Silverglate, a skilled and experienced debater, has made three appearances, once when he took a position similar to that of O’Reilly, once when they partially agreed, and once when they were clearly at odds.
In that latter instance, “it was quite an experience,” he says. “I didn’t get a word in edgewise.... I vowed [that next time] I was going to take a more aggressive approach.” That helps explain his tenacious performance last week.
Lawrence Walters, another free-speech attorney who’s been on the Factor about a half-dozen times, says “the vast majority of the time he’s completely opposed to what I’m saying. He’s in control of the mike. He does a lot of interrupting.”
“A lot of progressives won’t go on his show,” he adds.
“I can’t tell you how many times I’ve winced or cringed when I’ve seen people go on there and not do well,” adds Steve Rendall, a senior analyst for the liberal media watchdog FAIR, who had been on the Factor seven times, but says he was never brought back after a contentious 2003 appearance.
Why do they go on?
Rabbi James Rudin — whose book The Baptizing of America warns that the religious right has ambitious and dangerous plans for the US, and who appeared on the show on January 9 — offers perhaps the most sound rationale for his willingness to butt heads with the host.
“I talked to people who cautioned me, ‘don’t go on,’” he says. “I’m neither an optimist or a pessimist on this. I’m a realist.... A lot of people watch that program.”
Interviews with a handful of Factor guests who found themselves arguing with the host reveal that one undeniably inviting incentive is the size of his audience. For the year 2005, O’Reilly averaged nearly 2.5 million viewers per show according to Nielsen Media Research numbers, making him by far the king of prime time in cable news.
And the general consensus is that despite O’Reilly’s and the Fox News Channel’s rightward tilt, his viewership isn’t all firmly in the George Bush column. So the assumption is that the dissenting guest might find a few sympathetic ears.
“He’s clearly not just speaking to the converted,” says Brock. “I think there’s some validity to the idea that some of his audience has an open mind.”
“I know personally a large contingent of people who watch ... to laugh at him or to scream back at the TV,” echoes Walters.
Others simply believe that liberals who refuse to test their mettle and debating skills in a hostile Factor environment are, for want of a better term, wimps.
Mary Anne Marsh, a local Democratic political analyst and Fox contributor who has been on the show numerous times, genuinely likes O’Reilly and enjoys the “very spirited debates.”
“If Democrats aren’t willing to stand and fight, then how are we ever going to win?” she asks. If Democrats aren’t “willing to go on Fox and make the case, shame on Democrats.”
