Newsflash: Forget all that controversy surrounding CNN’s Latinos in America series earlier this fall (CNN came under heavy fire for keeping incendiary host Lou Dobbs as a mainstream news anchor while trying to reach out to Latino audiences). Apparently, Lou Dobbs should now be known as Latinos’ “great friend,” according to… well, Lou Dobbs.
Today in an interview with Maria Celeste on Telemundo’s Al Rojo Vivo, ousted CNN anchor Lou Dobbs denied ever erroneously claiming that undocumented immigrants are bringing leprosy to the United States. Instead he attacked Celeste for bringing up reports that he aired on his show in the past. From interview (translated from Spanish):
DOBBS: Let’s be very clear: I did not support that report, in fact we corrected that report. And secondly, in fairness to me, I never said a word about leprosy and undocumented immigrants as you call them. My correspondent on our broadcast ad-libbed…obviously she was wrong. My only declaration in response to that report was one word: “incredible.”
CELESTE: You were also confronted with this erroneous information by Leslie Stahl on 60 Minutes and you said that you supported 100% of what you had said on the show, and that you were the managing editor of the program, and in your show, everything that was said was factual….
DOBBS: Maria, in the interest of fairness, would you like to tell your audience how long ago that report was?
CELESTE:That was a few years ago…
DOBBS: No, Maria, that was four years ago…
CELESTE: It doesn’t matter how many years ago, you never retracted…This is your opportunity to clarify that and once and for all put it to rest doing whatever you choose to do — an apology, a retraction — whatever you feel most comfortable with.
Watch it:
Nill continues by reminding Think Progress readers that Dobbs never retracted his statement, nor did he take the opportunity on Telemundo to apologize for demonizing immigrants in such an egregious manner:
However, Dobbs did tell the Latino community that he is one of its “greatest friends,” and he wants to work with them. He defended himself on the show by explaining that he is not “an enemy of Latinos,” but rather that the far-left has characterized him as such with its propaganda. The CBS website shows the 60 Minutes segment that aired in 2007.
That sleight of hand, I might add, is what is truly “incredible.”
We just got word that the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), which the Southern Poverty Law Center has designated a hate group, is holding a casting call in Atlanta tomorrow for a new web video that will change the hearts and minds of the average American.
Think you have what it takes to be a mouthpiece for hate?
They will pay $500 to “ethnically ambiguous” actors in their 20s or 30s, with no Southern accent, who can work with a teleprompter — to help them put a modern face on their extreme agenda and disguise their clear ties to white nationalism.
FAIR spends millions of dollars a year on online ads to promote videos like this on websites — including some progressive ones you know and read. So if you get the part, you could be the envy of “ethnically ambiguous” racists across the country!
Watch this to learn what FAIR’s like when the teleprompter turns off:
To help you out, here are some quotes from FAIR leaders. Try practicing them in front of the mirror before heading to the casting call.
John Tanton, FAIR Founder and Board Director, and publisher of the Social Contract Press, a white nationalist hate zine:
“As Whites see their power and control over their lives declining, will they simply go quietly into the night? or will there be an explosion?”
Today, we’re releasing a new video that features Congressman Luis Gutierrez unveiling his principles for reform in October, and which calls on all of us to help build the movement for real immigration reform:
We all know our immigration system needs fixing.
Immigration has been used as a wedge to obstruct progress on everything from the Stimulus to health care reform— even the 2010 Census. There are many skeptics out there who believe Congress doesn’t have what it takes to pass reform in 2010 – or that even if they have what it takes, they don’t have the nerve to do it.
This post is a weekly feature by Nezua, Media Consortium Blogger.
First it was immigrants from Mexico, now Muslims in the armed services. After the tragic shootings at Fort Hood, conservative pundits are verbally attacking Muslims and Arab-Americans, much like they have vilified the immigrant community. The complexities of Islamic faith are being glossed over and “Muslim Terrorist” is stamped upon any act of violence involving their community. As a result, nuanced voices are buried in favor of suspicion and violence.
