Whither Beck?
The King Prawn ·
February 6, 2012 at 7:30pm
What has become of Glenn Beck? I know he still has his radio show, but he seems to have lost a great deal of prominence lately. When he was on Fox he enjoyed great ratings and was in the news (and Media Matters' craw) continuously, but since he left the network I've seen and heard almost nothing from him. His online network GBTV looks a bit like jumping the shark. The 9/12 project, the Restoring Honor Rally, and other projects were worthwhile endeavors. He was a great help to the Tea Party. What is he accomplishing now? Has Beck marginalized himself? I know emotions were just as strong on the right about this guy, so what do people think of his loss of visibility and influence?
- Comment (49)
- · Quote
- · UnfollowFollow (1)
Comments:
Oct '10
Re: Whither Beck?
I didn't have television in the aughts so I missed most of what he did in that period. What stands out from the little I did see was a lot of over-the-top emotionalism based on very solid principle that I can't argue with. I'm not sure that conservatism is hurt by him being less visible. People that like that approach are probably still with him.
Dec '10
Re: Whither Beck?
Beck's broadcast from the Western Wall was fantastic. He is a true friend of Israel and as we say a total "Mensch" (literally 'human being' but means righteous good guy).
Whatever he does, some of us really love this guy.
Regards,
Jim
Jun '11
Re: Whither Beck?
Interestingly, I always liked listening to him on the radio before he did the gig on FNC. When he was on Fox, I found him a little hard to watch. The melodrama that made him humorous and engaging on the radio just came across a little -- what's the word? smarmy? -- on TV. I've listened to him on Satellite radio since his departure from FNC, and I find myself enjoying listening to him again.
Aug '11
Re: Whither Beck?
I've heard that same comment from a lot of people: that he was always much better on radio than on television. I didn't have the sort of office hours that would allow me to ever see his show regularly, but the bits that I caught here and there left me cold. And my in-laws . . .well, they are faithful Beck listeners and are planning to build a family compound off-the-grid somewhere in East Texas.
Dec '10
Re: Whither Beck?
Same here. Found his show on Fox hard to stay with it, and eventually I drifted away. He lost his spot on New York radio, so then he really dropped off my radar. Recently, I subscribed to Sirius (new car add-on) and now I find him entertaining again, in radio format. Sometimes his radio show is laugh out loud funny.
Dec '10
Re: Whither Beck?
I catch a little on the radio from time to time, but I really enjoyed his show on Fox because he did sometimes dig deep into the issues.
Aug '10
Re: Whither Beck?
Never really watched him, but have a friend who has totally given over his opinions to Beck. I think Beck is probably narrowcasting and his followers pony up about $10 /month. Doesn't take much at those rates to make a living . Imagine if he has 20000 followers ?
Any estimates of O'Reilly premium revenues ?
These guys are very important to the right, they beat the drums. Lord knows there are too few of them.
Nov '10
Re: Whither Beck?
Beck is still here! His radio show is as good as ever, and his own network, GBTV, is adding more and more new programming every month.The now-two-hour version of The Glenn Beck Program airs four days a week, often with very impressive guests. GBTV also offers news programming, children's shows, a reality show about emergency preparedness, and occasional specials. The downside, of course, is that one has to pay a modest fee to subscribe to GBTV. It's not on a major TV Network, so one has to go a bit off the beaten path to see it. On the upside, he is able to say and do whatever he wants, without having to deal with network "higher-ups." He definitely took a major chance -- it's a new, very innovative kind of programming. Time will tell if he is ahead of the curve or out in left field. But I would strongly encourage anyone to check out GBTV by using the free trial.
Mar '11
Re: Whither Beck?
Towards the tail end of his FNC show I found his 20 minute monologues self-indulgent and not particularly informative. I can't imagine paying to watch a two-hour version everyday.
Nov '10
Re: Whither Beck?
He is also following up the "Restoring Honor" and "Restoring Courage" events with a huge rally called "Restoring Love." It will be held in Texas, and the focus will be on providing service to those in need.
Jun '10
Re: Whither Beck?
I think you're a little premature with the obituary. GBTV is just one of his income sources. He's got a syndicated radio show, a popular news website (theblaze.com), a live event business, a documentary business, a clothing business, and a book publishing company.
May '10
Re: Whither Beck?
I was sure that after he left FOX he would be popping up in YouTube videos all the time. No internet show is going to be as popular as a TV show unless it is hosted on Xbox Live or otherwise made available for TV viewing. But why no GBTV clips on YouTube?
