# Bill O'Reilly and his Falklands War experience **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [February 22, 2015, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359 "2015-02-22T18:08:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2015, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359/21 "2015-02-22T21:48:58Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Not seeing how that is “going after” BW. Pretty much just giving the chronology of events that led to his demise. There were lots of folks who were “going after” BW in pretty vicious ways, but I wouldn’t put BO’s comments in that category. YMMV. > > As for O’Reilly himself, he’s told enough lies/fibs/whatever that his days a straight news reporter are over. But that’s not what he’s doing now, so it’s not really an issue. It’s an entire segment devoted to Brian Williams as an example of how the “left wing enterprise” of mass media lies to “deceive their viewers and readers to advance a political agenda”. He concludes with: \*"We put together an honest broadcast and we take great pains to present you with information that can be verified. All Americans who love their country should think about what happened to Brian Williams … to think about other news agencies that are distorting the facts. We all should open that proverbial “Network” window and say, “We’re mad as hell and we’re not going to take it anymore!” \* If you can’t find hypocrisy from just the above statement alone and the fact that he has demonstrably done the very same thing, then I don’t know how to convince you. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2015, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359/22 "2015-02-22T21:50:21Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > Your claim here is that for O’Reilly, because of “what he’s doing now,” credibility is irrelevant. > > Are you really asserting that he doesn’t care if his “non-fiction” books and his remarks (on television, radio, and Internet) are labelled and widely acknowledged as being complete fabrications? > > _Really?_ They are labelled thusly\* every hour of every day of every year by someone or another. Seems to have done him little harm so far. Would you like to make a wager as to whether this little kurflufle will significantly affect him going forward? \*Or something similar ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2015, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359/23 "2015-02-22T22:36:51Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > They are labelled thusly\* every hour of every day of every year by someone or another. But not _widely acknowledged_ as such. I don’t think the present matter is enough to change that, but the vehemence of O’Reilly’s response does suggest to me that he felt the hit. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2015, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359/24 "2015-02-22T23:18:05Z")
> [@Peremensoe](#): > > But not _widely acknowledged_ as such. > > I don’t think the present matter is enough to change that, but the vehemence of O’Reilly’s response does suggest to me that he felt the hit. From what I’ve seen of him, he lashes out like that whenever he’s attacked. Thin skin, he has. ---
**Author:** ![Ibn\_Warraq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e19b73/32.png) [@Ibn\_Warraq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibn_Warraq)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2015, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359/25 "2015-02-22T23:43:18Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > Your claim here is that for O’Reilly, because of “what he’s doing now,” credibility is irrelevant. > > Are you really asserting that he doesn’t care if his “non-fiction” books and his remarks (on television, radio, and Internet) are labelled and widely acknowledged as being complete fabrications? > > _Really?_ I remember Al Franken went into great detail about some of O’Reilly’s “lies”. Some were really weird, like whether or not Bill O’Reilly grew up in Levittown. The one I remember was O’Reilly bragging about winning a Pulitzer when it was actually a Polk. Franken was a polemicist so I’d take most of what he says with a grain of salt. ---
**Author:** ![Ibn\_Warraq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e19b73/32.png) [@Ibn\_Warraq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibn_Warraq)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359/26 "2015-02-23T00:29:14Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > From what I’ve seen of him, he lashes out like that whenever he’s attacked. Thin skin, he has. Saying Bill O’Reilly is thin-skinned is like saying Rush Limbaugh is a little plump. I think he still hates Olbermann so much he refuses to mention his name on air. ---
**Author:** ![Nars\_Glinley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nars_glinley/32/8177_2.png) [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359/27 "2015-02-23T01:09:05Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > I heard he was stationed with a British Thermal Unit during the Falklands. That’s hot. ---
**Author:** ![rock\_party](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e19b73/32.png) [@rock\_party](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rock_party)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359/28 "2015-02-23T01:14:12Z")
As he says himself, he’s paid to be biased, so he probably won’t be hurting from this in the long run. He’s had three nights of BW segments with guests that totally shamed BW. O’Reilly toned in with a bit of reason. That’s how he works on many issues on Fox. He’s their prime time entertainer and they don’t want him to project too much wing nuttiness. He usually leaves it up to his guest to spout the far right crazy, and he steps in with a tone of reason. If Fox didn’t tone it down during prime time a bit, they’d come off as complete wing nut loons. But even on his show, the far right message gets pounded home clearly. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359/29 "2015-02-23T02:12:06Z")
