The video: Glenn Beck doesn't want his search engine overthrowing governments, palling around with "hardcore leftists," or being a "shill" for the U.S. government. That, as he explained on his Fox News show this week, is why he's avoiding Google. (Watch the video below.) The way Beck sees it, Google's web of suspicious intrigue starts with Wael Ghonim, the marketing executive involved in Egypt's uprising; extends to ex-State Department official Jared Cohen, who heads up Google Ideas; and — take a deep breath — includes the NSA, George Soros, and the Tides Foundation.
The reaction: Is Glenn Beck's "mouth connected to a brain?" says Frank Watson in Search Engine Watch. Google isn't "in bed" with any government, and it has no role in its workers' extracurricular activities. I mean, is Fox "involved with all their employees endeavors? If yes, then they have some things to answer for." Oh, come now — this is "genius," says Carmel Lobello in Death and Taxes. "Beck is totally gaming Google." His reasons for being wary of the search giant are a mixture of the "laughable" and the "reasonable, though tired," but try googling Google on Google News. For a while, the top result was Beck's attack. Consider Beck's theorizing for yourself: