Glen Beck in DC

[501]

[DC's 'truth, honor' rally tests Glenn Beck's power]

DC's 'truth, honor' rally tests Glenn Beck's power


           
By DAVID BAUDER, AP Television Writer David Bauder, Ap Television Writer – Fri Aug 27, 1:58 pm ET
NEW YORK – Glenn Beck, the man behind Saturday's rally at the site of Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous "I Have a Dream" speech, has built an empire around his own voice that grew exponentially with his move to Fox News Channel and President Barack Obama's election to the White House.

Beck has become a soundtrack for conservative activists and members of the tea party movement, angry and frustrated with Obama and other Democrats in a highly charged election year. Beck suggests Obama is a socialist moving the country away from its ideals of limited government. Beck's critics contend that he exploits fear with conspiracy theories and overheated rhetoric.

Organizers say the "Restoring Honor" rally isn't about politics. It's to pay tribute to America's military personnel and others "who embody our nation's founding principles of integrity, truth and honor." It also is to promote the Special Operations Warrior Foundation, which provides scholarships and services to family members of military members.

The event at the Lincoln Memorial — where 47 years ago King delivered his speech — is expected to feature 2008 vice presidential nominee and potential 2012 White House candidate Sarah Palin. Organizers expect some 300,000 people from around the country. Counter-rallies with the Rev. Al Sharpton and others also are planned.

Beck, 46, is a former "morning zoo" radio DJ who cleaned up after years of drug abuse in the 1990s and switched to talk radio. CNN's then-named Headline News network gave Beck his first TV home, and he switched to Fox in January 2009, shortly after Obama was inaugurated.

His Fox show created an immediate sensation, as Beck spun his theories with an emotional fervor that Comedy Central's Stephen Colbert quickly dubbed "crank up the crazy and rip off the knob." MSNBC rival Keith Olbermann likens him to Lonesome Rhodes, the rags-to-riches everyman who spoke to a nation before he was unmasked as a fraud in the 1957 film "A Face in the Crowd."

In interviews, Beck sees himself more as broadcaster Howard Beale, the "mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore" character in the 1976 movie "Network."

He was the driving force in stories about former Obama adviser Van Jones, who resigned after Beck publicized some of his past statements. Jones was linked to efforts suggesting a government role in the 2001 terror attacks and to derogatory comments about Republicans.

Beck's own statement last year that Obama had "a deep-seated hatred for white people" led to an advertiser boycott and protests from civil rights groups.

His Washington rally has attracted attention and criticism because it is taking place on the anniversary of King's speech and in the same spot. Beck has said it will be the moment when "we reclaim the civil rights movement."

His own Fox News colleague, Greta Van Susteren, said he should move his event. She said he should do it for sensitivity reasons, much as both she and Beck argue that an Islamic Center should not be built near the site of the World Trade Center, where terrorists struck in 2001.

"It does not help the country on so many fronts if we poke a stick in eyes," Van Susteren wrote on her blog.

Beck has said he wouldn't have picked the date if he had known about the anniversary. But he rejected attempts to move it, arguing that what he will say is consistent with King's "message of focusing on the content of a person's character above all else." King's niece Alveda King is scheduled to speak.

The size of the crowd will be a visible manifestation, beyond radio and television ratings, of how Beck has connected with people.

He was already the fifth most-listened-to radio talk show host when he moved to Fox, and he's since vaulted to third "with a bullet" behind Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity, says Michael Harrison, publisher of the trade publication Talkers.

More than his rivals, Beck has led the way in turning himself into a multifaceted brand. Besides the radio and TV shows, he goes on concert tours, he write books, he sells fans access to an "Insider" account for $74.95 a year and he sells his own advertising on his website.

"He's a model for a 21st century talk show host and businessman," Harrison said.

On his website, Beck offers access to "Beck University," a series of lectures. He sells hoodies touting his "9.12 Project," an attempt to recreate the national unity of the day following the terrorist attacks. He sells copies of his own Fusion magazine, so named for the "fusion of entertainment and enlightenment" that he calls his shows.

