100 People Who Are Screwing Up America

Last updated

100 People Who Are Screwing Up America
100 People Who Are Screwing Up America.jpg
Cover of 100 People Who Are Screwing Up America
Author Bernard Goldberg
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Genre Non-fiction
Published2005
Media type Print

100 People Who Are Screwing Up America (and Al Franken is #37) is a non-fiction book by conservative [1] pundit Bernard Goldberg that was published in 2005. The book's central idea is to name and blame a long list of specific individuals whom Goldberg implicates in making the United States a "far more selfish, vulgar, and cynical place." In 2006, Goldberg updated his book, releasing 110 People Who Are Screwing Up America.

Contents

Description and synopsis

Goldberg's book denounces many people—mostly left-of-center celebrities, politicians and newscasters—and takes umbrage at high-profile incidents like Janet Jackson's exposing herself "in front of one-fifth of all the kids in America under age eleven" during the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show (p. vi). It decries as "Hollywood blowhards" actors who call American politicians "Nazis" while praising "dictators like Fidel Castro" (pp. vii–ix). Goldberg's chapter for Courtney Love is simply the word " ho ".

Other people [2] (on the cover) include: filmmaker Michael Moore (#1), Democratic leader Howard Dean, reverend Al Sharpton, and rapper Eminem.

The book takes aim at "liberals [who are] snooty, snobby know-it-alls, who have gotten angrier and angrier in recent years and who think they're not only smarter, but also better, than everyone else, especially everyone else who lives in a 'red state'—a population they see as hopelessly dumb and pathetically religious" (p. x). While the book mainly criticizes liberals, there are a few moderate and even conservative individuals mentioned, notably Michael Savage and Rush Limbaugh.

The subtitle, "and Al Franken is #37", is likely a response to Al Franken's Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them , which contains a chapter entitled, "I Bitch-Slap Bernie Goldberg", focused on debunking Goldberg's previous book Bias: A CBS Insider Exposes How the Media Distort the News .

Reception

Favorable

Jonah Goldberg (no relation), editor of National Review , said the following of the book: [3] "Goldberg is no down-the-line conservative, and you are certain to disagree with some of his choices and rankings -- and probably also with his often salty language. Nevertheless, 100 People Who Are Screwing Up America is a rollicking and revealing look at 100 of the most egregious obstacles on the path of our nation's return to glory."

A review by Brent Bozell, President of the conservative Media Research Center, also offered praise for the book: [4] "100 People Who Are Screwing Up America is out, and it's a wonderful read for anyone not on that list."

"It's easy to presume that this is the conservatives' answer to recent published tirades against the Right by leftists like Franken and Michael Moore, but there are important distinctions," wrote Bozell. "First, Goldberg doesn't limit the list to those on the Left. Jimmy Swaggart makes the list, as does Michael Savage. Many in the religious Right will quarrel with his selection of Judge Roy Moore. All should applaud his choice of David Duke."

Unfavorable

In a review in The New York Times , Richard Brookhiser wrote, "Such books are part of the puppet theater of modern political discourse" and that "any clever and combative person could write 80 percent of this book, or its mirror image, in a weekend." [5] Brookhiser also questioned the legitimacy of the book's arguments, given that the successes of many in the list are made possible by the public. He rhetorically asked: "Shouldn't Goldberg's book be 270 Million People Who Are Screwing Up America?"

