KTLK's Jason Lewis and Chris Baker encourage violence against individuals on air. Their comments are not unlike those of Kenyan radio talkers during the election violence
On March 28th, this exchange took place on KTLK between a caller and host Jason Lewis (courtesy of Minnesota Monitor). They are talking about Karl Bremer filing an FEC complaint against the re-election committee of U. S. Rep. Michelle Bachmann (R-MN-6) alleging improper expenditures (Emphasis is the Monitor's):
Caller: To put a little fight back into the Republicans, what you need to do is get Karl Bremer's address, phone number, and his other members of this little Democrat underground that protests, and let's get a little protest going on his front doorstep so he can get a little taste of his own medicine. Hold his feet to the fire. Make him responsible for some of the actions he does...
Lewis: I don't lead a jihad against individuals unless they happen to be in the public arena. Of course, you could make the argument this guy's now in the public arena. But if citizens are truly fed up with a small minority of socialist kooks in Stillwater, led by this Karl Bremer character who's got a bizarre obsession with Michele Bachmann, I can't be held accountable for what citizens might come up with.
On April 3rd, KTLK host Chris Baker was talking about the debate about whether tasers should be used to control protestors at the September Republican National Convention in St. Paul. "A machine gun - that always works well," Baker said. His co-host "Jordan" added "Mow 'em down, baby!"
These inflammatory remarks are provocative, and unfortunately no action has been taken against either host. The hosts are not unlike radio hosts in Kenya who spouted hateful rhetoric against other tribes, which spilled over after the disputed Dec. 27th elections. Text-message services were also used to encourage violence.
This same tactic also occured in Rwanda, with hosts encouraging Hutus to kill Tutsis. One of the broadcasters, Valerie Bemeriki, was arrested in 1999 and charged with genocide.
And recently, Rush Limbaugh said that his "Operation Chaos" (where he told his supporters to vote for Sen. Hillary Clinton in order to prolong the Democratic nomination process) had a goal of "literal riots" at the party's convention this summer in Denver. A repeat of the 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago, with burning cars and riots.
Limbaugh is beyond prosecution at this point if riots do occur in Denver. If violence encouraged by Chris Baker and Jason Lewis happens in St. Paul, will they be prosecuted for encouraging it?
Before answering, hope it doesn't happen.
