Earlier today, the Weekly Standard’s John McCormack reported that the Huffington Post had asked author Jack Huberman to document quotes allegedly from Rush Limbaugh declaring that slavery “had its merits” and that the assassin of Martin Luther King, Jr. deserved the Medal of Honor.
The quotes were widely cited as real by several sports writers and on CNN and MSNBC in the past week as proof that Limbaugh was a racist who did not deserve to own part of the St. Louis Rams football team. But the Huffington Post has now removed them, saying the author has not been able to substantiate them.
[UPDATE: CNN's Rick Sanchez also, apologizes, sort of, via Twitter: "our bad."]
This editor’s note appeared early this evening on the 2006 blog by the liberal Huberman, who was pitching his then-new book, 101 People Who Are REALLY Screwing America:
Editor's Note: An earlier version of this post contained quotes attributed to Rush Limbaugh, which Limbaugh has since denied making. As is our policy when a fact in a blog post is called into question, we gave its author 24 hours to substantiate the quote. Since he has not been able to do so, the quotes have been deleted from the post.
CNN’s Rick Sanchez read the slavery quote during the 3pm hour of CNN’s Newsroom on October 12 as proof of Limbaugh’s “racist diatribes.” Last night, CNN’s Anderson Cooper declared the slavery quote “false,” and “not something he [Limbaugh] ever said. Sanchez may have been planning his own retraction today, but live coverage of the runaway balloon in Colorado pre-empted his normal show.
MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow cited the preposterous quote about giving King assassin James Earl Ray the Medal of Honor back in June; this week, multiple MSNBC anchors have referred to the pro-slavery quote as genuine. MSNBC Live anchor Tamron Hall, for example, on Monday afternoon asked, “Should a person who says there are merits with slavery be able to have this privilege of owning a team?” That was after Limbaugh had already said that he had never uttered such a phrase.
At this point I’ve heard of no effort to correct the record at MSNBC.
—Rich Noyes is Research Director at the Media Research Center.
Editor at Large
Comments Policy
Detective Work
October 15, 2009 - 20:14 ET by slickwillie2001Tracking down one of the slanderers:
The Search for the Wikipedia Libelist: http://www.americanthinker.com
"The quotes were added by a user with the IP address of 69.64.213.146. This address has been used mostly to make changes to the article about Rush, but also Karl Rove, Sean Hannity,.. James Dobson and Sara Palin from 2005 until earlier this year.
While others have noted this in various forums, no one seems to have made the connection that this IP address is used as a gateway by the law firm Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP (see here, for example) that all users from that IP address come from the pbwt.com domain.)"
Looks like a typical leftie law firm. Dick the Butcher was right.
Looks like Rush may wind up owning a law firm, too.
October 15, 2009 - 20:25 ET by R D HelmLOL-But if its employees are too stoopid to mask its IP, Rush may want to clean house.
-Dave
Slick
October 15, 2009 - 20:30 ET by FeynmanFanI see you're a fan of Shakespeare.
"Reason and persuasion are the only practical instruments against error. To make way for these, free inquiry must be indulged" - Thomas Jefferson
ARIN says its
October 15, 2009 - 21:03 ET by legacyrepublicanARIN says it is...
RCN NEW YORK COMMUNICATIONS, LLC
Slick, how did you associate it with a law firm's gateway?
I certainly hope Rush has
October 15, 2009 - 20:37 ET by samhermanmdI certainly hope Rush has his lawyers investigating this matter. I would love nothing more than to see liberals sputtering on a witness stand.
You got that right!!!
October 16, 2009 - 11:38 ET by Patriot IIOne humongous "defamation of character" lawsuit for multiple millions would just about get the lying clowns attention!!!
i like that
October 16, 2009 - 14:43 ET by mwill555Maybe he’ll end up with enough money to outright buy a team that he’s the sole owner.
The thought of all the liberal media, Jessie Jackson and Al Sharpton helping pay for it makes me smile
The well intentioned damage
October 15, 2009 - 20:29 ET by bigtimerThe well intentioned damage has been done with their filthy agenda...all of them.
The fight isn't over...not by a long shot...this is just the beginning, from millions of Americans out here who see full well what is happening.
We will not remain silent...no matter what you try.
'Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea'~Breitbart
"the author has not been able to substantiate them..."
