Bloggers Scrutinize Fox News' O'Reilly's Past Comments On Murdered Abortion Provider Tiller

Main Category: Abortion
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Article Date: 04 Jun 2009 - 5:00 PDT

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Some liberal journalists and bloggers are criticizing Fox News host Bill O'Reilly for the language he has used when discussing abortion provider George Tiller, with some suggesting that his harsh rhetoric incites violence, the New York Times reports. Tiller, who was one of a small number of U.S. doctors who performed abortions later in pregnancy, was shot and killed on Sunday while serving as an usher in his local church. On Monday, O'Reilly said that "clear-thinking Americans should condemn" the murder but also defended his past remarks about Tiller. O'Reilly said that "every single thing we said about Tiller was true, and my analysis was based on those facts."

Salon within nine hours of Tiller's death had posted video clips of 29 on-air references that O'Reilly had made about Tiller on past programs. O'Reilly has said that Tiller and other abortion providers conduct the "business of destruction" and that he "wouldn't want to be these people if there is a Judgment Day." Media Matters for America on its site published a 2006 clip in which O'Reilly said, "If I could get my hands on Tiller," adding, "Well, you know. Can't be vigilantes. Can't do that. It's just a figure of speech."

According to the Times, O'Reilly often draws particular attention because his cable news show has held a No. 1 rating for the past seven years. Burt Neuborne, a New York University law professor and a former legal director for the American Civil Liberties Union, said that a commentator's language, regardless of its severity, usually cannot be treated as an incitement of violence unless it includes direct instructions to individuals. He added, "It's important not to allow that to happen. It would have a dramatic effect on the ability to speak vigorously" (Stelter, New York Times, 6/2).

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