Beck and Fox colleague Bill O'Reilly occasionally bring their talk to stages with their "Bold & Fresh" theater tour.

And recently, Beck has begun a "morning prayer" podcast of inspirational messages that fans can access at 7:05 a.m.

On Thursday, he brought Father Terrence Henry of the Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio, to deliver a prayer — and promote Beck's rally.

"Like Paul Revere, you are spreading the alarm," Henry said.

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[Beck: Help us restore traditional American values]

Beck: Help us restore traditional American values


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By PHILIP ELLIOTT and NAFEESA SYEED, Associated Press Writers Philip Elliott And Nafeesa Syeed, Associated Press Writers – 3 mins ago
WASHINGTON – Conservative commentator Glenn Beck and tea party champion Sarah Palin appealed Saturday to a vast, predominantly white crowd on the National Mall to help restore traditional American values and honor Martin Luther King's message. Civil rights leaders who accused the group of hijacking King's legacy held their own rally and march.

While Beck billed his event as nonpolitical, conservative activists said their show of strength was a clear sign that they can swing elections because much of the country is angry with what many voters call an out-of-touch Washington.

Palin told the tens of thousands who stretched from the marble steps of the Lincoln Memorial to the grass of the Washington Monument that calls to transform the country weren't enough. "We must restore America and restore her honor," said the former Alaska governor, echoing the name of the rally, "Restoring Honor."

Palin, the GOP vice presidential nominee in 2008 and a potential White House contender in 2012, and Beck repeatedly cited King and made references to the Founding Fathers. Beck put a heavy religious cast on nearly all his remarks, sounding at times like an evangelical preacher.

"Something beyond imagination is happening," he said. "America today begins to turn back to God."

Beck exhorted the crowd to "recognize your place to the creator. Realize that he is our king. He is the one who guides and directs our life and protects us." He asked his audience to pray more. "I ask, not only if you would pray on your knees, but pray on your knees but with your door open for your children to see," he said.

A group of civil rights activists organized by the Rev. Al Sharpton held a counter rally at a high school, then embarked on a three-mile march to the site of a planned monument honoring King. The site, bordering the Tidal Basin, was not far from the Lincoln Memorial where Beck and the others spoke about two hours earlier.

Sharpton and the several thousand marching with him crossed paths with some of the crowds leaving Beck's rally. People wearing "Restoring Honor" and tea party T-shirts looked on as Sharpton's group chanted "reclaim the dream" and "MLK, MLK." Both sides were generally restrained, although there was some mutual taunting.

One woman from the Beck rally shouted to the Sharpton marchers: "Go to church. Restore America with peace." Some civil rights marchers chanted "don't drink the tea" to people leaving Beck's rally.

Sharpton told his rally it was important to keep King's dream alive and that despite progress more needs to be done. "Don't mistake progress for arrival," he said.

He poked fun at the Beck-organized rally, saying some participants were the same ones who used to call civil rights leaders troublemakers. "The folks who used to criticize us for marching are trying to have a march themselves," he said. He urged his group to be peaceful and not confrontational. "If people start heckling, smile at them," Sharpton said.

Eleanor Holmes Norton, the District of Columbia's delegate to Congress, said she remembers being at King's march on Washington in 1963. "Glenn Beck's march will change nothing. But you can't blame Glenn Beck for his March-on-Washington envy," she said.

Beck has said he did not intend to choose the King anniversary for his rally but had since decided it was "divine providence." He portrayed King as an American hero.

Sharpton and other critics have noted that, while Beck has long sprouted anti-government themes, King's famous march included an appeal to the federal government to do more to protect Americans' civil rights.

The crowd — organizers had a permit for 300,000 — was a sea of people standing shoulder to shoulder across large expanses of the Mall. The National Park Service stopped doing crowd counts in 1997 after the agency was accused of underestimating numbers for the 1995 Million Man March.

