Video: Beck’s joke about topless photos falls very, very flat
posted at 8:55 pm on March 1, 2007 by Allahpundit
This is making the rounds on the lefty blogs, with good reason. The guest is Dina Sansing of Us Weekly, who was on to talk about those photos of the American Idol contestant that are working their way through the ‘Net. Beck thought it’d be a good idea to slip in a jokey question about him and her maybe getting together later for a little photo shoot of their own. Result: one of the most painfully awkward silences you’ll ever hear.
And yet, I can’t tell if she’s giving him a cold stare or if she just didn’t hear what he said. He starts to make his “joke” while she’s still speaking, in a low tone with his own face turned away from the camera, so it’s possible she just plain missed it. Plus, she recovers quickly for someone who’s just absorbed such a rude insult. I don’t know. I hope she didn’t hear him … but I think she probably did. Humiliating.
Update: A reader in the TV industry e-mails to say that his position relative to the camera wouldn’t matter. There are usually no monitors for the guests to see the host during a remote interview.
Blowback
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It was like watching DeNiro in slow motion in Raging Bull, only with American Idol pundits.
Savage on March 1, 2007 at 9:03 PM
I lol’d.
p0s3r on March 1, 2007 at 9:03 PM
He pulls his punch with Olby, but he has the sack to take a run at the tab chick? This is disturbing.
Kid from Brooklyn on March 1, 2007 at 9:03 PM
Seriously. If you’re going to be a gigantic douche, why not direct it at Olby, who deserves it?
Allahpundit on March 1, 2007 at 9:05 PM
i felt that silence in my balls.
jummy on March 1, 2007 at 9:17 PM
I’m just guessing at the context, but it looks like she was saying (before the cut) there wasn’t a danger of nude pics appearing on the internet so Beck made his come on over and let’s take some pics joke. Seemed like a harmless joke, not mean spirited. And while it was ackward, it wasn’t that ackward.
forged rite on March 1, 2007 at 9:23 PM
Wow, one or two more like that and we’ll be seeing Kiran Chetry in that time slot.
Zorro on March 1, 2007 at 9:25 PM
This has been blown way out of proportion. It was a joke, check the context, clearly trying to point out the absurdity of her earlier comment.
Right Tracker on March 1, 2007 at 9:29 PM
Because Olby is sure to hit back.
Kid from Brooklyn on March 1, 2007 at 9:29 PM
Wow, Beck’s swingandamiss was so awkward it made my stomach do that thing like when your car takes a sudden dip in the road, except not fun.
Jim Treacher on March 1, 2007 at 9:47 PM
Yeah, I don’t get how Beck “pulled his punch.” What was he supposed to say? Give us a taste of your script, KfB.
Jim Treacher on March 1, 2007 at 9:50 PM
That was icky….
Dr. Gecko on March 1, 2007 at 9:52 PM
He’ll check into rehab next…. “I was drunk!”
Mazztek on March 1, 2007 at 9:57 PM
havent seen the vid yet, but the title here…
Topless… falls very very FLAT?
Freudian?
shooter on March 1, 2007 at 9:59 PM
Her point was completely stupid. His remark to her was that if she doesn’t think a nude phote is going to end up on the internet, he’s got some time and a camera and we’ll see how fast her pic ends up all over the web.
He slammed her good and exposed her polly anna opinion. The akwardness was because she thought he was making a rude comment and was taken aback. Like most shallow women, EVERYTHING is about THEM!!! I’d bet she didn’t even hear his comment because she was thinking about her next talking point.
csdeven on March 1, 2007 at 10:14 PM
I think she just didn’t hear him, or completely missed the joke/reference.
Boy you could hear the crickets on that one!
asc85 on March 1, 2007 at 10:15 PM
As I said yeaterday, Treach, swift kick in the balls. Beck’s response sounds even softer the second time. And this is Olby, who is unfit to carry Beck’s jock. You don’t bring a craftily worded condemnation to a knife fight. Not if you intend to make a vulgar pass at a tabloid chick the very next day.
Kid from Brooklyn on March 1, 2007 at 10:15 PM
I took it as he leveled a shot at her being naive about pics not showing up in the office. Me might have been better served saying “I have a bridge to sell you”.
Wade on March 1, 2007 at 10:21 PM
Superb work on your Report: Pakistan arrests Taliban’s #3 post AP.
Stephen M on March 1, 2007 at 10:22 PM
Hey now Steve, it’s TABLOID FEVER and you need to catch it.
billy on March 1, 2007 at 11:00 PM
Thanks, Stephen.
Allahpundit on March 1, 2007 at 11:06 PM
Come on folks, Glen’s not a perv.
