Fox’s O’Reilly: Robin Williams Deserves the Attention He Is Getting

Fox’s O’Reilly: Robin Williams Deserves the Attention He Is Getting (Mediaite)

Bill O’Reilly and Bernard Goldberg took on what O’Reilly deemed “wall to wall” coverage of Robin Williams‘ tragic death. And Goldberg got pretty blunt about the reasons for it, acknowledging that it might be too soon for such bluntness. Goldberg didn’t dispute that the death of such a comic icon deserves to be remembered in the media, but said the reality is “we live in the United States of entertainment, and celebrities are royalty to us.”

Goldberg said the simple truth of media coverage is that “even in death, Robin Williams brings in numbers.” The media, he noted, does has a “Hollywood deathometer” for different levels of stars.

Goldberg also pointed out that people simply just “like emotion more than they like facts,” and so they have a deeper reaction to Williams’ death than they would to what ISIS is doing. Goldberg repeatedly insisted he’s not diminishing the value of reporting on Williams, but said he just wants to “bring a dose of reality to this.”