis in deserto
  • Tee HeeTee Hee CBT Headquarters: Chicago, ILPosts: 917MI6 Agent
    Bill O'Reilly is an author and political commentator here in the States. He broadcasts over the radio and has his own show on the Fox News Channel.

    Like with any show dealing with politics, his show sometimes gets heated and confrontational. O'Reilly is very passionate about his beliefs and sometimes becomes angry. He identifies himself as a moderate, however he does lean to the right.

    O'Reilly has many critics and is sometimes the subject of major controversies, typical really of anyone involved in politics. You either love or hate Bill O'Reilly.

    Personally, I'm not a huge fan of O'Reilly. I agree with him on many issues, but like Hardyboy said, he often does come off as arrogant.
    "My acting range? Left eyebrow raised, right eyebrow raised..."

    -Roger Moore
  • Klaus HergescheimerKlaus Hergescheimer Posts: 332MI6 Agent
    Hardyboy described him pretty well.

    Most consider him to be a right-wing talk show host, but if you look at his actual positions on issues, he's really more of a centrist: he's much more rhetorically divisive than divisive in his positions on issues.
  • TOOTSTOOTS Posts: 114MI6 Agent
    edited May 2007
    Is it true he verbally assaulted a 9/11 victim's child and also, separately, the mother of a slain US soldier? And he shouted them down on live TV? I can't believe it - we would call that treason in the UK. He must be very Left leaning and sounds very unpatriotic to do this. Have I got this all wrong? You guys are saying his is on the right.
  • Dan SameDan Same Victoria, AustraliaPosts: 6,054MI6 Agent
    edited May 2007
    Tee Hee wrote:
    Personally, I'm not a huge fan of O'Reilly.
    I thought you were a conservative? :o :)) I don't like O' Reilly at all, not just because I'm a liberal (although he is not the most conservative commentator out there) but also because he his rhetoric is so inflammoratory. If someone disagrees with him, they must be anti-American or a traiter.
    "He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Death of a Salesman
  • Dan SameDan Same Victoria, AustraliaPosts: 6,054MI6 Agent
    edited May 2007
    TOOTS wrote:
    Is it true he verbally assaulted a 9/11 victim's child and also, separately, the mother of a slain US soldier? And he shouted them down on live TV? I can't believe it - we would call that treason in the UK. He must be very Left leaning and sounds very unpatriotic to do this. Have I got this all wrong? You guys are saying his is on the right.
    Toots, that is the reason why I don't like him. Saying that someone (or him in this case) must be unpatriotic, calling what he does treason, and saying that he must be very left (or right) leaning, is exactly what he does. Personally I think it is ridiculous. One of the reasons I dislike him, and I don't love this latest post of yours, is that it is not unpatriotic or a form of treason to express an opinion. O'Reilly believes that if anybody disagrees with what he believes to be the 'correct' view, they are a traiter or an enemy of America. I hope you're not suggesting the same thing. (That they are unpatriotic or an enemy of the UK.) :#
    "He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Death of a Salesman
  • Tee HeeTee Hee CBT Headquarters: Chicago, ILPosts: 917MI6 Agent
    Dan Same wrote:
    I thought you were a conservative? :o :))

    Yes, I am, but that doesn't mean I can't be critical of other conservatives. And like you said, Bill is far from a true conservative.

    I sometimes catch the end of O'Reilly's show because I frequently tune in for Hannity and Colmes. Hannity is my favorite political TV/radio personality.
    "My acting range? Left eyebrow raised, right eyebrow raised..."

    -Roger Moore
  • Dan SameDan Same Victoria, AustraliaPosts: 6,054MI6 Agent
    edited May 2007
    Tee Hee wrote:
    Yes, I am, but that doesn't mean I can't be critical of other conservatives. And like you said, Bill is far from a true conservative.
    I know, I was just teasing you. ;)
    Tee Hee wrote:
    Hannity is my favorite political TV/radio personality.
    I'll leave this alone. :v I don't have a single favourite political TV/radio personality but my favourites are mostly Australian, so I doubt that many people on this board would have heard of them. Among Americans, however, I'm a big fan of Jon Stewart.
    "He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Death of a Salesman
  • LoeffelholzLoeffelholz The United States, With LovePosts: 8,990Quartermasters
    [eyes the political bait...and swims on by]
    Check out my Amazon author page! Mark Loeffelholz
    "I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
    "Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
  • MoniqueMonique USAPosts: 696MI6 Agent
    edited May 2007
    Yeah, wise, but because I think TOOTS was legitimately asking who Bill O'Reilly is, check out this clip from YouTube. http://youtube.com/watch?v=2IwIRNM5noY

    It will give you insight to him, his colossal ego, and intolerance of any views other than his own. His treatment of Jeremy Glick, the son of a 9/11 victim, speaks for itself. I am obviously not a fan.
  • TOOTSTOOTS Posts: 114MI6 Agent
    Dan Same wrote:
    TOOTS wrote:
    Is it true he verbally assaulted a 9/11 victim's child and also, separately, the mother of a slain US soldier? And he shouted them down on live TV?