October 15, 2009 - 20:29 ET by PrairieSky"Them" being Rush's alleged racist comments...Yeah well, it's kinda hard to "substantiate" something that doesn't exist.
Maybe Rush's threat of legal action is having some effect. It'll be interesting to see who else that has also repeated the false statements in question, will issue retractions or corrections.
"The problem is not that people are taxed too little...the problem is that government spends too much." ~President Ronald Reagan
Sky... I think some of
October 15, 2009 - 20:35 ET by bigtimerSky...
I think some of Rush's threats of legal action has had an effect...I noticed that late last night when I watched a repeat of that awesome Anderson Cooper's 360 ...I cracked up laughing with how phony it was ...but obvious.
By phony I mean you could tell they had to add the words we only report facts we check or some-such BS after Sharpton etc got done ridiculing/denouncing him.
'Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea'~Breitbart
bt...I hope they have...I'd love to...
October 15, 2009 - 20:49 ET by PrairieSkysee these lying scumbags get hauled into court.
Cooper's pathetic attempt to try to distance himself from this mess was laughable and transparent...Who does he think he's fooling? What a little pantywaist he is.
"The problem is not that people are taxed too little...the problem is that government spends too much." ~President Ronald Reagan
Who Else
October 15, 2009 - 21:21 ET by HockeyKidHere's a real howler from Denver's "Progressive AM760" this morning. After a tip on another thread, I put together an edited portion of the third hour of the show. Listen and hear for yourself how the host, one David Sirota, claims he has the audio, then gets hoisted on his own petard by a caller.
http://www.zshare.net/audio/6701721364d7648e/
Oh, and the audio he claims to link at the end of the show does NOT
include the two clips in question--it's just a link to a HuffPo article
with a number of other Rush clips.
"Beauty is only skin deep, but liberal's to the bone." - me
The retraction always comes
October 15, 2009 - 20:33 ET by Wall WatcherThe retraction always comes too late to be any good. In 6 months these articles will be quoted as fact again. After a week of no fact checking and 1 liar after another swearing its true we get "nevermind"
The Huffington post should have a cooling off period for lies. That is powerful that they have a time limit for printing lies.
Wall...You're likely right...
October 15, 2009 - 20:58 ET by PrairieSkyabout the retractions coming too late...But right is right, and the truth is the truth, and those who hate Rush will still hate him even after the truth is made clear that he didn't say the things he's been accused of. However, I still think that he should pursue legal action against those who have said and printed the false and libelous comments attributed to him. These people should be held responsible for their actions. Like I said earlier, enough is enough.
"The problem is not that people are taxed too little...the problem is that government spends too much." ~President Ronald Reagan
The damage is done
October 15, 2009 - 20:34 ET by 10ksnookerSue Rush Sue ....
10k... No matter what
October 15, 2009 - 20:41 ET by bigtimer10k...
No matter what tactic he takes in the end...it ain't over.
Can you imagine what his ratings must have been today with people being curious after the news broke late yesterday afternoon about him being dropped?
That alone I get a kick out of.
'Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea'~Breitbart
Limbaugh's purportedly false quotations
October 15, 2009 - 20:45 ET by CO2MakerFrom: Huff-n-puff & Co., PLC
To: Puffy Post Tosties
Re: Limbaugh's evil quotes
Be advised that you must take down all those Limbaugh quotes on our servers that are most assuredly true--or at least say things we are sure he thinks, or would think if he's anything like we think he is. Unfortunately, we cannot continue to publish them on our website because of the silly provisions of some loser libel laws, even though those quotes are as representative of Limbaugh's twisted conservative racist heart as we know they are. If he wants to sue us, well, we say, "Bring it on. Truthiness is, like, the absolutest defense."
I have been assured by Mr. J. Blair that the quotes in Mr. Huberman's book can be sourced, maybe, sort of, but not right away. So while we wait for confirmation of the obvious truth of them, please take them down from our main servers. But keep them near by.
Please notify our outside writers and contributors that they cannot say that Limbaugh said those things, but they can say "Rush Limbaugh has been quoted as saying, [insert quote here], but he denies saying it, but refuses to source his denial. So we cannot say whether he actually said, [insert quote here] or not until he proves the untruth, as he asserts."
