Eric Bolling of “The Five”
As reported in this space, on Tuesday the website Gawker maliciously published a 446-page list of all the licensed gun owners in New York City. To add insult to injury, author John Cook engaged in some elementary-school taunting, calling the people on the list “a**holes.”
The matter seemed resolved until Wednesday when the co-hosts of the FOX News Channel show “The Five” compounded the problem by going tit for tat. Greg Gutfield launched the initial salvo by calling the Gawker staff “stupid wimps” (i.e., a “name” capable of getting past the TV censors). But then, the panelists – and FOX – abandoned all sense of reason and propriety by publicly airing the address and phone number of the website’s founder.
This column will not further inflame the situation by linking to FOX or to any of the sites that have carried the story and that do link back to the original FOX video segment. (For those intent on viewing the segment, it is easy to find.)
Instead this space will be used to express the author’s dismay at FNC for its actions, which are not just wrong-headed but wrong-headed for several reasons. On the most superficial level, it might be noted that two wrongs don’t make a right. But FOX News Channel was doing worse than just stooping to Gawker’s level. It was insulting its viewership.
Liberals, their self-righteous indignation notwithstanding, might have no qualms about forming a flash mob and staging an “intervention” in front of the home of a rightful (and until proved otherwise) peace-abiding gun owner. But conservatives are better than that. They live within the law, rather than use it as a punch line for an unfunny joke.
In presuming that their viewers would “go there,” FOX and “The Five” were in essence confirming that those on the right are as uncivilized as liberals paint them to be. For that, the network should be ashamed.
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Check again. The Fox Five gave out the phone number and address FROM the Gawker Website. Something that Gawker presumably wanted for people to be able to contact. In other words, it allowed people to contact Gawker without having to go to their website.
I stand corrected, but I presume nothing and seriously doubt in any case that FOX’s intent in sharing this information was benevolent. It is no more their place to “out” liberal publishers than it is Gawker’s to out gun owners.
Not a good move, especially considering that Gawker said its employees received death threats shortly after publishing their list.
http://conservativefiringline.com/gawker-claims-death-threats-after-posting-list-of-nyc-gun-owners/
Howard…You are so old school. I’d like to be there with you, but we’re in a different era. You ask for boxing rules to be brought to a street fight. (As O would say,’knife to a gun fight.’ I admire your idealism. Also, if it’s true that the Gawker name and address were previously published on Gawker, no foul.
Steven
Steve, no foul maybe but harm all the same. I just think we need to be the side that not only claims to have high ideals but has them.
well howard…I have to side with Steve here. The November elections have proven to me that “nice guys finish last”. Yeah I know it’s like a grade school playground battle but even the little kid has to fight (and beat) the bully once and awhile or he’ll never get to keep his lunch money.
Again, I’m with you wanting to have high ideals. But, the technology has changed. Someone could have done this with paper and pen, and thousands of man hours, 50 years ago. Now, a mouse click. Mr. Gawker thinks what he did (endanger a lot of people)was so aseptic, and, to boot, the right thing to do. After all, he did so from his living room, or office, and feels that he’s immune from any consequences. It was almost like a computer game. It was so easy and safe for him. I wish him no harm. But, people like him should start to take note that simply doing what technology allows you to do may, indeed, have real consequences. No one can force you to adjust your thinking, or behavior, to the new social network/computer technology, but don’t be surprised when the other side does, and does so to your great harm.
You really want to fight these people by saying, “That’s not very nice?” Good luck.
Steven