Glenn Beck Launches GBTV By Comparing Himself To Walt Disney And Showing A George Soros Cartoon
24:38 – Cupp is now presenting a montage of interviews with college conservatives at Columbia accompanied by a hilariously generic “hard rock” song. It’s fascinating to see Beck and co. go after young people this doggedly, but, like their intended audience’s blazers, this song reeks of trying to hard. “I’m edgy! I’m a bad ass! Listen to me rock out! Also, we need to keep the government away from our top job creators! Rock on! Yeah yeah yeah!”
25:23 – Ah, that montage was advertising something called GBTV U. Interesting. I hope it’s as cool as mtvU. And by that, I mean I hope it’s filled with hosts falling over themselves to show how little they care. “Small government or whatever, guys. And now some generic hard rock music. Or whatever.”
27:09 – Beck talks about optioning a novel. I’m assuming he’s just talking about for his book publishing branch, but the book is already published. Is he going to be making TV movies?
28:34 – Beck: “So we’re doing books, movies, documentaries.”
He is! Oh, man. This is a real network to compete with other real networks. For real, Glenn, if you’re reading this, please let me audition for a role in one of your movies. I have a bunch of acting experience and I get along great with actresses!
28:46 – Beck on a new graphic novel (!) venture: “What we’re working on here is a graphic novel set in the future about our founders. It’s kind of a dark story. One where freedom has been snuffed out and the founding ideas now, suddenly, their popular in colleges because no one can read them because they’ve been banned. And people have to piece them back together and it’s the story of a revolution in America about 50 years down the road when all of man’s freedom has been lost. So we have that.”
There is a fascinating ongoing series of articles over at The A.V. Club where they examine different fringe and niche TV networks. Recently, they looked at JCTV, a Christian network that seeks to replicate all aspects of pop culture and filter it through a Christian lens. Whatever a young kid could want, be it music videos or Degrassi-style teen soaps, they’ve got it (only with more praying). It’s becoming increasingly clear that Beck is going for the same type of network. An all-purpose entertainment hub for a certain type of Conservatives.
This is interesting (and a marketing strategy that, in our splintered media atmosphere, more and more networks are going for) but I worry about a world where people can never change the channel because they know that they’ll never have to deal with a viewpoint that doesn’t mesh 100% with there’s. We already have that with the news. Is that where entertainment is going too?
30:21 – Glenn Beck has introduced GBTV’s “Comedy Correspondent” who is wearing a tuxedo because he’s totally wacky. Be afraid, Jon Stewart. Be afraid.
31:27 – Ok, snark aside, the correspondent is the well-respected humorist Brian Sack and he’s going to be hosting an upcoming show comedy show which he previewed with a bit about “Joel” not letting him call it The B.S. of A. (the title of one of his books which isn’t a bad name for a TV show in my opinion) and then some clips. While Sack promises his show will be “non-partisan,” merely being on GBTV is opening him up for a bumpy road. In fact, as my flash judgement last comment showed, this is going to be where GBTV inevitably gets some of its harshest attention. I really wish Sack the best of luck because he and his show will have to be absolutely brilliant for people not to rip it to shreds.
Forget college campuses, the comedy world is where there is a real liberal bias. And, you know what? There’s good reason for that. It is nearly impossible to make a socially conservative agenda funny. That’s just the way it is (if this was a think piece on Splitsider and not an already too long Mediaite piece, I’d elaborate more. Now I’ll just say it’s less funny to make fun of the little guy than the big guy). People are going to be licking their chops waiting for another 1/2 Hour News Hour.
ps. If you’re unfamiliar with that reference, watch these clips but…be warned.
This is an opinion piece. The views expressed in this article are those of just the author.