Nobody even links to GBTV on Ricochet. Hasn't Klavan been a GBTV guest?
I only watched Beck on TV during his first year or two on FOX, but I preferred his TV show to his radio show. The TV show was more scripted. Each episode was devoted to one or a few topics. His radio show, on the other hand, rambled aimlessly and often became nothing more than clowning around with his co-host.
However distracting his theatrics, Beck did more to feed the Tea Party movement than anyone else on TV. He single-handedly got many Americans to read up on the Founders and political philosophy, as well as to think beyond what Democrats and Republicans are offering. And he was the only person willing, like Steyn, to propose that the problems we face are existential, rather than mere managerial challenges.
Nov '10
Re: Whither Beck?
I prefer my conservatives in the George Will, Charles Krauthammer, and Paul Rahe vein; those who make reasoned appeals to the facts and history to make their points. I don't always agree with them on everything (except perhaps Professor Rahe - goodness, that is a man after my own heart), but their reasoned approach has the potential to swing the independents that seem to swing elections. Beck seems a good man, but he lacks this ability and seems only to alienate those who might prove otherwise persuadeable.
Apr '11
Re: Whither Beck?
I've actually toyed with the idea of subscribing, if only because I'm curious as to how well this format will do. I think GBTV is joining a few others and is on the forefront of something new -- just in terms of broadcasting.
I, too, tired somewhat of the melodrama, but overall his show was worthwhile to me. Being an amateur historian I always enjoyed his history discussions.
I'll admit I found him a bit irksome when he entered into the topic of religion, but I'll still admit he is at least arguing that it is a necessary part of our lives and our nation.
Dec '10
Re: Whither Beck?
I know he's not going broke anytime soon. I'm more curious as to his influence on the party and the ideology now. At first blush GBTV looks kind of like a compound in the Waco sense of the word.
Nov '10
Re: Whither Beck?
I don't often have time to watch the whole two-hour TV program, but the fee also covers the podcast to the radio show. I paid for that before he left Fox anyway -- so now I get a lot more for my money. The variety of programming really is impressive. I've subscribed to a number of different radio podcasts,and this is by far the best return on my money. He may not be everyone's cup of tea, but he does have an uncanny knack of seeing things coming that are missed by everyone else.
Mar '11
Re: Whither Beck?
I think Glenn Beck "Howard Stern'ed" himself. In an effort to have 100% freedom to run his shows the way he wanted, he took himself out of the spotlight. Howard Stern--he left over the air radio so he wouldn't get fined anymore. So, he went to satellite. And it's like he disappeared. It's like the guys who took Jimmy Hoffa took him away too. What Howard didn't understand that getting fined, bucking authority, testing the boundaries of the FCC was PART of his show, not a by-product of his show. So, when he went to a safe place, he took part of his show away. His show just isn't compelling anymore. He had to become part of a reality show to get in the news again!
Same with Beck. Acting SO differently from everyone else on FoxNews was a part of his show. He stuck out. He got attention. It was always: Can you believe what Beck just said? Can you believe what Beck just did? How can FoxNews let him do that? But now, it's just Beck being Beck. So, so what?
Nov '10
Re: Whither Beck?
I liked him a lot - even subscribed to his radio show online - but when he started talking so much about himself, he gagged me.
Nonetheless, he energized the Tea Party by threading together the radicals on the Left within and without the White House.
Apr '11
Re: Whither Beck?
The only thing stopping me from subscribing is that I just haven't time, nor do I want to sacrifice my ears. I've stopped listening to podcasts at work as my ears are telling me they don't like it. There's a low tolerance for radio / podcasts in the office so I can't play anything out loud. That leaves a little time in the evening.
I do agree that him being off cable tv is a bit of a disappointment. He was the Tea Party's greatest cheerleader on television. Even if I disagreed with him, I still knew he was firmly in our corner. That's a rarity on television, sadly. His new format grants him more freedom, but we've lost something as well.
Re: Whither Beck?
Well put.
I liked his TV show way better than the radio show. There seemed to be a lot of work put into it and to sit there and talk for that long about substantive stuff in front of a camera, and bounce around in a coherent way was remarkable.
The radio show is too snarky and sarcastic. It sounds exactly like the Stephanie Miller Show on the left. "A-B" it if you get a chance. There on at the same time in L.A. It's amazing.