When A&E dumped Duck Dynasty patriarch Phil Robertson for anti-gay sentiments he expressed in a GQ magazine interview, the network picked a fight with conservatives and Christians, and both groups have come out swinging. Some are accusing A&E of bigotry and censorship and are threatening a boycott.
A Facebook page in defense of Roberson sprang up Wednesday night and by Thursday morning was "liked" by more than 500,000 people. "Unless Phil is reinstated to the show, we refuse to watch the A&E Channel!" says the page.
On his syndicated radio show Thursday, Rush Limbaugh read a statement from GLAAD commending A&E and accusing Robertson of bigotry, then said: “Well excuse me for just a second here, but who is being discriminated against here except Phil Robertson, who just lost a job because of his religious beliefs? Phil Robertson. Nothing happened to anybody at GLAAD. Nothing happened to any gay people.”
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Limbaugh also said: “He ends up getting fired and GLAAD starts running around talking about, ‘We’re not gonna put up with this kind of discrimination.’ Well, then, you better start demanding he be rehired because he’s the only guy whose been discriminated against.”
Limbaugh also made a prediction. "It is obvious that Robertson's goose is cooked -- the Duck Dynasty goose is cooked -- at A&E," he said. "I don't know how long it will be, but some other network will pick up this show ... The gay population that's supposedly offended here is, max, 2 percent. The Christian population is 250 million people. So the market is going to reflect that at some point."
Robertson and Duck Dynasty, in fact, were the hottest topic on talk radio Thursday. Dennis Prager on his syndicated radio show, for example, said that while Robertson didn't choose his words carefully, his firing was symptomatic of a larger problem. "It is clear that only one side is not allowed to speak," Prager said. "You can say anything from the left."
Radio host Dennis Miller was vague and brief, but was presumably referring to the controversy when he tweeted, "It's time for all of us to sit down and have a talk about free spe", purposely ending mid sentence.
And KABC AM Los Angeles host Larry Elder used the occasion to take a swipe at MSNBC. "Compare the 'offensive' words of A&E's Phil Robertson to the bigoted words AND deeds of MSNBC's Al Sharpton," Elder tweeted, linking to an article he wrote about Sharpton's alleged misdeeds.
Former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin weighed in shortly news of Robertson’s indefinite suspension with a note at her Facebook page.
“Free speech is an endangered species. Those ‘intolerants’ hatin’ and taking on the Duck Dynasty patriarch for voicing his personal opinion are taking on all of us,” Palin wrote.
The Facebook page of Dinesh D’Souza’s popular political documentary, 2016: Obama’s America, now features giant photo of Robertson along with one of his quotes: “I think our problem is primarily a spiritual one … where there is no Jesus, evil always reigns.”
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TruthRevolt.org, a recently launched, right-wing version of Media Matters for America mounted an attack on A&E Thursday.
“A&E has demonstrated its disdain for religious Americans of all stripes. … We ask A&E to reinstate Phil Robertson rather than caving to the dictates of anti-religious bigotry, and we pledge to turn off A&E until Robertson is reinstated to Duck Dynasty,” reads the petition.
Plus, a separate online petition at IStandWithPhil.com was quickly signed by some 3,000 people.
“Your rash, discriminatory, and unfair treatment toward Mr. Robertson – a recognized symbol of the faith community – is a slap in the face of to Faith Driven Consumers and everyday Americans alike,” reads the petition.
Fox News has also been all over the topic. "I have not talked to anyone in the family -- I don't know if they will stand for this," Fox & Friends co-host Brian Kilmeade said Thursday.
"This is a slippery slope," said Sean Hannity a night earlier. "We now have an entire industry built on targeting advertisers and starting campaigns to get people fired."
Greg Gutfeld, who stars in two shows on Fox News, used multiple tweets in an effort to illustrate what he thinks was an absurd move on the part of A&E.
"I once used a duck call, & this duck showed up & was all like, 'you're not a duck.' It was super embarrassing. He felt like I wasted his time," read one tweet. He followed later with, "My point is: in this entire controversy, no one is asking about the ducks. What about the ducks?"
Email: Paul.Bond@THR.com
