Bill O'Reilly vs. George Tiller
Linking the Fox News star's rhetoric to an abortion doctor's murder
The man accused of killing late-term abortion doctor George Tiller has a ready-made defense, said Steve Young in The Huffington Post. Bill O'Reilly made him do it. And psychology experts say lawyers for suspect Scott Roeder might get some mileage out of saying that Roeder was influenced by exposure to Fox News host O'Reilly's repeated references to Tiller as a killer with the blood of unborn babies on his hands. (listen to O'Reilly criticizing Tiller in 2006)
"Let's be serious here," said Jay Bookman in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. O'Reilly "clearly went well overboard in his condemnation and demonization" of Tiller, but "it's irresponsible to link O’Reilly" to Tiller's murder. There's no evidence the suspect even watched O'Reilly's show, and even if he's a fan "you would need a much stronger showing of cause and effect to justify such a serious accusation." (watch Bill O'Reilly respond to critics linking his rhetoric to Tiller's death)
Bill O'Reilly constantly draws lines between entertainers and the behavior of their fans, said David Knowles in Politics Daily, especially when he's venting against gangsta rap. O'Reilly "never actually directed anybody to go out and shoot" Tiller. But it's certainly fair to ask whether he incited the likes of Scott Roeder by accusing Tiller of "executing babies" and running a Nazi-style "death mill."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
June 25 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Wednesday's cartoons include war on a loop, the New York City mayoral race, and one almighty F-bomb
-
How generative AI is changing the way we write and speak
In The Spotlight ChatGPT and other large language model tools are quietly influencing which words we use
-
How long can Nato keep Donald Trump happy?
Today's Big Question Military alliance pulls out all the stops to woo US president on his peacemaker victory lap