人兽性交

It didn鈥檛 have to end this way for Lou Dobbs. He could have been a contender.

But Dobbs, a supremely self-confident man who often mentions his Harvard education in private conversation, just wouldn鈥檛 listen. Time after time, as the 鈥淟ou Dobbs Tonight鈥� show he has hosted on CNN since 2003 grew more rabidly critical of undocumented immigrants, he was warned of the kind of people he was putting on his show. He was told that many of the he was presenting just weren鈥檛 so. At first, he was gently called out for his defamations of Latino immigrants, then, as his tone grew sharper still, he was subjected to all kinds of public criticism from human rights groups, the journalism trade press, even a leading New York Times financial columnist. Instead of righting his course, or even slightly moderating his tone, Dobbs called his critics 鈥渃ommies鈥� and 鈥渇ascists.鈥� He fudged facts, defended earlier falsehoods, and promoted racist conspiracy theories. He fumed.

It all ended last night, when Dobbs on his program that he was resigning from CNN effective immediately. In a moment of supreme irony, he complained that public political debate was now overtaken with 鈥減artisanship and ideology,鈥� and promised to use 鈥渢he most honest and direct language possible鈥� in whatever future role he plays in public life. For once, he did not attack his critics.

My colleagues at the Southern Poverty Law Center (人兽性交) and I were some of those critics, and early ones at that. I began speaking to Lou Dobbs in 2004, not many months after he started airing virtually nightly segments entitled 鈥淏roken Borders.鈥� By that time, he had run 鈥渞eports鈥� complaining about 鈥渋llegal aliens鈥� getting free medical care, educating their children in public schools, committing sex crimes, getting breaks on college tuition, filling the prisons and spreading diseases.

To my surprise, Dobbs answered my very first call immediately. He was interested in what I had to say, he said, and responded to my warning that an upcoming guest had ties to white supremacy by canceling the appearance. He asked that I keep him apprised of any similar situations. He said he was all in favor of multiculturalism.

That kind of back-and-forth culminated in Dobbs sending a five-person team from his show to the Montgomery, Ala., headquarters of the 人兽性交, in November 2004, after we contacted Dobbs about a guest who promoted the alleging a Mexican plot to 鈥渞econquer鈥� the American Southwest. After much of our staff and I spent most of the day briefing Dobbs鈥� people, they left saying that Dobbs planned a three-part series on extremism in America, and another on racism within the immigration restriction movement. And for a short time, Dobbs seemed open to hearing our criticisms and warnings. But that all came to end on his July 29, 2005, show, when he erupted over an 人兽性交 report exposing racist elements in the Minuteman vigilante movement. Dobbs called us 鈥渄espicable鈥� and 鈥渞eprehensible,鈥� although he did not dispute any of the facts we reported.

From there, things went south. That winter, we ran a detailing members of extremist groups who Dobbs had put on his show. A few months later, we pointed out that in discussing the Aztlan conspiracy on the air, Dobbs used a map of the area Mexico supposedly coveted, 鈥� a group that has described black people as 鈥渁 retrograde species of humanity.鈥� Then, on March 6, 2007, I was quoted on NPR saying that Dobbs was helping to mainstream conspiracy theories and propaganda that originated in white supremacist hate groups. Enraged, Dobbs called me a few days later to say that the 人兽性交 and I had no integrity, and that, henceforth, we would be 鈥渁dversaries.鈥� A couple of weeks later, I went on Dobbs鈥� show to point out that 鈥� the original founder of the Minuteman movement and a guest Dobbs had had on his air at least 17 times at that point 鈥� had told his followers that he had personally seen Chinese Red Army troops maneuvering on the U.S./Mexican border in preparation for an invasion. Dobbs seemed to find that funny, but he didn鈥檛 repudiate Simcox.