    O'Reilly believes that if anybody disagrees with what he believes to be the 'correct' view, they are a traiter or an enemy of America. I hope you're not suggesting the same thing. (That they are unpatriotic or an enemy of the UK.) :#

    NOTE: I do not want this to become a political debate. I am not suggesting anything about Mr O'Reilly. I'm sorry for my post.

    I just want to know in whether it is true that:
    i he verbally assaulted a 9/11 victim's child; and ii verbally assaulted the mother of a slain US soldier?

    Allegedly, he shouted them down on live TV?

    Yet he is considered to be on the Right of politics?

    Would most posters on AJB consider themselves to be on the right of Bill O'Reilly?

    I can Wiki and You Tube him but between the fors and againsts I wanted the intelligent informed opinion of the posters on this site to contextualize the raw data. I seek your opinion. I make no judgment on anything. I'm just trying to reconcile what I have read with what appears to be the facts - it is difficult in this case.
  • Dan SameDan Same Victoria, AustraliaPosts: 6,054MI6 Agent
    edited May 2007
    TOOTS wrote:
    Yet he is considered to be on the Right of politics?

    Would most posters on AJB consider themselves to be on the right of Bill O'Reilly?
    What do you mean by Right? I most certainly am on the left of him. No matter what one may think of O'Reilly, I can't imagine anybody describing him as either left-wing or a liberal. ?:)
    "He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Death of a Salesman
  • TOOTSTOOTS Posts: 114MI6 Agent
    Just that he comes across as a bit of a Hanoi Jane - shouting down the children of 9/11 victims and abusing the parent of a slain Iraq War soldier. He doesn't sound very right wing - if, of course, he actually did those things.
  • Dan SameDan Same Victoria, AustraliaPosts: 6,054MI6 Agent
    edited May 2007
    TOOTS wrote:
    Just that he comes across as a bit of a Hanoi Jane - shouting down the children of 9/11 victims and abusing the parent of a slain Iraq War soldier. He doesn't sound very right wing - if, of course, he actually did those things.
    I should probably depart this thread as it's getting into real political waters, but his antics does not strike me as the antics of a left-winger. {:) (However, to be fair, they are not different from the antics of an extreme left-winger. So, considering that O'Reilly is arguably, from a rhetorical point of view, an extremist, perhaps they are the antics of an extremist, ideological or rhetorical.)
    "He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Death of a Salesman
  • TOOTSTOOTS Posts: 114MI6 Agent
    But my question is

    Did he actually do those things?
    On live TV?

    I don't know what to believe. If so, why?
    If not, then it's just bad reporting.
  • HardyboyHardyboy Posts: 5,882Chief of Staff
    TOOTS wrote:
    Did he actually do those things?
    On live TV?

    I think the answer is yes and no. The mother in question is Cindy Sheehan, who is an extremely controversial figure because of her anti-war activities. O'Reilly, to my knowledge, has never confronted her on his show, but he has essentially called her a tool of the left wing. The child of the 9/11 victim is also a war protestor, and O'Reilly did get into a shouting match with him on TV.

    Normally I'm not a fan of Wikipedia, but there's some information on O'Reilly's controversies that is cited and pretty accurate. With this link you can go directly to what he's said about Sheehan; and if you scroll down a bit to "Jeremy Glick" you'll see his exchange with the son of the 9/11 victim.


    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_O'Reilly_controversies#Cindy_Sheehan

    (NOTE: I see this doesn't link properly. I suggest you do a cut and paste into your browser. Happy reading!)
    Vox clamantis in deserto
  • Lazenby880Lazenby880 LondonPosts: 525MI6 Agent
    edited May 2007
    TOOTS wrote:
    Just that he comes across as a bit of a Hanoi Jane - shouting down the children of 9/11 victims and abusing the parent of a slain Iraq War soldier. He doesn't sound very right wing - if, of course, he actually did those things.
    Mr O'Reilly is not left-wing at all, if one can be so arbitrary as to apply such appellations when it comes to matters such as war (right-wing, for instance, surely covers American neoconservatives and paleoconservatives, groups with generally rather different views on the issue).

    The reason Mr O'Reilly shouted at the son of a September 11th victim was because said son had signed an anti-war petition. Glick, the son, also pointed out that the US had supported the Afghan mujahideen in their fight against the Soviets. Mr O'Reilly, therefore, was shouting at Glick from a 'right-wing' perspective, in the sense that Mr O'Reilly evidently felt that Glick was propagating 'far left' views.

    Again, far from being a 'Hanoi Jane', the reason he is a critic of Cindy Sheehan is because she campaigns against the war in which her son died.