That is all. Back to whatever it is you do here.
Too Little and Too Late
October 15, 2009 - 22:18 ET by richb313You have to admire the consistency of the liberal press. They came out and attacked like a pack of Rabid Dogs. Just like Rabid Dogs they need to be put down in the sense they need to be taken off the air. I hope someone in the Corperate Offices has a clue and realises the liability that this has exposed them to. Apologies are no longer adequate. The only thing that should satisfy the public is the same treatment that Dan Rather got and that is a quick exit, and don't let the door hit you on the way out.
Time and time again they have been caught not only in thier biases but in outright lies. If they did not know it was a lie they were incompetent and have no business on the air. If they are not incompetent then they knowingly broadcast false information to destroy the credibility of a citizen of the United States. This is not only a civil matter but should rise to a criminal matter as well.
This simply cannot be tolerated and must not be allowed. It demeans us all and actually threatens all our freedoms. All the participants should be forced to make an apology tour to every city with a population of over 100,000 people and then do 25 hours of community service picking up trash and apologizing to everyone they meet. After the tour they can get any job they want as long as it does not expose them or thier ideas to the public at large.
OK I know this will never ever happen, but I can dream, can't I?
The Damage is done
October 16, 2009 - 00:01 ET by NortoOF COUSE THEY CAN PULL THE QUOTES!!
Can't see the forest for the trees
October 16, 2009 - 02:46 ET by JakeMoThe sowers of hate have already planted their seeds. They can tiptoe away now and wash their dirty hands of the affair. This seed is already grown to join the forest of lies they've planted over the years.
If there were any justice, Limbaugh would own TW and GE when this is settled.
CNN Has No Ethical Standards
October 16, 2009 - 09:29 ET by BourbeauIf they did, Mr. Sanchez would be fired for his reckless comments. This is why journalism has deteriorated to the point of a ever changing circus act - no attention to research, no attention to honest reporting, no attention to constructive criticism, all out effort to jump on the band wagon and pummel an opponent regardless of the facts. It's time the likes of CNN, Fox, MSNBC and others demand standards of on-air hosts and hold them accountable for their own stupidity.
October 16, 2009 - 09:45 ET by jessieHToo little, too late. Just proves how the media is lying to the people.
Rush apologies
October 16, 2009 - 10:22 ET by east tennessee johnThe apologies provide the basis for damages since they occurred after Rush got bounced. Since the Rams will sell for just under a billion dollars, Rush with triple damages in federal court plus fees might wind up with 300-400 million. Maybe that can be used as seed money, with another group to buy NBC-Universal. Too sweet. But it gives Rush an outlet since msdnc isn't regulated by the FCC in the event the radio is taken away. Very very too sweet.
From now on, I will not watch ANY news show...
October 16, 2009 - 11:12 ET by jawebster1other than Fox News. I will not even watch other news shows even briefly during Fox commercials because I don't like being lied to. It makes my blood boil and my head explode and who needs the aggravation? Jim Webster
Have you contacted the NFL about this?
October 16, 2009 - 12:01 ET by cajuncocoaI just did; they have a contact form on their site
(http://www.nfl.com/c...) ... LET THEM KNOW HOW YOU FEEL ABOUT
THIS and get others in your email groups/social networks to do the
same.
----------------------------------------
Government's first duty is to protect the people, not run their lives.
--Ronald Reagan
Wikipedia... Please, when
October 16, 2009 - 12:41 ET by Six String SpiffWikipedia...
Please, when somebody cites that 'resource', I stop them right there. However, it does not surprise me that libs actually use that as a source as it it the manifestation of their wonderland they reside in.
Boy in a balloon hype
October 16, 2009 - 13:26 ET by Jerry MackI have the suspicion that the boy in a ballon story was hyped to get away from telling the truth about the Rush smears. Now they will consider it old news.
its too late-you did not do your homework-
October 16, 2009 - 13:30 ET by JIMMY1660lets see-the hollywood elite are pedophiles, all of them-because Roman is the poster child of the hollywood elite. how does that feel.??
BHO- THE PROGRESSIVE PIRATE
Was there ever any doubt
October 16, 2009 - 15:16 ET by chessplayerWas there ever any doubt they would`nt retract until the damage was already done? I mean, come on. We`re talking about the US media, here.