Calling All Outrage Specialists: You've Attacked Bill Bennett, Now Go After Randi Rhodes

October 12th, 2005 10:29 AM

When Media Matters took out of context a statement Bill Bennett made on his radio show, the mainstream media were more than willing to comply and show outrage over his remarks.

But another radio host made comments even more explosive, and even elicited a response from the Jewish Anti-Defamation League.

NewsBusters contributor Dave Pierre noted that on Sept. 21, Air America host Randi Rhodes compared the evacuation of refugees in New Orleans to the Nazi transportation of Jews to concentration camps.

A caller was troubled that when they bused people out of the Superdome, they "wouldn't tell them where they were going." Rhodes responded that it "reminds me of a little visit I made to the Holocaust Museum, and I saw these cattle cars." She added, "So, what are you supposed to do? Just do a 'faith-based evacuation'? 'I'm sure he wouldn't send me to Auschwitz,'" Rhodes said, mimicking a New Orleans resident.

Rhodes continued.

"People were taken one place. Their children were taken another place. THIS IS SO MUCH LIKE THE HOLOCAUST. I can't even -- You know, it's like, you're not supposed to forget the Holocaust so that it can't happen again. And here you have people being loaded onto transportation vehicles, not being told where they're going, and their children are being taken someplace else."

The Anti-Defamation League wrote a letter to Rhodes calling her remarks "a perversion of morality and history," and added that "we look forward to your response."

Rhodes has yet to respond, and so have the MSM, whose members likely do not want to do anything to threaten the already precarious position of the "last best hope" for liberal kind, a talk radio network to compete against the many successful shows on the right.