    I am sure Mr O'Reilly would be somewhat offended at being described as 'left-wing', TOOTS. Of course, to pigeon-hole someone as 'left-wing' or 'right-wing' is not really helpful anyway as such generalisations do not take into account the nuances in political views.
  • Napoleon PluralNapoleon Plural LondonPosts: 10,280MI6 Agent
    Guess that's true in the US. One dodgy line of attack the Republicans used against the Dems was that they had brought America into every war it had ever had, eg WW2 and Vietnam in particular. Arguably because of the liberal interventionism to do good, or maybe just by coincidence.

    But the neocon agenda is to intervene in other state's affairs (for the better) and that means Bush has gone to war over Afghanistan and Iraq, prompted by 9/11.

    So the roles have reversed a bit, except that Republicans perhaps do the my country right or wrong bit once a war gets going. Always sense that it was Left v Right in Vietnam, despite the Dems kicking it off.

    (Goes off to play that Billy Joel track...)
    "This is where we leave you Mr Bond."

    Roger Moore 1927-2017
  • NightshooterNightshooter In bed with SolitairePosts: 2,917MI6 Agent
    O'Reilly is amusing to watch because he loves himself so much. He also recently has used his TV show to get laid (he has some moderately attractive idiot of a woman come on the show and talk about the body language of famous people), but you have to respect the backbone he has. He has no fear of saying outlandish things, and in this world where everyone is so afraid of saying anything remotely un-PC, his honesty is refreshing, if misguided.
  • TOOTSTOOTS Posts: 114MI6 Agent
    edited May 2007
    Lazenby880 wrote:
    TOOTS wrote:
    Just that he comes across as a bit of a Hanoi Jane - shouting down the children of 9/11 victims and abusing the parent of a slain Iraq War soldier. He doesn't sound very right wing - if, of course, he actually did those things.
    Mr O'Reilly is not left-wing at all, if one can be so arbitrary as to apply such appellations when it comes to matters such as war (right-wing, for instance, surely covers American neoconservatives and paleoconservatives, groups with generally rather different views on the issue).

    The reason Mr O'Reilly shouted at the son of a September 11th victim was because said son had signed an anti-war petition. Glick, the son, also pointed out that the US had supported the Afghan mujahideen in their fight against the Soviets. Mr O'Reilly, therefore, was shouting at Glick from a 'right-wing' perspective, in the sense that Mr O'Reilly evidently felt that Glick was propagating 'far left' views.

    Again, far from being a 'Hanoi Jane', the reason he is a critic of Cindy Sheehan is because she campaigns against the war in which her son died.

    I am sure Mr O'Reilly would be somewhat offended at being described as 'left-wing', TOOTS. Of course, to pigeon-hole someone as 'left-wing' or 'right-wing' is not really helpful anyway as such generalisations do not take into account the nuances in political views.

    What an excellent, eloquent and balanced post, Lazenby880. Thanks for clearing that up. NOW, I understand. I must have got the wrong end of the stick.

    Thanks to everyone for helping someone out. Nice to see a measured debate without people getting thin-skinned and oversensitive and people actually reading the posts. These types of threads are always tricky but I'm grateful people took the thread in the spirit it was intended. AJB can be a sophisticated debating forum.

    Thanks everyone.
    Napoleon Plural wrote:
    (Goes off to play that Billy Joel track...)

    Good call - we didn't start the fire!

    GOODNIGHT SAIGON

    We met as soul mates
    On Parris Island
    We left as inmates
    From an asylum
    And we were sharp
    As sharp as knives
    And we were so gung ho
    To lay down our lives

    We came in spastic
    Like tameless horses
    We left in plastic
    As numbered corpses
    And we learned fast
    To travel light
    Our arms were heavy
    But our bellies were tight

    We had no home front
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    Remember Charlie
    Remember Baker
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    And who was right?
    It didn't matter in the thick of the fight

    We held the day
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    On Parris Island

    We held the coastline
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    And they were sharp
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    They heard the hum of our motors
    They counted the rotors
    And waited for us to arrive
    And we would all go down together
    We said we'd all go down together
    Yes we would all go down together

    by Billy Joel from The Nylon Curtain (1982)
  • MoniqueMonique USAPosts: 696MI6 Agent
    All you had to do was watch the clip I linked in my earlier post!! :s The conversation with Jeremy Glick was right there..and yes, he did it on live TV.
  • TOOTSTOOTS Posts: 114MI6 Agent
    Monique wrote:
    All you had to do was watch the clip I linked in my earlier post!! :s The conversation with Jeremy Glick was right there..and yes, he did it on live TV.
    I did thanks Monique.
  • JennyFlexFanJennyFlexFan Posts: 1,497MI6 Agent
    I like O'Reilly, a shock that Tee Hee doesn't! Yes, he can be self-righteous, but many political pundits get that way because it's their job and it just compounds.

