Rick Sanchez on “Happy Negro”…
Yesterday on Reliable Sources Howard Kurtz was interviewing Rick Sanchez when Kurtz brought up the “Happy Negro” incident during Out in the Open…
KURTZ: All right. Let me jump in here because…
SANCHEZ: So late in the day we decided to do the story, go ahead.
KURTZ: Let me jump in here, because I want to play a bite from another interview you did on another night with a professor and blogger named Boyce Watkins who said this to say about Juan Williams, the black journalist O’Reilly was talking about.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BOYCE WATKINS, AUTHOR & PROFESSOR: The fact of the matter is that when Bill O’Reilly gets Juan Williams, the eternal “Happy Negro” on his show to congratulate him on his racism, that’s like Hugh Hefner getting a stripper to come on the show and tell him that he is not a sexist.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KURTZ: “Happy Negro”? That’s outrageous. Why didn’t you challenge him?
SANCHEZ: He was out of line to say that. And I wish he hadn’t. We had made a decision on that night that we were going to get two African-Americans, one who was a conservative, one who was a defender of Bill O’Reilly, and one who has been critical. And we were going to stand back and let them have their own argument.And he made that comment. I wish he hadn’t. I don’t think Juan Williams is anything like that. I think Juan Williams is a professional. He also has a right to his opinion and people shouldn’t blame him for it.
But let me tell you one thing real quick, Howard, Bill O’Reilly has been saying all along that he hasn’t been getting a break from the media. When I did an interview the other day with The Washington Post and Paul Farhi interviewed me, and Paul Farhi is on record according to Bill O’Reilly saying, I agree with you, I think you’re getting cheated here. And he didn’t tell me that when he interviewed me. So…
KURTZ: Rick Sanchez, we’re out of time.
SANCHEZ: Thanks, Howard.
I think that Rick is a poor journalist and needs to go away.
He should have said something the night those comments were made. He has been so out of line with this O’Reilly thing.
Comment by Bill — October 1, 2007 @ 10:15 am
Gosh that’s a cowardly response…perhaps Rick just happens
to agree about Juan Williams. It sure sounds like he does.
Comment by Liz — October 1, 2007 @ 10:17 am
After lambasting O’Reilly all week, Sanchez and Watkins both got a pass here - Sanchez, for not defending Juan or berating Watkins for his “racially insensitive” remarks, and Watkins, of course, for using such a horrific slur.
And here’s how it ended:
“KURTZ: Rick Sanchez, we’re out of time.
SANCHEZ: Thanks, Howard.”
How convenient - just run out the clock. And everyone comes out of this looking just fine except for Juan, who was damaged, yet to whom no apology was extended. This is definitely not right.
Comment by Missy — October 1, 2007 @ 10:33 am
It should be mentioned this “professor” used this expression
on another occasion and again wasn’t called out for this
revolving and insensitive remark. Higher education at its finest.
Comment by lalo — October 1, 2007 @ 9:11 pm
Since when did Rick Sanchez become the moral beacon for today’s news personalities? Dude has no room to talk.
Comment by ARCraig — October 2, 2007 @ 12:11 pm
This absolutely ridiculous to discuss racil slurs made by stupid white people about us. The majority of us know who we are and we do not give a damn about the idiotic O’reillys of the world. We really do not care. We are livng out our lives despite what these “people” may think of us.
Comment by Ora Reece — October 9, 2007 @ 8:44 am