Glenn Beck's 912 Followers in Desperate Scramble to Stop Hemorrhage of Sponsors from His Show

Posted by Tana Ganeva, AlterNet at 1:00 PM on August 18, 2009.

Glenn Beck's Fox Show continues to hemorrhage corporate sponsors. Yesterday eight more companies, including retail giant Wall Mart, dropped sponsorship of Beck's program. That makes over 20 companies that have pulled their advertising from Beck's show in the past 2 weeks, after a Color of Change petition urged advertisers to cease sponsorship of Beck's program when the talk show host said Obama had a "deepseated hatred for white people".

Rather than apologize or stop spewing divisive hate speech, Beck seems to be responding by tapping his vast, creepy army of "912" followers to wage a counterprotest.

In an email obtained by AlterNet today, an administrator of the website calls on "fellow patriots" to:

Let Fox News and those that Advertise on TV know that you support the Glenn Beck program. [This Petition is being sponsored by The 912 National Coalition...] This petition/letter will be sent directly to Fox News and shared with the advertisers on his program, past and present. Please take a moment now to sign the petition and post a link to this petition on every 912 or Tea Party website in the country.

We need a strong national voice... together we can Reclaim America! Live Free... KC Freeman

A link takes the passionate Beck supporter to a 912 petition site. The top left-hand corner features a drawing of some guys in Revolutionary garb, so you know whatever follows is good for freedom and America, and bad for socialism and whatnot. Here's what follows:

Greetings

I am signing this online petition to thank Glenn Beck for his bold stand for the Principles and Values that he holds dear and for his desire to educate the American public.

Mr Beck has motivated tens of thousands to learn more about the U.S. Constitution and the founding of our great country. He has helped expose the corruption in both political parties, and speaks from the heart even when it is not politically correct and may be considered controversial by many to do so.

I am also signing this petition to ask Fox News Channel to continue to support the Glenn Beck television program and to let his advertisers know that I proudly support the Glenn Beck program and will look to reward those that advertise on his show by using their products and services when possible.

To current or past advertisers that have reportedly withdrawn support of his program, or are considering doing so to appease the demands of special interest groups, please know that I reserve the right to stop purchasing your product or using your services as a form of economic protest.

Now, no matter how much steam it gathers, the petition is certainly not going to un-spook advertisers into un-dropping Beck. Big advertisers avoid controversy that could sully their brand, and the prospect of being associated with Beck's fringe 912 coalition -- whose local chapters have been linked to violence in town halls, among other unsavory, mainstream-alienating activities -- will certainly not inspire a surge of advertiser support for Beck.

But, it's also pretty obvious that Fox would lose some pretty serious cred with the crazies if their efforts to muzzle Beck are too obvious, and this petition may serve as a reminder of that.

Tagged as: glenn beck, color of change, sponsors