Libel-vation
When you have the nation’s top conservative talk show host communicating to millions of Americans on a daily basis, one would hope that there’s some truth involved. I got a phone call from a friend yesterday about the remarks that Rush Limbaugh said regarding Bono. Today’s New York Post (Page Six column) reported on it with a reply from U2’s publicist:
“October 12, 2005 — RUSH Limbaugh seemed a little irked yesterday he wasn’t named to a list of “ubersexuals” put out by an ad agency that decided “metrosexuals” are passe. The radio motormouth doesn’t generally engage in scurrilous gossip (that’s our purview). But yesterday, Limbaugh cited Pierce Brosnan, Jon Stewart, Ewan McGregor, Donald Trump, Bill Clinton and Bono as making the list - and then declared out of the blue that Bono has a mistress. The U2 frontman has been married for 23 years to high school sweetheart Ali Hewson, the mother of their four children. When a caller demanded to know what basis Limbaugh had in making his accusation, he replied cryptically: “You people are just going to have to trust me on this.” U2’s publicist told us: “This is so absurd it doesn’t deserve a response. However, Bono and Edge have been spending a lot of time together in New York lately . . .”
Anyone who’s been following Limbaugh for years knows Rush has never had anything kind to say about Bono. In 1994, just after Bono dropped the f-bomb after accepting the Grammy for Best Alternative Album for Zooropa, Rush went on TV the next night and went on for 13 minutes without commercial interruption on how much Bono was a “maggot-infested scumbag” and talking about what right does he have to tell Americans how to live their lives. So, Rush’s comments yesterday about Bono having a mistress are mild in comparison.
I’m just surprised that no one’s complained to the FCC for the clear case of libel here against Bono.
u2page said,
October 12, 2005 @ 12:04 pm
Just in the interest of completeness… I’ve found this transcript where, after being flooded with calls complaining and demanding proof, Rush issued a sort of retraction. Well, not really - but probably as much of one as he’s gonna issue.
RUSH: Okay, it’s half mea culpa time and half going to cover my bets the other way time. The person who confided in me long ago about the extramarital status of the rock ‘n’ roll super crooner Bono has just now sent me a clarifying note saying, “Ah, maybe that was just speculation. I wouldn’t say it on the air.” I said, “Well, thanks for telling me this so many years ago definitively.” But nevertheless I will retract it since I personally don’t know it and frankly, I can’t imagine anybody…It’s rock ‘n’ roll. I can’t imagine anybody being surprised, but that’s compounding my error, and so I take that back, too.
Whatever.
JennJam said,
October 12, 2005 @ 12:11 pm
Hmph, well, this IS an outrage.
I can imagine that when you’re a celebrity, making the decision to make a big deal out of a comment like that or not is a tough call. I mean, why validate such a stupid thing to say, but at the same time, does it seem odd to say nothing?
I think the publicist did the right thing - - comment about why it’s really not worth commenting about, and then ending with a joke.
AND as a U2 fan, it’s also hard to say if barraging Rush’s inbox with nasty e-mails would have the effect of making it seem newsworthy v. letting it go, as the U2 camp has done . . .
I think I’ll follow their lead . . . if they walked away, heck, I will follow.
p.s. So, now, after reading u2page’s post, I see that Rush pulled a Dan Blather, huh?
Interesting . . .
Idiot.
m2 said,
October 12, 2005 @ 2:57 pm
For the record, this should be Slander-vation … Libel is print-based defamation, slander is verbal defamation.
Now that I’m done splitting hairs, the publicist’s response was the appropriate one. Laugh it off and move on. Way more important things to concern themselves … and ourselves … with.