Conservative vs. liberal selections

Cathy Young, whom Goldberg praised in the book for her criticism of radical feminism, has argued that the conservatives on Goldberg's list are either "safe" targets who are not powerful or influential in conservative circles, or "tokens" inserted to create the appearance that Goldberg is not being partisan. She suggests that discredited televangelist Jimmy Swaggart, for instance, is a "safe" alternative to Pat Robertson, who is still a fixture on the Christian right. Responding to Goldberg's assertions that he is not taking political sides, Young questions why his criticisms of "haters" who "demonize" their opponents extends to multiple individuals on the left, but only a single conservative, talk radio host Michael Savage. Young suggests that Ann Coulter would belong on the list, but Goldberg only mentions her by way of making a favorable comparison to Savage. Young also suggests that Goldberg employs a double standard in defending Coulter because she offers invective "with a twinkle in her eye" while simultaneously dismissing the notion that some of Al Franken's statements should be taken less seriously because he is engaging in satire. [6]

Factual inaccuracies regarding rap music

Goldberg received criticism of his inclusion of rappers in the book. [7] The book attributes the creation of gangsta rap to the record label Interscope Records; gangsta rap had been around commercially for at least six years prior to any involvement from the record label. [8] Artists such as Ice-T and N.W.A both had platinum-selling success as gangsta rap artists before the founding of Interscope. The book claims that Interscope Records was entirely funded by Ted Field, when it was actually to a large extent—as much as 50%—funded by Atlantic Records.

Jon Stewart criticism

On July 13, 2005, Goldberg appeared on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart to promote the book. Jon Stewart, a liberal, criticized the list for suggesting that liberals who do not hold positions of power, such as Barbra Streisand, were responsible for problems in America, while conservatives who held powerful positions in the Bush Administration or Republican Congress were not held responsible for anything. Goldberg agreed that the list included more liberals than conservatives but responded that his book dealt with cultural issues. Stewart also argued that the book focused on a "culture war" he sees as largely "fabricated," and that declining rates of homicide and teen drug use suggest that, in fact, American culture is not as troubled as Goldberg suggests. Stewart argued that people who "say a bad word on television" don't affect people's lives, while government officials do. [9] "I wish smart guys like you spent less time worrying about Barbra Streisand and more time worrying about Richard Perle or Karl Rove, or whoever the Democrats had in those positions during the Clinton years," Stewart said. Goldberg argued in response that the culture is important and that he intended the book to raise the public discourse because many of the people on his list had turned public debate into bickering and name-calling. [10]

Responses

Some of those included on the list have responded to the book humorously. Cartoonists Jeff Danziger and Ted Rall both said it was "an honor" to be included on the list, with the latter adding, "Not only am I grouped with many people whom I admire for their achievements and patriotism, I'm being demonized by McCarthyite thugs I despise." [11] Entrepreneur Todd Goldman quipped that he "hope[s] to be ranked higher next year." [12]

Goldberg's book prompted a response from Jack Huberman, who wrote 101 People Who Are Really Screwing America (and Bernard Goldberg is Only #73) . [13]

Matt Kunitz (executive producer of Fear Factor and No. 69 in Goldberg's book) told the Los Angeles Times , "I look at my company; I think Michael Moore was No 1. I don't mind being in that group of people." [14]

Ten new entries were added in Goldberg's 2006 update, 110 People Who Are Screwing Up America. Among these are the white nationalist band Prussian Blue, anti-homosexual preacher Fred Phelps, spam mailer Jeremy Jaynes, former United States Attorney General and lawyer-activist Ramsey Clark, and several Supreme Court Justices.

Barbara Kingsolver responded to her inclusion on the list in her book Animal, Vegetable, Miracle . She joked about the inclusion and said that she was proud to be on the list with people such as Jimmy Carter.

The book was referenced in the manifesto of Jim David Adkisson, the gunman who killed two people and wounded seven others in the Knoxville Unitarian Universalist church shooting. [15] [16] [17]

Related Research Articles

Gangsta rap or gangster rap, initially called reality rap, is a subgenre of hip-hop that conveys the culture and values typical of urban gangs and street hustlers. Emerging in the late 1980s, gangsta rap's pioneers include Schoolly D of Philadelphia and Ice-T of Los Angeles, later expanding in California with artists such as N.W.A and Tupac Shakur. In 1992, via record producer and rapper Dr. Dre, rapper Snoop Dogg, and their G-funk sound, gangster rap broadened to mainstream popularity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">L. Brent Bozell III</span> American conservative writer and activist

Leo Brent Bozell III is an American conservative activist and writer. Bozell is the founder of the Media Research Center, an organization whose stated purpose is to identify alleged liberal media bias.

