You know Rachel Maddow is becoming a big time player when the big shots at Fox News (Bill O'Reilly, Glenn Beck) start mentioning her on their programs. It shows she is making an impact when they feel the need to address her statements even as they try to diminish her (Beck by attempting to block out her face and O'Reilly by calling her madam and asking her what planet she lives on.)
The great thing is that Rachel answers them right back on her MSNBC show. And usually cleans their clocks. It is hard to argue against truth and logic.
No one can disagree that the revelation shown to the public by Maddow's interview of Tea Party backed GOP Kentucky Senate nominee Rand Paul (exposing his extremist Libertarian views on private restaurants being allowed to practice segregation) hurt his and the Tea Party's image. He quickly cancelled his "Meet the Press" appearance and has been overly cautious with the media since.
Massachusetts Senator Brown must realize her influence and appeal because he recently implied that Rachel would be running against him in the next election which was totally false and she repudiated (or should I say refudiated?) his claims.
Ms. Maddow also brought attention to the proposed Ugandan law where homosexuals could be killed just for being gay and the role of American Christian missionaries in the promotion of intolerance towards GLBT people. Because of her reporting, many Christian leaders such as Rev. Rick Warren felt the need to condemn the law. As Rachel has explained many times, she is presenting gay issues not because she is an out lesbian but because they are human rights issues. In any case, it is great to have a voice for gays on prime time cable.
She has in the past year become to the left what Glenn Beck was to the right.
Just as Beck was successful in putting pressure on the administration to fire so-called radical Van Jones, Rachel has brought to light corruption and fraud by Sen. Ensign (R-Nevada), Gov. Sanford (R-South Carolina), and Rep. Wamp (R-Tennessee) through her C-Street series.
Madam Maddow is also making a name for herself on NBC by spiking the ratings every time she appears on "Meet the Press." Let's hope the executives are taking note. The way she does her homework and exposes "phonies" reminds me a lot of the late Tim Russert.
Rachel's latest appearance on "Real Time With Bill Maher" created quite a stir with an audience reception that left Maher and the other guests feeling as if they were competing with a rock star. In her usual modest way she laughed and said she had a lot of family in the crowd. The "family" hung on her every word and cheered her as she took on former Republican Majority Leader Senator Bill Frist.
Another time I saw a video clip of an announcement at Smith College, an all-girls school in Northampton, Massachusetts that Rachel would be their commencement speaker. The students erupted in joy. She did not disappoint when delivering her inspiring speech.
Whenever there is an article or video featuring Rachel Maddow on the Huffington Post there are tens of thousands of comments rivaling the attention caused by posts on Sarah Palin and the feedback is usually positive (as compared to negative for Ms. Palin).
What is it about Rachel Maddow that evokes such passion and excitement?
Maybe it's because she is exciting and passionate herself, as well as highly intelligent, well informed, and courageous who, like Glenn Beck, knows how to use satire and light heartedness to get her point across. It seems that no matter what the subject matter or the attitude of whomever she is interviewing, she never loses her cool. And she has been confronted and tested a lot. Although she stays calm she also shows her passion and steadfastness. She is unflappable.
She does have opinions that mostly favor liberal or leftist viewpoints but that is what makes her appealing. As conservatives and right-wingers continually try to give the L word a bad name, she wears it proudly and makes liberal bold again. Even when she guest stars on shows like Letterman or Leno and wears her nerdy glasses and casual outfits, she is still cool. She makes smart and geeky in fashion.
In other words, Rachel Maddow is an original. On these late night shows she often displays her ability as an excellent bar tender. Rachel, you can make a cocktail for me anytime even though I am not a drinker. Here's a toast to you. I salute you.
Stanton Peele: The Incredible Rachelness of Maddow
MSNBC's Rachel Maddow has recently returned from Afghanistan. And, somehow, she got the keepers of the American flame in that country to answer her probing questions -- all of which led up to, "What are we doing in this forsaken place?"
Leslie Griffith: Rachel Maddow Takes Us Back to the Future
Sometime during the 80s, "sex sells" crept in from the dark corners of advertising and into the bright lights of the newsroom. Maybe sex sells some things, but smart sells the news.
For example: O'Reilley-Big Joke; Hannity, Bigger Joke; Beck The Biggest Joke. Now that's entertainment!!!
FOX doesn't like to talk about MSNBC as much, because they don't want to draw attention to what actual journalism looks like.
Beck is a grifter who uses lies and slight of hand to preach hatred to the uninformed and ignorant that listen to him.
Maddow is a highly intelligent women who uses facts in her editorializing.
If you think Beck the Grifter is saying something then you are delusional and need long term mental healthcare.
Beck doesnt have a clue about the constitution. Of the USA of course.
Whatever constitution he blathers on about doesnt exist.
Now if you have the courage to learn then read these links about the constitution and get back to me when you are rational.
Perhaps the single most disturbing thing about the rise of the Tea Party as a growing force in American politics is the frequency with which the movement's most notable figures have rallied the faithful with talk of armed rebellion or revolution, often invoking the Framers in support of this call to political violence:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/doug-kendall/the-tea-party-mocks-the-f_b_659488.html
A New Series Dedicated to Setting the Record Straight on the Constitution
To mark this year’s Independence Day, the Tea Party went back to school to study the Constitution as part of a growing effort to use the document to wage political battle—particularly over the confirmation of Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court—and to elect leaders who will remain faithful to the Constitution and its principles. As an organization dedicated to the text and history of the Constitution, Constitutional Accountability Center salutes this effort, at least in the abstract. We think the Constitution should frame our political debates and should be followed by our leaders, whatever their political stripe. But if the Tea Party wants to be taken seriously—and if it wants the media to continue fawning over it for its purported love for the Constitution—it should at least be required to make plausible claims about the words and meaning of our Nation’s charter. A close look at the Tea Party’s version of the Constitution shows that it bears little resemblance to our actual Constitution and could in fact threaten the constitutional values Americans cherish most.
http://theusconstitution.org/blog.history/?p=1808
The fact that people like Glen Beck, Michael Savage and Bill O'Reilly have bigger ratings actually says something a little unfortunate about the American public.
She is a true professional.
I'm SOOOOO glad she's on our side....Rachel's the ROCK STAR of Journalism!!!
ps. Her sub this week is hysterical. Sounds and acts just like R.
And while O'Reilly and Beck are busily "calling out Islam", our nation needs people to call out Anti-American Fascism.