> [@rock\_party](#): > > If Fox didn’t tone it down during prime time a bit, They don’t. > [@](#): > > they’d come off as complete wing nut loons. They do. ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359/30 "2015-02-23T02:31:55Z")
> [@Ibn\_Warraq](#): > > I remember Al Franken went into great detail about some of O’Reilly’s “lies”. > > Some were really weird, like whether or not Bill O’Reilly grew up in Levittown. The one I remember was O’Reilly bragging about winning a Pulitzer when it was actually a Polk. > > Franken was a polemicist so I’d take most of what he says with a grain of salt. Well the way I remember it, O’Reilly was bragging about two Peabody Awards “We” won when he hosted [Inside Edition](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inside_Edition), which was a tabloid TV show during the early 1990s. Sure, they won a single Polk award. Or rather the reporters Matt Meagher and Tim Peek did. In 1996. After O’Reilly had left. ---
**Author:** ![Ibn\_Warraq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e19b73/32.png) [@Ibn\_Warraq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibn_Warraq)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359/31 "2015-02-23T02:47:26Z")
> [@Measure\_for\_Measure](#): > > Well the way I remember it, O’Reilly was bragging about two Peabody Awards “We” won when he hosted [Inside Edition](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inside_Edition), which was a tabloid TV show during the early 1990s. Sure, they won a single Polk award. Or rather the reporters Matt Meagher and Tim Peek did. In 1996. After O’Reilly had left. D’oh! Yeah it was Peabodies he either misremembered or lied about, not a Pulitzer. Been awhile since I read Lies and the Lying Liars that tell them. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359/32 "2015-02-23T03:03:34Z")
> [@Yossarian](#): > > He was embedded with a unit on the front lines in the War on Chirstmas. As a Chirstian, I take offense at this. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359/33 "2015-02-23T04:22:05Z")
> [@Yossarian](#): > > He was embedded with a unit on the front lines in the War on Chirstmas. But he ain’t sayin’ on which side. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 10:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359/34 "2015-02-23T10:34:28Z")
[The Bill O’Reilly lie-o-meter creeps up.](http://money.cnn.com/2015/02/22/media/cbs-staffers-oreilly-argentina/index.html) Another CBS correspondent calls Buenos Aires an “expense account zone.” Nobody has any evidence or can recall anything about any network photographer being injured. ---
**Author:** ![cosmosdan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a6a055/32.png) [@cosmosdan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cosmosdan)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359/35 "2015-02-23T14:17:20Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Not seeing how that is “going after” BW. Pretty much just giving the chronology of events that led to his demise. There were lots of folks who were “going after” BW in pretty vicious ways, but I wouldn’t put BO’s comments in that category. YMMV. > > As for O’Reilly himself, he’s told enough lies/fibs/whatever that his days a straight news reporter are over. But that’s not what he’s doing now, so it’s not really an issue. I agree. I don’t see this as going after BW. I’m no ORielly fan but I also agree that given his current gig, his history of exaggerating and at least one outright lie I know of, I don’t think it’s all that relevant. I will be entertained by his conservative fans coming to his defense. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359/36 "2015-02-23T14:27:08Z")
I can’t seem to find a good synopsis of what BO is actually supposed to have lied about. Someplace I saw that he claimed he dragged an injured photographer out of the line of fire during the Falklands War, but he can’t possibly have said anything that stupid. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359/37 "2015-02-23T14:36:48Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > I can’t seem to find a good synopsis of what BO is actually supposed to have lied about. Someplace I saw that he claimed he dragged an injured photographer out of the line of fire during the Falklands War, but he can’t possibly have said anything that stupid. [Here is the quote](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=18151779&postcount=237), but there might be some other context missing. Essentially, he said he was “in the Falklands” when he was actually only in Buenos Aires. He referred to being in the “war zone” when it was a supposed riot in the capital when the surrender was announced. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359/38 "2015-02-23T14:45:03Z")
[A former colleague describes i](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2963647/Ex-CBS-reporter-blistering-attack-lying-unprofessional-former-colleague-Bill-O-Reilly-Falklands-coverage-expense-account-zone-war-zone.html)t as the “expense account zone”. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359/39 "2015-02-23T14:52:27Z")
As I said in the other thread, one of his biggest lies is referring to himself as a “humble” correspondent. The guy is one of the biggest, self-promoting blow-hards on the face of the earth! ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2015, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359/40 "2015-02-23T15:30:06Z")
I can’t wait to hear the reactions of the British reporters who were really there. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-oreilly-and-his-falklands-war-experience/713359.md?page=3)