The Media Research Center (MRC), formerly known as Culture and Media Institute (CMI), is an American conservative content analysis and media watchdog group based in Reston, Virginia, and founded in 1987 by L. Brent Bozell III.

<i>Bias: A CBS Insider Exposes How the Media Distort the News</i> Book by Bernard Goldberg

Bias: A CBS Insider Exposes How the Media Distort the News is a non-fiction book by Bernard Goldberg, a 28-year veteran CBS news reporter and producer, giving detailed examples of liberal bias in television news reporting. It was published in 2001 by Regnery Publishing and reached number 1 on The New York Times Best Seller list in the non-fiction category.

<i>National Review</i> American conservative editorial magazine

National Review is an American conservative-right-libertarian editorial magazine, focusing on news and commentary pieces on political, social, and cultural affairs. The magazine was founded by the author William F. Buckley Jr. in 1955. Its editor-in-chief is Rich Lowry, and its editor is Ramesh Ponnuru.

<i>Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them</i> 2003 book by Al Franken

Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them is a satirical book on American politics by Al Franken, a comedian, political commentator, and politician. It was published in 2003 by Dutton Penguin. Franken had a study group of 14 Harvard graduate students known as "TeamFranken" to help him with the research. The book's subtitle, A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right, is a parody of Fox News' tagline "Fair and Balanced." FNC sued Franken over the use of the phrase in a short-lived and unsuccessful lawsuit, which has been credited with increasing the sales of the book, an example of the Streisand effect.

Interscope Records is an American record label based in Santa Monica, California, owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture with Atlantic Records of Warner Music Group and Interscope Communications, it differed from most record labels by letting A&R staff control decisions and allowing artists and producers full creative control. Interscope's first hit records arrived in under a year, and it achieved profitability in 1993. Chair and CEO until May 2014, Iovine was succeeded by John Janick.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alan Colmes</span> American broadcaster (1950–2017)

Alan Samuel Colmes was an American radio and television host, liberal political commentator for the Fox News Channel, and blogger. He was the host of The Alan Colmes Show, a nationally syndicated talk-radio show distributed by Fox News Radio that was broadcast throughout the United States on Fox News Talk on Sirius and XM. From 1996 to 2009, Colmes served as the co-host of Hannity & Colmes, a nightly political debate show on Fox News Channel. Beginning in 2015, Colmes supplied the voice of The Liberal Panel on Fox News Channel's The Greg Gutfeld Show.

<i>Hannity & Colmes</i> American live television show on Fox News

Hannity & Colmes was a live television show on Fox News in the United States, hosted by Sean Hannity and Alan Colmes, who respectively presented a conservative and liberal perspective. The series premiered on October 7, 1996, and the final episode aired on January 9, 2009. The show offered Hannity's conservative views and Colmes's liberal views incorporated into a current news story, or in conjunction with a featured guest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jonah Goldberg</span> American political writer and pundit

Jonah Jacob Goldberg is an American neoconservative syndicated columnist, author, political analyst, and commentator. The founding editor of National Review Online, from 1998 until 2019, he was an editor at National Review. Goldberg writes a weekly column about politics and culture for the Los Angeles Times. In October 2019, Goldberg became the founding editor of the online opinion and news publication The Dispatch. Goldberg has authored the No. 1 New York Times bestsellerLiberal Fascism, released in January 2008; The Tyranny of Cliches: How Liberals Cheat in the War of Ideas, released in 2012; and Suicide of the West, which was published in April 2018 and also became a New York Times bestseller, reaching No. 5 on the list the following month.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bernard Goldberg</span> American journalist

Bernard Richard Goldberg is an American author, journalist, and political pundit. Goldberg has won fourteen Emmy Awards and was a producer, reporter and correspondent for CBS News for twenty-eight years (1972–2000) and a paid contributor for Fox News for ten years (2009–2018). He is best-known for his on-going critiques of journalism practices in the United States—as described in his first book published in 2001, Bias: A CBS Insider Exposes How the Media Distort the News. He was a correspondent for Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel on HBO for 22 years until January 2021.