Dr. Riad Z Abdelkarim loves and serves this country, but is lumped in with alleged and actual enemies of the state due to his faith. In an article for The Progressive, Abdelkarim writes about his sense of anger and betrayal over the Fort Hood massacre. He is angry that the perpetrator of such harm is an American and as a doctor. He feels betrayed because the killer practices Islam, which is a beautiful and inspiring faith to Dr. Abdelkarim. “The Fort Hood murders are a huge setback” to the progress that Arab-Americans and American Muslims have made to clear the “guilt by association” that has affected their communities since 9/11, writes Abdelkarim.
The Real News Network also thoughtfully examines the aftermath of Fort Hood. Host Riz Khan gives background on shooter Nidal Malik Hasan and explores the effects of the Fort Hood shooting. Kahn asks “If a Muslim commits a serious crime in America, is that crime seen as that much more deadly?”
The violent culture that many U.S. citizens attribute to Islam and Arab-Americans criminalizes everyday people. For example, a bit of Arabic script led to a frenzied media reaction when Texas border guards found “ski jacket with three unusual patches” in Hebbronville, Texas in 2005. The patches were irresponsibly described as “terrorist garb” by “right wing media,” according to the Texas Observer. “One [patch] featured a lion’s head, a parachute and Arabic script, another an airplane flying toward a tower and the words ‘Midnight Mission.’ The third patch read ‘Daiwa.’”
It all made for a “fine story,” as Melissa Del Bosque writes. But the results were not so dramatic. “Daiwa” is an ad for a “popular fishing company,” the Arabic is the symbol of a “defunct air brigade in Syria” that was in fact “anti-Islamist,” and the jacket more than likely bought at one of the “pulgas” (flea markets) located closer to the border. It is fortunate that the voices trying to connect Al Qaeda and Mexicans were not successful.
In RaceWire, Debiyani Kar reports on the Obama administration’s latest announcements that immigration reform would come in 2010. Kar cuts to the heart of the issue, reminding us that “it is time to pause and make the connection again between (im)migration and globalization.” If our nation is truly interested in addressing the roots of the problem, rather than passing sweeping reform every decade, we have to address this issue. Meanwhile, Kar also reminds us that migrants “are not waiting for legal reforms to take control of their economic futures,” and wield their own economic power.
This past weekend, ALIPAC organized anti-amnesty “tea parties” across the country — although perhaps “organized” is too generous a term for what turned out to be pretty weak events.
It’s not surprising that ALIPAC’s tea parties — 53 of them in total, according to the group—turned out to be what the media calls “sparsely attended.” After all, the anti-immigrant group’s “Unite Against Amnesty” Web site lists only 5,572 “against amnesty supporters.” (Here’s the Raleigh tea party, pictured at right, from ALIPAC’s website).
That’s over ten supporters of immigration reform for every anti-immigrant “tea partier.”
Nevertheless, William Gheen, president of ALIPAC, is convinced the silent majority is on his side:
The Obama administration and the US Congress need to cease and desist advocacy for any form of Amnesty legislation, since any path to citizenship for illegals is opposed by over 78% of Americans…
ALIPAC doesn’t provide a source for their statistic, but as we’ve noted, poll results that seem “anti-immigrant” at first glance are often the result of unclear or misleading questions. And when asked directly in a May poll, 68% of Americans said they did support a path to citizenship for undocumented workers.
And after that kind of publicity, what’s a humble talk show host like Lou Dobbs to do next?
Well, like Sarah Palin, Lou Dobbs has hit the talk show circuit this week on a reputation salvation tour: The O’Reilly Factor, the Today Show and even the Daily Show with Jon Stewart (who greeted him with a mariachi band) last night. But being best known for repeating the words “criminal illegal alien” ad nauseum (and being fired) isn’t exactly a recipe for success these days.
After the jump, a roundup of some of the best (and even tear-jerking) video on Dobbs’ sudden departure:
Newsflash: Forget all that controversy surrounding CNN’s Latinos in America series earlier this fall (CNN came under heavy fire for keeping incendiary host Lou Dobbs as a mainstream news anchor while trying to reach out to Latino audiences). Apparently, Lou Dobbs should now be known as Latinos’ “great friend,” according to… well, Lou Dobbs.
This post is a weekly feature by Nezua, Media Consortium Blogger.
So Lou Dobbs was paid 
