Glenn Beck is the Jim Carrey of News Commentators

John on February 2, 2010 at 10:32 am

Here’s a clip from last night’s O’Reilly show in which my least favorite commentator (Time’s Joe Klein) goes after Glenn Beck:

I’ve been thinking for a while about the war on Fox and the personalities involved, Glenn Beck in particular. I don’t know these people beyond what I see on TV and read, but I’m going to throw out my opinion and you can decide if it tracks with reality.

Glenn Beck is a contradiction. On the one hand, he’s a former DJ who likes to do impromptu comic voices of various stereotype characters on his show (that’s not a criticism per se, most comedy relies on stereotyping). He cries on TV, or tears up anyway. His emotions seem a little too close to the surface. You get the sense that, deep down, he’s one of those angry, unhappy comedians. In fact, what I know of his biography seems to fit that image. When I watch his show, I often come away wishing he’d just lay out the facts and quit mugging the camera. What’s the opposite of gravitas? Whatever it is, there’s a lot of it in Glenn Beck. I console myself with the fact that the alternative, faux-gravitas as displayed by Beck rival Keith Olbermann, is far more insufferable.

On the other hand, Beck reads serious books and seems genuinely interested in big ideas. I don’t think its an act; I think he has a real curiosity. And some of his warnings, while dire, aren’t beyond the realm of possibility. In fact, just today you have the NY Times with a piece that sounds a lot like Glenn Beck, minus the voice acting. He does bring a historical sensibility to his show that goes beyond the usual bumper sticker references to the Constitution. I like that a lot, at least when he’s not mugging.

So I think you have two Glenn Becks (Glenns Beck?). One is a thinker, the other a comedian and a popularizer. In fact, if I could sum it up I’d say that Glenn Beck is the Jim Carrey of national news commentators. Just go with me here a minute…

Carrey can be zany (Dumb and Dumber) but at some point he also turned out to be a decent serious actor. He showed that in The Truman Show and Man on the Moon. But he also has those awkward moments when you just have to look away (Cable Guy, Fun with Dick and Jane). The point is, the guy’s a genuine talent, but he’s also a bit of a loose cannon. You have to approach him a bit selectively, because past performance is no guarantee of…you get the idea.

Now, a word about something I’ve noticed about Bill O’Reilly. Bill has had a pretty good run as the populist news anchor who closes every show with “We’re looking out for you.” Personally, I don’t want my anchor looking out for me anymore than I want my President doing so. But ever since Beck became a Fox phenom on the right, Bill has definitely tacked to the center. He seems relieved frankly. I think he was tired of taking heat from the left and Beck makes a handy lightning rod.

It seems to me that O’Reilly is perpetually threatened by everyone around him. I don’t know why, but every time I watch his show, he’s constantly condescending to his own guests and even his audience. In the clip above, you see him do this of Beck, referring to him as “a guy on a barstool.” Beck may be a lot of things, but he’s not an average guy. In fact, if Glenn Beck is the talent with surprising range, Bill O’Reilly is a lot more like the Hollywood producer who, after decades of working up the ladder, just wants to stay on top. Just keep pounding out the formula and guard success jealously. That’s all I see when I watch his show these days.

And Joe Klein? I continue to wonder that this fool has a job. Just how many years of unearned reputation did Primary Colors buy him? He is so spectacularly knee-jerk and hysterical. His only value seems to be as a kind of political weather vane, always pointing whichever way the current winds are blowing. Even his “serious” pieces for Time are easily fisked and shown to be knee-jerk reactions in not-so-clever disguise. In short, he’s an embarrassment resting on his laurels, the Nick Cage of news commentators. My respect for Time magazine, which is a venerable media institution after all, will jump up substantially when they finally figure out what a dead weight this guy is and fire him.

Category: MSM & Bias |