Bill O'Reilly of Fox News Channel's The O'Reilly Factor has been accused of sexually harassing a female producer.
By ERIC DEGGANS
Published October 19, 2004
There's no denying that it's an irony certain people will savor for a long time.
Fox News Channel pundit Bill O'Reilly - a guy who once fronted a TV special outlining how Hollywood ruins kids' morality - now stands accused of bullying a female producer into forced phone sex in an eye-popping harassment lawsuit.
After the specific allegations hit the media, delirious liberals began counting the days until O'Reilly might be shamed off the air.
As someone O'Reilly once graced with his trademark insult, "pinhead," I would love to see this controversy send him packing like Phil Donahue at a Bush/Cheney rally. But it's not going to happen.
His fans won't desert him.
It's a controversial conclusion, and one even O'Reilly himself hasn't made. "If I have to go down, I'm willing to do it," he said during an appearance on Live With Regis and Kelly last week to promote his newest book, an advice book for children. "I'm going to take a stand."
But my conclusion comes from seeing how those who support the nation's vast right-wing media echo chamber have reacted to previous scandals - from Rush Limbaugh's admitted drug addiction to Bill Bennett's high stakes gambling, evangelist Jimmy Swaggart's use of prostitutes and 20-year-old nude photos of Dr. Laura Schlessinger.
"I don't know anymore whether scandal automatically kills your career," said Michael Harrison, editor of the Talkers radio talk show trade magazine, who has followed O'Reilly's syndicated Radio Factor program. "Anybody who is a controversial political talk show host these days is subject to attack."
Harrison isn't sure how O'Reilly might fare if the allegations are proven in court. But if the host settles the lawsuit and offers a plausible explanation - for example, he was making jokes that were misunderstood - then Harrison suspects that fans of his books, his radio show, his syndicated column and his TV show might stick around.
"The so-called sins of Bill Bennett and Rush Limbaugh were addictions . . . (and) especially in Rush's case, fans felt sorry for him," said Harrison. "You can't really jump to conclusions about what someone's exposure as a hypocrite might do."
As the most successful talk show host in cable news, O'Reilly has become the face of right-leaning Fox News. Conservatives say he proves that a liberal-favoring mainstream media is out of touch with mainstream viewers; liberals say he proves that conservatives will watch a show that tells them exactly what they want to hear.
Syracuse University professor Robert Thompson said O'Reilly's survival may depend on whether his accuser has audio tapes. If such material became public, the repeated exposure might drive fans away and force Fox to take punitive action. "Rush Limbaugh and Bill Bennett . . . people see those as relatively victimless crimes, even though incredibly hypocritical," said Thompson, an expert on popular television. "But O'Reilly's audience will be much more uncomfortable if they hear any of this."
Interest in the charges and O'Reilly's response have already spiked ratings for The O'Reilly Factor, according to USA Today. Conservative media analyst Tim Graham, of the Washington D.C.-based Media Research Center, predicted that O'Reilly's biggest fans "will defend him no matter what."
Indeed, Graham noted some conservatives may suspect the allegations are an attempt to hobble the image of Fox News' biggest star just before a high stakes presidential election - a point O'Reilly and his attorneys made in a counter lawsuit, filed hours before producer Andrea Mackris could file her action and stand alone in the media spotlight.
"It just feels like a partisan trick," said Graham. "If you are left-winger who despises Fox, this is like candy for you."
Limbaugh remains a major voice in conservative politics, despite receiving treatment for an addiction to prescription drugs last year, announcing the end of his 10-year marriage in June and remaining under investigation for illegally purchasing the drugs.
Bennett just launched a syndicated radio show in April, Morning in America. Even Schlessinger has faced more problems for anti-gay comments than the 20-year-old nude photos of her that surfaced in 1998.
"The only way (O'Reilly) can hurt his career in an obvious way is if it shakes him up emotionally and he can't be the same performer," said Harrison. "After all, this is show business. If they spell your name right, there can be a benefit."