<i>The Conscience of a Conservative</i> Book by Barry Goldwater

The Conscience of a Conservative is a 1960 book published under the name of Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater who was the 1964 Republican presidential candidate. It helped revive the American conservative movement and make Goldwater a political star, and it has influenced countless conservatives in the United States, helping to lay the foundation for the Reagan Revolution of the 1980s.

<i>2001</i> (Dr. Dre album) 1999 studio album by Dr. Dre

2001 is the second studio album by American rapper and hip hop producer Dr. Dre. It was released on November 16, 1999, by Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records as the follow-up to his 1992 debut album, The Chronic. The album was produced mainly by Dr. Dre and Mel-Man, as well as Lord Finesse, and features several guest contributions from Hittman, Snoop Dogg, Kurupt, Xzibit, Eminem, and Nate Dogg.

Richard Timmons is an American murderer. He brutally murdered his wife and seven-year-old son, by decapitating them with an ax, and his thirteen-year-old stepson by stabbing him to death on June 8, 1997, at his apartment in Queens, New York. In March 2004, after being handed three life sentences, Timmons unsuccessfully sued the city of New York claiming police brutality on the night he was arrested. He also has the notoriety of making Bernard Goldberg's list of 100 People Who Are Screwing Up America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Denny Chin</span> American judge (born 1954)

Denny Chin is a senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, based in New York City. He was a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York before joining the federal appeals bench. President Bill Clinton nominated Chin to the district court on March 24, 1994, and Chin was confirmed August 9 of that same year. On October 6, 2009, President Barack Obama nominated Chin to the Second Circuit. He was confirmed on April 22, 2010, by the United States Senate, filling the vacancy created by Judge Robert D. Sack who assumed senior status. Chin was the first Asian American appointed as a United States District Judge outside of the Ninth Circuit.

<i>101 People Who Are Really Screwing America</i>

101 People Who Are Really Screwing America is a non-fiction book by Jack Huberman. It was published in 2006 by Nation Books. The book is a liberal response to Bernard Goldberg's book 100 People Who Are Screwing Up America, and includes criticism of Republican politicians including George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, and Rick Santorum. The book received positive reception in Publishers Weekly and The Nation. Reference & Research Book News called the book "the liberal polemical riposte" of 100 People Who Are Screwing Up America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gangsta Lovin'</span> 2002 single by Eve

"Gangsta Lovin'" is the lead single from Eve's third studio album, Eve-Olution (2002). The song features R&B-soul singer Alicia Keys. Released in July 2002, "Gangsta Lovin'" became Eve's second consecutive number-two hit on the Billboard Hot 100 as well as her third consecutive top-10 hit in the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Savage</span> U.S. radio talk show host and author

Michael Alan Weiner, known by his professional name Michael Savage, is an American right-wing author, political commentator, activist, and former radio host. Savage is best known as the host of The Savage Nation, a nationally syndicated talk show that aired on Talk Radio Network across the United States until 2021, and in 2009 was the second most listened-to radio talk show in the country with an audience of over 20 million listeners on 400 stations across the United States. From October 23, 2012, to January 1, 2021, Michael Savage had been syndicated by Cumulus Media and Westwood One. He holds master's degrees from the University of Hawaii in medical botany and medical anthropology, and a Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley in nutritional ethnomedicine. As Michael Weiner, he has written books on nutrition, herbal medicine, and homeopathy; as Michael Savage, he has written several political books that have reached The New York Times Best Seller list.

The Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church Shooting was a mass shooting that occurred on July 27, 2008 when an unemployed Tennessee truck driver named Jim David Adkisson went on a shooting rampage at the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. Adkisson opened fire on members of the congregation during a church youth performance, killing two people and wounding six others before he was restrained by church members; according to police, he had planned to keep shooting until the police arrived and killed him. A letter, or "manifesto", found in his vehicle after the shooting attributed his motivation for the rampage as a hatred of liberals, Democrats, African Americans, and homosexuals. In the letter he also described what he believed to be the cult-like atmosphere of the church. Adkisson pled guilty to two counts of murder and received a sentence of life in prison without parole.

Alternative hip hop is a subgenre of hip hop music that encompasses a wide range of styles that are not typically identified as mainstream. AllMusic defines it as comprising "hip hop groups that refuse to conform to any of the traditional stereotypes of rap, such as gangsta, bass, hardcore, and party rap. Instead, they blur genres drawing equally from funk and pop/rock, as well as jazz, soul, reggae, and even folk."

References

  1. ↑ "Bernard Goldberg's Website Bio". April 20, 2020. Archived from the original on March 31, 2019. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  2. ↑ "Book: 100 People Who Are Screwing up America". Washingtonpost.com. August 15, 2005. paragraph 8. Archived from the original on June 12, 2018. Retrieved May 27, 2018.
  3. ↑ "Conservative Book Club Review". Conservativebookclub.com. Archived from the original on July 2, 2011. Retrieved October 18, 2009.
  4. ↑ Bernie Goldberg gets even From a Brent Bozell column at Townhall.com
  5. ↑ Brookhiser, Richard (August 28, 2005). "'100 People Who Are Screwing Up America': Who's No. 1?". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 17, 2009. Retrieved April 18, 2010.
  6. ↑ Young, Cathy; "The book on one-sidedness" Archived January 15, 2006, at the Wayback Machine ; The Boston Globe ; August 15, 2005
  7. ↑ "Bestselling Author Bernard Goldberg Targets '100 People Who Are Screwing Up America'". In Our Opinion. Center for Individual Freedom. Archived from the original on October 10, 2007. Retrieved July 22, 2009.
  8. ↑ Robin D. G. Kelley (June 1996). Race rebels. Simon & Schuster. ISBN   9781439105047. Archived from the original on April 27, 2022. Retrieved July 19, 2009.
  9. ↑ "Bernard Goldberg Pt. 1". The Daily Show. July 13, 2005. Archived from the original on April 6, 2008. Retrieved October 18, 2009.
  10. ↑ "Bernard Goldberg Pt. 2". The Daily Show. July 13, 2005. Archived from the original on April 9, 2010. Retrieved July 19, 2009.
  11. ↑ Attacking liberals is high on his list Archived May 23, 2006, at the Wayback Machine From an Alex Beam piece in the Boston Globe
  12. ↑ "David and Goliath, Inc — Fun and more Fun, oh and tees too!". Davidandgoliathtees.com. Archived from the original on October 4, 2011. Retrieved October 18, 2009.
  13. ↑ "101 People Who Are Really Screwing America (And Bernard Goldberg is Only #73) (Paperback)". Buzzflash.com. Archived from the original on September 27, 2009. Retrieved October 18, 2009.
  14. ↑ Collins, Scott (July 14, 2008). "Just call Matt Kunitz the king of reality TV — Los Angeles Times". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on October 3, 2009. Retrieved October 18, 2009.
  15. ↑ "Reproduction of Adkisson's manifesto" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on March 27, 2009. Retrieved March 16, 2009.
  16. ↑ Dahlia Lithwick, "The Cruelest Month: Another lethal April, another failure to ask why" Archived November 13, 2010, at the Wayback Machine , Slate , April 15, 2009
  17. ↑ Jim Balloch, Jamie Satterfield, "Pastor: Remorseless shooter is victim of his own hate: Adkisson receives life without parole in slayings of 2" Archived August 26, 2011, at the Wayback Machine , Knoxville News Sentinel , February 9, 2009
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.