It was not clear how many tea party activists were in the crowd, but the sheer size of the turnout helped demonstrate the size and potential national influence of the movement.

Tea party activism and widespread voter discontent with government already have effected primary elections and could be an important factor in November's congressional, gubernatorial and state legislative races.

Lisa Horn, 28, an accountant from Houston, said she identifies with the tea party movement, although she said the rally was not about either the tea party or politics. "I think this says that the people are uniting. We know we are not the only ones," she said. "We feel like we can make a difference."

Ken Ratliff, 55, of Rochester, N.Y., who served as a Marine in the Vietnam War, said he is moving more in the tea party direction. "There's got to be a change, man," he said.

Palin told the crowd she wasn't speaking as a politician. "I've been asked to speak as the mother of a soldier and I am proud of that distinction. Say what you want to say about me, but I raised a combat vet and you can't take that away from me." It was a reference to her son, Track, 20, who served a yearlong deployment in Iraq.

Palin likened the rally participants to the civil rights activists from 1963. She said the same spirit that helped them overcome oppression, discrimination and violence would help this group as well.

"We are worried about what we face. Sometimes, our challenges seem insurmountable," Palin said. "Look around you. You're not alone."

Beck paced on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial and spoke through a wireless microphone headset. "For too long, this country has wandered in darkness. ... Today we are going to concentrate on the good things in America, the things that we have accomplished — and the things that we can do tomorrow."

In one of his many references to King, Beck noted that he had spent the night before in the same Washington hotel where King had put the finishing touches on his "I Have a Dream" speech.

Clarence B. Jones, who served as King's personal attorney and his speechwriter, said he believes King would not be offended by Beck's rally but "pleased and honored" that a diverse group of people would come together, almost five decades later, to discuss the future of America.

Jones, now a visiting professor at Stanford University, said the Beck rally seemed to be tasteful and did not appear to distort King's message, which included a recommitment to religious values.

Both groups heard from members of the King family.

Alveda King, a niece of the civil rights leader, appealed to Beck rally participants to "focus not on elections or on political causes but on honor, on character ... not the color of our skin."

Martin Luther King III said at the site of the planned memorial that his father in 1967 and 1968 "was focused on economic empowerment. He did not live to see that come to fruition." King added, "We have made great strides, but somehow we've got to create a climate so that everybody can do well, not just some."

Beck had appealed to those attending not to bring signs with them. But Mike Cash, a 56-year-old Atlanta businessman, found a way around that. Over his polo shirt, he wore a T-shirt that read "Treat Obama like a used tea bag, toss him out now!"

"I wouldn't have missed it (the rally) for anything," said Cash, who drove up with his family. "We are here kind of protesting about our government, too. I'm a businessman and I'm worried about taxes going up."

Many in the crowd watched the proceedings on large television screens. On the edges of the Mall, vendors sold "Don't Tread on Me" flags, popular with tea party activists. Other activists distributed fliers urging voters "dump Obama." The pamphlet included a picture of the president with a Hitler-style mustache.

LaVert Seabron, 80, a retired federal public health officer who lives in northwest Washington, said he was at the 1963 march and made it a point to attend Saturday's rally. He recalled King as a "great orator" and said "because of what he did we're here." Seabron, who's black, said he was heartened to see many young people at Saturday's event.

"It's good to see the next generation is still participating," he said. "We've been through this. It's good to see so many young people, because they'll have to pick up the torch and carry it to the next generation."

Regarding the Beck rally, Seabron said: "That's part of a democracy — everybody gets a chance to say what they want."

___

Associated Press writers Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, Hope Yen and Tom Raum contributed to this report

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America the Dishonorable? I don't get it. 

There were four Washington rallies yesterday. Congestion warning signs were lit up 45 minutes west of DC! It was a brutal drive at 11 AM.

I wish people promoting and funding these rallies would consider donating money to local residents. We are in a depression.