Bad choice of words for sure, but his point is for damn sure valid. Anything you do or say can be recorded and come back to haunt you. I think he realized how offensive his analogy was; embarassed dip of the head.
BacaDog on March 1, 2007 at 11:11 PM
See how her smile sort of fades? I think she was stunned and didn’t know what to say. Ouch!
WisCon on March 1, 2007 at 11:12 PM
I’m assuming you don’t mean that literally (although it would be fun to watch). What was he supposed to say, specifically?
Jim Treacher on March 1, 2007 at 11:12 PM
AP, are you blocking posts that defend Glen?
BacaDog on March 1, 2007 at 11:25 PM
That was awkward silence. I think she heard it judging from her expression after he tried to move on. Icky!
thedecider on March 1, 2007 at 11:39 PM
Exactly. While it may have been an awkward silence due to a bad joke, his point was valid.
SnakeintheGrass on March 1, 2007 at 11:47 PM
It’s called “demonstrating absurdity by being absurd.”
Vinnie on March 2, 2007 at 12:24 AM
Am I supposed to know who this guy is? Beck who?
Benaiah on March 2, 2007 at 12:36 AM
Maybe he could buy some porno offsets.
right2bright on March 2, 2007 at 12:52 AM
It’s his brand of comedy. When ever someone calls into his show and the discussion heads towards anything sexual, he queues up the porno music and lowers his voice half an octave.
And he was making a point here… that she was being naïve thinking that such pictures wouldn’t end up getting spread around. He wasn’t coming on to her for kicks.
Mark Jaquith on March 2, 2007 at 1:04 AM
Not as funny as the Foxnews intro clip for POWERS from yesterday.
Bill C on March 2, 2007 at 1:05 AM
Why wouldn’t a woman be flattered by a remark like that? I’ll never understand them…
Halley on March 2, 2007 at 1:08 AM
Sorry, my mind was on the soldiers in Iraq…….. did I miss something here?
PinkyBigglesworth on March 2, 2007 at 1:10 AM
The joke was in poor taste, and the butt of it was not amused.
georgej on March 2, 2007 at 4:00 AM
That was a ‘put up or shut up’ message, not an on-air solicitation.
James on March 2, 2007 at 7:57 AM
I’ve never been impressed with Beck anyway. The man clearly thinks with his balls, not his brain. Pity they weren’t in the same room so Sansing could have slapped bitch-slapped him around the studio.
doufree on March 2, 2007 at 8:25 AM
Awkward silence? Yeah… but in my opinion she either didn’t hear him or totally didn’t get the joke. I think it’s the latter. I think because he changed his voice for the joke and spoke at the same time, I think she just totally didn’t understand what he was doing.
Seriously watch her face… It’s like she’s waiting for him to say something, until he breaks the silence by saying “no… okay!” Maybe it’s just me, but she clearly had no idea what was going on, and there was no look of disgust on her face. If she had been offended, she wouldn’t have just shrugged and chuckled after the silence.
RightWinged on March 2, 2007 at 8:42 AM
I think she was stunned. A reasonable reaction. Nasty little man.
honora on March 2, 2007 at 9:35 AM
Apparently a few of you here have no sense of humor. Geez, I’m really sorry for you, your life must really suck. I’m just saying…..
soulsirkus on March 2, 2007 at 10:00 AM
She was too lame to “get” his question. We should still make fun of him though, he’d want that.
TourPro on March 2, 2007 at 10:35 AM
Exactly what I was thinking. Beck made a valid point there, if you don’t like it, that’s your problem.
Chad on March 2, 2007 at 10:57 AM
What exactly was his point again?
honora on March 2, 2007 at 11:09 AM
A bit douchey on Beck’s part, but I seriously don’t think she had any idea what he was talking about. That’s a vacant stare if I’ve ever saw one.
What was she saying in the lead up to that? What was he disagreeing with her on? That’s the necessary context for the joke, such as it was. Need more lead up on that one for teh nuance.
spmat on March 2, 2007 at 11:23 AM
His point was that she is naive if she doesn’t think that nude photos of someone wouldn’t end up on the Net someday. Especially if they want to become famous, even for only 15 min.
In the interest of disclosure, I’m a huge Beck fan, but I even thought this point could have been made in a better way.
Troy Rasmussen on March 2, 2007 at 11:26 AM
He clearly intended to project the “Oceanfront Proprty in Arizona” to expose her naivete.
Yall are lookin way too hard into this…
BirdEye on March 2, 2007 at 12:27 PM
The problem with that is that going after Olby means giving Olby more attention than he deserves – that’s what Olby is desperately trying to do – it also means more people will tune in to see what this Olby guy is all about, and get a truly distorted version of current events.
Rick on March 2, 2007 at 12:28 PM
Curses!! Foiled again!!!
