Thursday, October 21, 2010

NPR Fires Juan Williams After O'Reilly Show Appearance

Dave Weigel's tweet:
Irony of this situation: Muslims are going to feel much more uneasy when they see Juan Williams on planes
Juan Williams had long been becoming more Fox News like. Frankly, I'm tired of journalists offering their opinions. That goes for Anderson Cooper too. I just want to hear them report the news. They're not experts. They're not analysts. This is what Williams said on O'Reilly's show:
He continued: “I mean, look, Bill, I’m not a bigot. You know the kind of books I’ve written about the civil rights movement in this country. But when I get on the plane, I got to tell you, if I see people who are in Muslim garb and I think, you know, they are identifying themselves first and foremost as Muslims, I get worried. I get nervous.”

Mr. Williams also made reference to the Pakistani immigrant who pleaded guilty this month to trying to plant a car bomb in Times Square. “He said the war with Muslims, America’s war is just beginning, first drop of blood. I don’t think there’s any way to get away from these facts,” Mr. Williams said. Read more at NYT
Honestly, I don't get worried around people in "Muslim garb" because I see Muslims in my community and they're just normal people. They smile and grocery shop.
I'm also not prone to fear mongering. I don't live my life fearful of people or whatever. When you live at Fox News and you listen to all that garbage day in and day out, you're going to be scared of everything. It's like brainwashing.
Williams' comments were appropriate for Fox, where Muslim bashing is an everyday happening, but offensive for NPR listeners, where you're more likely to hear a show that teaches you something about Muslims.