The Case Against Bill O'Reilly

From Media Matters

Bill O'Reilly is the host of Fox News Channel's The O'Reilly Factor and Westwood One's nationally syndicated The Radio Factor with Bill O'Reilly. He is also a syndicated columnist for Creators Syndicate and the author of five books, including Who's Looking Out for You? (Broadway, 2003) and The O'Reilly Factor for Kids (HarperEntertainment, 2004). O'Reilly is a former host for the tabloid-style news program Inside Edition (where he did not win a Peabody award) and a former correspondent for ABC News.

O'Reilly uses his position as the centerpiece of Fox News' prime-time lineup to serially misinform his audiences, consistently skewing his presentation to advance conservative viewpoints (though he did admit on July 19, 2004, that Fox News "does tilt right"). As Media Matters has documented O'Reilly's tactics and false statements, he has derided the organization on numerous occasions, at one point describing Media Matters employees as "the most vile, despicable human beings in the country." Media Matters named O'Reilly as its 2004 Misinformer of the Year.

O'Reilly frequently denounces "cowards" who refuse to face him on-air, saying, for example, "If you attack someone publicly, as these men did to me, you have an obligation to face the person you are smearing. If you don't, you are a coward." But O'Reilly has repeatedly attacked Media Matters while refusing Media Matters President and CEO David Brock's request to appear on The O'Reilly Factor.

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