Thursday, August 20, 2009

The Washington Examiner's Mark Tapscott on the Wal-Mart boycott of Glenn Beck:

My guess is that many among Beck's viewers - and millions more people who have never watched his show - would be outraged to know these corporations are aiding and abetting a vicious, hypocritical campaign to slander him by an outfit apparently created for just such a purpose. Many of these viewers will also want to know what they can do to help Beck.

I have a suggestion for them - Boycott Wal-Mart. Remind these corporate cop-outs that politically inspired boycotts can go both ways, but the economic consequences are likely to be far more devastating to those who depend on consumers whose political views span the ideological spectrum.

Or, to put it more bluntly for the marketing geniuses in Wal-Mart's Bentonville, Arkansas, headquarters, there are far more Americans who agree with Beck and/or simply love the freedoms guaranteed by the First Amendment than the anti-free speech comissars on the extreme fringe of the far Left who are trying to shut him up.

And, given the likely demographic overlap of Beck viewers and Wal-Mart shoppers, the monster Big Box store chain is the perfect target of a counter-boycott. Can you guess who is more likely to feel pain first - the cable news guy whose ratings are skyrocketing as Obama's plunge or Wal-Mart?

Being an ink-stained wretch from the chronically under-paid world of newspaper journalism, Wal-Mart has long been a regular stop for my family. Over the years, we've spent thousands and thousands of hard-earned dollars on everything from Ol Roy dog food to countless bags of mulch for the yard.

How many dollars will we be spending at Wal-Mart as long as Wal-Mart supports the Beck boycott? Zero. Zilch. Nada. Nothing.

What might be more interesting is this post by Ed Morrisey over at Hot Air which suggests these retailers, to avoid controversy, are pulling ads from all pundit-type programming, a move, as Ed points out, hurts MSDNC and CNN more than Fox:

Update: P&G seems to be falling off the list, too. And it’s not just Wal-Mart pulling ads from all commentary shows, including some of the Left’s favorites over at MS-NBC:

DefendGlenn.com has also spoken to officials from Procter and Gamble, and Sargentos. P&G said they have NOT pulled ads because they never advertised on Glenn Beck to begin with. In addition P&G said they would be “restricting our advertising to daytime lineups” in an attempt to “avoid controversy”. While Sargentos, whose brand-destruction at the hands of angry consumers has been well-documented here, has now said they will also be yanking ads from MSNBC and CNN “talk personalities” as soon as it can be “arranged”.

Great work, Color of Change, you are killing the struggling shows like Hardball, Ed Show, Anderson Cooper 180, and Maddow, in addition to the once-strong brands such as Olbermann, which is now hemorraging viewers, by yanking their few high-paying advertisers away from them.

I don’t see this turning out well for the low-rated programs. How much can unions afford to advertise on MS-NBC’s lineup, anyway? The law of unintended consequences appears to apply here.

08/20 07:35 AM Share