And the first cable news personality to take on the story of a private security firm taking over an empty Montana jail is ... Glenn Beck!
Here's the surprisingly fact-based segment from last night, in which Beck approaches the American Private Police Force story with relative calm, interviewing a local reporter:

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HomerSexual
October 8, 2009 9:19 AM
Beck is reporting using facts? The end of the world is nigh.
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theWalrus
October 8, 2009 9:47 AM
Many psychotics have brief, momentary lapses of sanity. Not at all unusual.
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CityGuy
October 8, 2009 9:48 AM
Wow. Kudos to Glenn Beck! (Wait, did I just say that??)
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The Old Grouch
October 8, 2009 9:52 AM
I'm definitely not used to seeing "Glenn Beck" and "fact-based" in the same sentence.
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rebop
October 8, 2009 9:58 AM
I disagree, this follows Beck's usual M.O. He frames the whole issue as being about "stimulus" and how stimulus spending always ends up being wasteful and bad, with the sly implication that this was somehow related to the federal stimulus package that Obama pushed. All of which is nonsense. Yes, Beck then presents some actual "facts" but the whole issue has already been so badly distorted in the way he's framed it, that this ends up being his usual misleading B.S. He then adds in a healthy dose of his usual neo-John Birch, right-wing "the govment's gonna round up us real Americuns" paranoia for good measure.
The fact that this is an interesting story in its own right does not make this segment anything more than Beck's usual blizzard B.S.
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rebop
October 8, 2009 10:00 AM in reply to rebop
"blizzard of B.S." that is.
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CityGuy
October 8, 2009 10:06 AM in reply to rebop
You may be onto something there. Nonetheless, for Beck it seemed "fair and balanced".
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JNagarya
October 8, 2009 12:01 PM in reply to CityGuy
Pay attention to "framing" -- CONTEXT.
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dUb
October 8, 2009 10:12 AM
Even a broken clock is right twice a day...
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Johann
October 8, 2009 10:21 AM in reply to dUb
Whereas, a clock which is consistently one (1) minute slow or one (1) minute fast is never right, but it is a lot more useful than a broken clock.
Being right twice out of the 43,200 seconds, or the 43,200,000,000 nanoseconds in a day is worth ?
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JNagarya
October 8, 2009 12:03 PM in reply to dUb
Nope: if it's broken, it doesn't work; and that isn't right for a clock. So a broken clock is never right. Or correct, either.
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AnswerFrog
October 8, 2009 10:17 AM
I agree this is bs -- he happens to be right, but for the wrong reason.
If this were 2006, these privatized pseudo-police would be the "good guys". For the GOP, the government is always bad as logn as they aren't in charge.
Also, note the lack of attribution.
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BlindBat
October 8, 2009 10:34 AM
Hear, hear... my reaction as well.
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BlindBat
October 8, 2009 10:35 AM in reply to BlindBat
sorry, was meant to be a reply to rebop, above.
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Clavis
October 8, 2009 10:53 AM
I can't watch the video at work. Was everybody he interviewed white? :p
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The Raven
October 8, 2009 10:57 AM
Satire is dead...
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fsudirectory
October 8, 2009 11:01 AM
When it comes to stuff like military in the US, no matter who or what is doing it, Beck goes crazy. However, in this instance, i do not disagree with him, unlike FEMA Camp Week
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Pilotshark
October 8, 2009 11:39 AM
So i wonder how long before beck goes off saying this is a fema camp. or secret training for the secret take over.
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JustAChicagoVoter
October 8, 2009 1:44 PM
"And quite frankly, some are freakin' out."
So strange hearing that come out of his mouth.
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PushMe-PullYou
October 8, 2009 2:12 PM
Beck did get his digs in at the beginning of this clip belittling stimulus projects with several blanket statements not backed by facts.
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