Wouldn't that be a more honorable choice?

[Poe]

"Tens of thousands," not exactly a banner turnout.  You get better than that for the cherry blossom festival.  It certainly wasn't the Million Man March.

Beck appeals to a certain audience.  That audience prefers talk radio to print news because they move their lips when they read and it's embarrassing.

[Rick]

Glen Beck has to be the biggest buffoon since Rush Limbaugh.  It seems to me he was thinking, "what kind of stupid shit can I come-up with that will ignite the millions of un-educated assholes in America to get fired-up about."  What are all these "freedoms" that have been taken away from them?  Certainly not freedom of speech, or the freedom to be ignorant.  Sarah Palin wants to tell America how to run their lifes and morals, but she couldn't even run her household.  I hear her daughter, who had a child born out of wedlock, is going on a speaking tour to talk about abstinence.  That is close to Newt Gingrich, who supposedly abused his wife and left her for another, talking about marital harmony.  What a bunch of hypocrites!

"Tens of thousands," not exactly a banner turnout.  You get better than that for the cherry blossom festival.  It certainly wasn't the Million Man March.

Beck appeals to a certain audience.  That audience prefers talk radio to print news because they move their lips when they read and it's embarrassing.

It was more like 600,000 and the million man march had 200,000. Actually it was the largest group of people in history to come to a rally produced by a individual. And I have to say it was a great event. The military love this man and yet the left hate him. I always know im on the right side when men and women in uniform support something.

A few of my pictures.

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It was more like 600,000 and the million man march had 200,000. Actually it was the largest group of people in history to come to a rally produced by a individual. And I have to say it was a great event. The military love this man and yet the left hate him. I always know im on the right side when men and women in uniform support something.

Hi SSVS, nice to meet you. Always good to hear others side of the story.....

I have never heard the count go that high! I'd like to know where you read that info.

Most estimates were around 75,ooo. The first one I googled came up at 87,ooo from CBS News.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20014993-503544.html

Glenn Beck paid this time around to have a satellite do a number count. And the park service says if you fill the left side on the pic which the people go beyond the picture that holds 250,000 people. The right side of the picture holds 200,000 people. And their were at least another hundred thousand behind the picture . When I took my picture of the people looking down at the Lincoln memorial things were finished and people had begun to go. Im a conservative atheist and I found the rally to be quite moving and it raised 5 million dollars for the military Special Forces families who lost their husbands.

Not my picture.

[501]

Glenn Beck paid this time around to have a satellite do a number count. And the park service says if you fill the left side on the pic which the people go beyond the picture that holds 250,000 people. The right side of the picture holds 200,000 people. And their were at least another hundred thousand behind the picture . When I took my picture of the people looking down at the Lincoln memorial things were finished and people had begun to go. Im a conservative atheist and I found the rally to be quite moving and it raised 5 million dollars for the military Special Forces families who lost their husbands.

That's cool, I'd like to read about that! Where did you get your info?

I can only find one source who paid an independent counter and their number was 87,ooo........

Well here are a couple of organizations that gave their opinions. But all I can say is I was their and to say their were just 87,000 people is just silly.

Glenn Beck's fans turned out in droves to the commentator's "Restoring Honor" rally at the Lincoln Memorial on Saturday, but just how many people came?

It depends on who you ask.

Event organizers, who had a permit for 300,000 people, estimated there were 500,000 in the "enormous and impassioned" crowd, according to the New York Times.

CBS put the figure much lower, based on an analysis of crowd photos done by the firm AirPhotosLive.com. The company examined photos taken around noon, at the peak of the event, and determined that between 78,000 and 96,000 people were in attendance.

Rally attendees filled six blocks, according to CNN, which compared the task of counting the crowd to guessing “how many jelly beans are inside a huge jar.”

ABC reported "more than 100,000" people in the crowd, while NBC Nightly News said "tens, perhaps hundreds of thousands" had traveled far and wide to be part of the event.