Then, on May 6, 2007, I was quoted in a 鈥�60 Minutes鈥� profile of Dobbs. CBS鈥� Lesley Stahl pointed out in the piece that Dobbs had claimed in 2005 that 鈥渁n invasion of illegal aliens鈥� was 鈥渢hreatening the health of many Americans鈥� and followed that up with a report claiming that 7,000 new cases of leprosy had been identified in America in the prior three years. (The truth is that there were about 400 new cases in the years in question, that leprosy is now an easily treatable disease, and that no one knew what role immigrants may have had in any leprosy case.) I criticized Dobbs鈥� 鈥渏ournalism鈥� in the piece, which sent Dobbs into a rage the next day on his own CNN show. He said he stood 鈥�100%鈥� behind his bogus report, and he had his reporter re-identify the source of her allegations 鈥� a , who the 人兽性交 had earlier documented telling an audience that 鈥渕ost鈥� Latino immigrant men 鈥渕olest girls under 12, although some specialize in boys and some in nuns.鈥� Cosman had no expertise in immigration or medicine.

The last time I was on Dobbs鈥� show was on May 16 of that year, along with my boss, 人兽性交 President Richard Cohen. (Our appearance followed by a day the printing of 人兽性交 ads in The New York Times and USA Today calling on CNN President Jonathan Klein to retract Dobbs鈥� false leprosy claim, as Dobbs himself refused to do so.) Our interview was preceded by a setup piece containing a completely new set of claims about leprosy. Now, Dobbs claimed that new cases of leprosy had 鈥渞isen鈥� to 166 in 2005. Nothing was said about the supposed 7,000 cases, and Dobbs never conceded any error at all. The mail we got after the show from Dobbs鈥� supporters was memorable. 鈥淵ou people disgust me and I hope you burn in Hell,鈥� wrote one. 鈥淚n memory of your appearance on Lou Dobbs, I will make a GENEROUS donation to a well known hate group in YOUR NAME.鈥� Another put it like this: 鈥淵ou can shove tolerance up your ass as far as possible. Hate is alive and growing!鈥� And a third wrote to regret that cowboy days were over, otherwise 鈥測ou and your associates would be hanging by a rope.鈥�

We fared a little better with The New York Times, where David Leonhardt wrote a long column concluding that 鈥淢r. Dobbs has a somewhat flexible relationship with reality.鈥� Around the same time, the Columbia Journalism Review wrote that Dobbs was 鈥渢amper[ing] with facts鈥� and 鈥減retending the confusion was someone else鈥檚 fault.鈥� Dobbs鈥� response to all of this was to attack 人兽性交 and the Times, informing his CNN audience that he would tell them 鈥渨ho鈥檚 really telling the truth and who the commies are and who the fascists are who have the temerity to attack me.鈥�

In the years since, 人兽性交 has regularly written about Dobbs, documenting the real truth about his various claims and pointing out his role in poisoning the debate about immigration in the United States. Our point was never to stop a robust debate about immigration 鈥� quite the contrary, we were all in favor of such a debate, but felt that it should be based on facts, not racist propaganda or conspiracy theories. Finally, in late July of this year, after Dobbs seemed to suggest that President Obama was not a U.S. citizen, 人兽性交 President Cohen wrote CNN鈥檚 Jonathan Klein . 鈥淩espectable news organizations should not employ reporters willing to peddle racist conspiracy theories and false propaganda,鈥� Cohen wrote. 鈥淚t鈥檚 time for CNN to remove Mr. Dobbs from the airwaves.鈥� The letter set off a chorus of similar demands from other human rights groups, and a movement by many of them to press that demand grew quickly. It concluded yesterday with Dobbs鈥� departure.

Did it have to happen this way? Obviously not. But Dobbs never could hear anyone whose opinions varied from his own. When he was confronted by Stahl in the 鈥�60 Minutes鈥� piece about his leprosy error, Dobbs' response was typical. 鈥淲ell, I can tell you this,鈥� he told Stahl. 鈥淚f we reported it, it鈥檚 a fact.鈥�

Stahl replied, 鈥淵ou can鈥檛 tell me that. You did report it.鈥�

Dobbs: 鈥淲ell, no, I just did.鈥�

Stahl: 鈥淗ow can you guarantee that to me?鈥�

And then, this gem from Dobbs: 鈥淏ecause I鈥檓 the managing editor, and that鈥檚 the way we do business. We don鈥檛 make up numbers, Lesley, do we?鈥�

As it turns out, he did. No longer, however, at CNN, 鈥淭he Most Trusted in Name in News.鈥� Not any more. But it didn鈥檛 have to be this way.