    I love it when he puts people in their places, especially the vile Rosie O'Donnell, who is enemies with the flaxon-haired beauty known as Elisabeth Hasselbeck.
  • Klaus HergescheimerKlaus Hergescheimer Posts: 332MI6 Agent
    Dan Same wrote:
    I'm a liberal

    You mean a socialist who has hijacked the title "liberal" in order to sound more mainstream?
  • taitytaity Posts: 702MI6 Agent
    Dan Same wrote:
    Tee Hee wrote:
    Personally, I'm not a huge fan of O'Reilly.
    I thought you were a conservative? :o :)) I don't like O' Reilly at all, not just because I'm a liberal (although he is not the most conservative commentator out there) but also because he his rhetoric is so inflammoratory. If someone disagrees with him, they must be anti-American or a traiter.

    Oi Dan, did you see them take the **** out of him on the Chaser?
  • Dan SameDan Same Victoria, AustraliaPosts: 6,054MI6 Agent
    edited May 2007
    taity wrote:
    Oi Dan, did you see them take the **** out of him on the Chaser?
    I did. It was hilarious. :D I love The Chaser however I don't have the opportunity to watch them that I once did. Apparently they might make a film. It could be very interesting. ;)
    "He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Death of a Salesman
  • darenhatdarenhat The Old PuebloPosts: 2,029Quartermasters
    Bill O'Reilly is the William Shatner of news...you have to take him with a grain of salt. The show is really just a platform to air his opinions (whether they're right or wrong) and to give viewers who agree with him a little bit of airtime to mollify themselve. I don't see how people who happen to have a different POV can consider the show a geniune platform for discussion. To be honest, I don't have any sympathy for anyone who gets 'verbally assualted' on his show because they should be expecting it. (of course, if you decline to appear on his show, then he'll verbally assault you for that). I would watch the show and just laugh, and since I tend to lean towards the right in the US political spectrum, I sometimes find his 'talking points' interesting.

    The bottom line is it's a 'sensational' political commentary that's supposed to drive you up the wall. After all, isn't that what politics are for?
  • Dan SameDan Same Victoria, AustraliaPosts: 6,054MI6 Agent
    darenhat wrote:
    To be honest, I don't have any sympathy for anyone who gets 'verbally assualted' on his show because they should be expecting it. (of course, if you decline to appear on his show, then he'll verbally assault you for that).
    Certainly, those who appear on his show should expect to get attacked, but does it make it less pathetic what he does?
    darenhat wrote:
    The bottom line is it's a 'sensational' political commentary that's supposed to drive you up the wall. After all, isn't that what politics are for?
    No, I don't think so. I think that within politics, people should be encouraged to have intelligent discussions, without attacking anybody who agree with them. Perhaps it's an idealistic view, but I don't think that what O'Reilly does (and he isn't unique) has any benefit whatsoever.
    "He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Death of a Salesman
  • darenhatdarenhat The Old PuebloPosts: 2,029Quartermasters
    Dan Same wrote:
    darenhat wrote:
    The bottom line is it's a 'sensational' political commentary that's supposed to drive you up the wall. After all, isn't that what politics are for?
    No, I don't think so. I think that within politics, people should be encouraged to have intelligent discussions, without attacking anybody who agree with them. Perhaps it's an idealistic view, but I don't think that what O'Reilly does (and he isn't unique) has any benefit whatsoever.

    The show does have a benefit which is to emotionally appeal to those who agree with him and to let them relish the irritation he causes to those who don't. Is that beneficial to the topic being discussed? No not really. But there are some who reap a benefit...which speaks to the longevity of the program. Becuase his show is not the forum for 'intelligent' discussion of political topics does not mean that it has no purpose. The same could be said for The Daily Show.
  • Dan SameDan Same Victoria, AustraliaPosts: 6,054MI6 Agent
    darenhat wrote:
    The show does have a benefit which is to emotionally appeal to those who agree with him and to let them relish the irritation he causes to those who don't. Is that beneficial to the topic being discussed? No not really. But there are some who reap a benefit...which speaks to the longevity of the program. Becuase his show is not the forum for 'intelligent' discussion of political topics does not mean that it has no purpose. The same could be said for The Daily Show.
    I don't think one can really compare The O'Reilly Factor to The Daily Show. For one thing, The Daily Show is on a comedy channel which The O'Reilly Factor is not.

    That said, yes, viewers of The O'Reilly Factor would feel that it has benefits. However, in my view, it does not. Does that mean that I think it should be taken off the air? Of course not. Nor does it mean that I will refuse to be friends with someone who happened to like the show. ;) What it does mean is that I simply have no desire to ever watch it (provided that I actually have the opportunity to do so.) ;)
    "He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Death of a Salesman
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