The Associated Press gave a conservative estimate, describing the "sea of people standing shoulder to shoulder" as a crowd numbering "tens of thousands."

Fox News called the turnout "strong" but didn't report a hard figure, instead referring to "huge crowds" and the "thousands in attendance."

The rally’s hosts, Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin, reported high estimates for the day.

Sarah Palin's Facebook page claims the event "drew an estimated crowd of 300,000 - 500,000," and Beck told Fox News Sunday he thought it was between 300,000 and 600,000.

But Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.), offered the biggest figure. Shortly after the event, the Washington Post reports, she said, "We're not going to let anyone get away with saying there were less than a million here today - because we were witnesses."

The National Park Service used to provide official estimates of crowd figures, but stopped in 1997 after being accused of underestimating the attendees at the 1995 Million Man March.

Beck jokingly stayed modest on Saturday, as he told his flood of fans he had "just gotten word from the media that there are over a thousand people here today."

Here is one more over head shot. Were on the left at the second row of trees about in the middle. Now that area was packed as the rest of the picture.  It really is a insult when NBC or CNN makes bogus claims like they do in their number count.

[501]

So estimated at a low of 78,000 and a high of 1 million?  I don't see any evidence supporting your claim there were 600,000 people there besides WAG. I do notice alot of green. So based on little evidence I can see where many would speculate especially based on aerial photos.

 

This is the promise keepers rally which looks much larger than beck's.

That area is no where near the size of where Glenn Beck held his rally. And it does not show all the people going as far back as the washington monument in Glenns photo. Anyways I put my two cents in and will trust Glenn Becks satellite count over the news channels I have not trusted since 9-11.

Glen Beck has to be the biggest buffoon since Rush Limbaugh.  It seems to me he was thinking, "what kind of stupid shit can I come-up with that will ignite the millions of un-educated assholes in America to get fired-up about."  What are all these "freedoms" that have been taken away from them?  Certainly not freedom of speech, or the freedom to be ignorant.  Sarah Palin wants to tell America how to run their lifes and morals, but she couldn't even run her household.  I hear her daughter, who had a child born out of wedlock, is going on a speaking tour to talk about abstinence.  That is close to Newt Gingrich, who supposedly abused his wife and left her for another, talking about marital harmony.  What a bunch of hypocrites!

So helping out our soldiers is bad. Honoring specific soldiers from three different wars for great sacrifices they made is wrong such as Navy Seal Marcus Lattrell a personal hero of mine. Read his book if you get a chance to learn what he has done for us. Trying to get Americans to live their lives more honestly is bad. Bringing together many different races such as Alveda King the niece of Martin Luther King is bad. Bringing together religious leader from a dozen different religions is bad.
The rally had nothing to do with politics of what freedoms were taken away. Which I would be happy to discuss in another post of the many that are gone.
People make mistakes but just because they are conservatives does not mean they are perfect. They make mistakes move forward and try to do better the next time. That does not make them hypocrites. That said I have lost respect for Newt a long time a go. Sarah Palin does what she preaches. She has raised a son who has served with honor in the military. Her daughter has made mistakes but please let me know what family is perfect. And I never heard Sarah Palin suggest you should live your life the way she does. She is proud of her beliefs and has no problem expressing them. And im a atheist so nothing any of them has said about their religion has given me the feeling they are trying to force it on me. I just respect their values and try to live my life in that fashion.

[501]

[That area is no where near the size of where Glenn Beck held his rally.]

That area is no where near the size of where Glenn Beck held his rally. And it does not show all the people going as far back as the washington monument in Glenns photo. Anyways I put my two cents in and will trust Glenn Becks satellite count over the news channels I have not trusted since 9-11.

Are you kidding? It's actually much bigger. Now you're saying Glen Beck's rally had more people than the Promise Keeper's rally? That's ridiculous. You should study the two areas a little better.

Here's some real evidence that shows Beck's rally to the left and the Promise Keeper's rally to the right. (outlined in yellow)