Hey, how ’bout that basketball team you got down there? Personally much prefer college hoops but these guys look like the real deal!
honora on March 2, 2007 at 12:59 PM
She was pretty confident about the privacy of nude photos when they were pictures of someone else. Glenn was trying to demonstrate that she wouldn’t be so confident if there were pictures of her out there. It was a “put your money where your mouth is” type of point.
In other words, you really don’t think nude photos find their way to the net? Then let’s get some pictures of you and see how comfortable you are with the chances that they won’t eventually be posted somewhere.
Chad on March 2, 2007 at 1:17 PM
Well if you say so. Let’s just say as humor goes, it needs work.
honora on March 2, 2007 at 1:33 PM
OHNOES! He talked about taking nude photos in the presence of a member of the protected sex! Fascist, patriarchal GODBAG!!!
I move that we stone him.
Real world translation: He tried to make a point in the presence of a blonde without using A/V aids and large, colorful diagrams. She didn’t get it.
Big surprise there.
Misha I on March 2, 2007 at 1:41 PM
Was that a valid point trying to be made? Maybe.
Was that a good way to make it? Nope.
Tacky, obnoxious, and offensive. Not intended to persuade anyone, or to really “make” the point. Instead intended to embarrass and offend the person you’re having a disucssion with… which really doesn’t seem like a good idea.
Well, not if you want anyone to consider you something other than a Jackass. It was a Howard Stern class move. If that’s the class you want to be in, that would be your call.
gekkobear on March 2, 2007 at 2:25 PM
Not a Mavs fan – screw ‘em. I’m going to be happy when they crash and burn in the playoffs (much like last year).
Rick on March 2, 2007 at 3:15 PM
I did not get that Beck was being sleazy.
Beck appeared to be calling the women on her lax attitude about photos of people who are naked appearing on the Internet, to which he made his statement that he has a camera, why doesn’t she come by and get her picture taken.
That is a reasonable follow through.
I can almost hear some leftist talking about how he or she would love to kick some conservative’s butt and the host responding with “Well, I’m here now, I’m a conservative. You’re so tought. Why not stop running your mouth, get out of your chair, stop talking about it, and kick my butt?”
Call them on their claims and their attitudes!
Call their bluff!
William
William2006 on March 2, 2007 at 6:45 PM
“gekkobear,”
Although I think his comment was within the context of the topic of discussion and the response the women gave, I do agree with you and other here, his method was tacky, offensive, sleazy, and potentially damaging.
He could have made his point by rephrasing the statement to something like “So, then you would not have a problem being photographed naked and then seeing your photo of you naked appear all over the Internet, and you would have not problem if this happened without your permission?”
Much more classy, strong, and put the ball back in her court, possibly drawing a response from her that would cause her to commit herself, or try the leftist, liberal way out, try not to answer, but beat around the bush, or dance around the question.
William
William2006 on March 2, 2007 at 6:52 PM
Glenn Beck is still the best thing on TV, even though he is still talking about Anna Nicole Smith. And he has Ashleigh Banfield on tonight – where has she been?
He’s at the Secular Islam conference on Monday, will we see any MSM there? I’ll put up with his lame jokes to get coverage of important issues like that.
ctmom on March 2, 2007 at 7:11 PM
That wasn’t that bad…much ado about nothing I say…
CCRWM on March 3, 2007 at 1:16 AM
This is vintage Glenn Beck…I really dig the guy and both listen to his radio show and watch his TV show…
He never forgets he’s a man when he’s around a (good looking and especially blonde) woman. (He even made some kind of flirty remark to Diane Sawyer when he announced he was joining “Good Morning America” as a commenter.)
Jen the Neocon on March 3, 2007 at 1:51 AM
That’s just Glenn.
Typical, blunt and straight honest. Very nerdy, awkward about humor.
I’ve heard several of his jokes fall flat
Chuck on March 3, 2007 at 4:03 PM
AP, this is a hell of an exaggeration. You have an ax to grind with GB?
kace on March 3, 2007 at 4:05 PM
Does anybody remember the Hardball when Chris Matthews made some remark about putting Katrina Vanden Heuvel on the back of his motorcycle? (It could have been some other fairly attractive liberal pundit, but the point remains the same.)
In his defense, however. MSNBC has been pushing the babe factor with Erin Burnett. She seems to enjoy most of it. Although I think Matthews she was probably creeped out by the the remarks..
When Scarborough interviewed her, he was just as lame as Hardball. He actually suggested that she trademark the moniker Street Sweetie because it’s been used to describe her. But Scarborough is a sexually overy kinda guy, so I’m not too shocked.
The Race Card on August 12, 2007 at 6:11 PM