Conspiracy theorists awaiting Wednesday night’s premiere of “Conspiracy Theory with Jesse Ventura“ might take interest in a curious comment Ventura made in the Los Angeles Times this weekend. Ventura, who has been doing the media rounds promoting his new venture on TruTV, told the paper that MSNBC cancelled his show “Jesse Ventura’s America” in 2003 because he did not support the Iraq War. He said the network “in essence” paid him to be silent, which allowed him to purchase a house in Mexico.
This is not your first venture into TV hosting since leaving the governorship. What happened to “Jesse Ventura’s America,” which ran briefly on MSNBC in 2003?
“It was awful. I was basically silenced. When I came out of office, I was the hottest commodity out there. There was a bidding war between CNN, Fox and MSNBC to get my services. MSNBC ultimately won. I was being groomed for a five day-a-week TV show by them. Then, all of a sudden, weird phone calls started happening: “Is it true Jesse doesn’t support the war in Iraq?”
My contract said I couldn’t do any other cable TV or any news shows, and they honored and paid it for the duration of it. So in essence I had my silence purchased. Why do you think you didn’t hear from me for three years? I was under contract. They wouldn’t even use me as a consultant! When you live in Mexico, your houses all have names. I almost named my house Casa MSNBC because they bought it. I was paid like a professional athlete, and I got very wealthy. For doing nothing.”
I’d expect something like this from Fox, or on the flip side CNN, but MSNBC has always struck me as the more balanced network IMHO.
Oh, and Jesse Ventura was anti-war? Would anyone really have cared? Are people’s opinions of serious national issues really that easily swayed? Yeah, yeah, dumb question, I know.
If hes so easily bought, why should care about what he has to say now?
I suspect his show sucked (I don’t remember it). NBC was pro Iraq War. MSNBC was much more neutral. They had Joe Scarborough and Tucker Carlson supporting the war and Keith O’Rielly and Chris Mathews questioning it in 2003.
While Ventura might make a decent guest, does he have what it takes to be a host?
It’s not good business (or etiquette) for a whore to announce their take on a john. This goes for media whores too. Jesse is/was unquestionably one of the higher priced ones and one of the American flavored originals.
For the price of a Mexican house this dull-normal will shut his pie hole for three years?
Cool!
Should we start taking up a collection?
GlowingApple: Seriously? Wow. Wow.
[violation of posting guidelines]
We all know a lot of the media swings left. But their are many Democrats who also feel the war in Afghanistan has dragged on long enough. The terrorist are winning by the shear fact that they are causing us to spend billions while they sit and watch. Oh, and they manage to kill of few of us too. I wonder what country will go after next?? Can anyone say Iran?
Where is the Bullshit Meter? His new show is on TruTV. Not Fox News. Not CNN. F-ing TruTV.
Why not mention that this interview took place on the Howard Stern show this morning?
Ventura was not easily bought. Media hosts all sign the same basic contract. If he was ordered to shut up, he can either do as he is told or face breach of contract.
As for his show, it was boring. He seemed like he was handcuffed, so this allegation isn’t exactly surprising.
7, Ventura talked about this on Larry King Live ~ Apr 2008 if I recall correctly.
If MSNBC canceled the show because of Ventura’s stance on the the Iraq war, then I wouldn’t be surprised. That would be consistent it seems with most of the liberal news shows since things didn’t go the other way until 2004 when Howard Dean did the “Bush Lied” stance and started pulling ahead in the Democratic polls. And as we all know, Kerry and others changed their position when they thought it was advantageous to be anti-war.
Quantum Democrats: http://tinyurl.com/yhvjlap
If anyone is interested, you can get a free 7-day trial to listen to Sirius/XM online, and catch his Stern show appearance on today’s show.
RATINGS.
Mexico?
#2 I didn’t think anyone cared about what he said since he left office. Let alone MSNBC.
You people crack me up. NBC had a double mandate to shut him down:
1) As with the current administration, all MSM outlets take their marching (spin) orders from the presiding administration and the cia.
The bush empire had war designs on iraq long before 9/11 and the media complied, -regardless of zero evidence to support the invasion. (um, WE backed sadam’s chemical warfare and a large part of his regular munitions. It was only when he, like Iran’s oil borsch, started pushing to trade oil in anything but USD’s did we have a “need” to shut him down.
(remember the transatlantic submarine cable cuts in February? That was our special subs like the USS Jimmy Carter, trying to stop (or a “friendly” warning”) Iran’s online EuroDollar oil trading scheme)
2) more importantly: Viva La Capitalism! (ie: Stinkin’ American capitalist pigs and proud of it!)
NBC is owned by General Electric and GE sells all sorts of cool toys to support the war machine. As such, NBC has a huge (proxy) interest in seeing perpetual war. which of course, we will always be in. Not only that, GE is a big energy provider (they make nuclear reactors for one…) as well as big ticket medical equipment provider. (like those million dollar MRI machines) ALL, of which see much more activity and usage when the country is in a state of war.
All you need to do is step back stop having a “specialist” view of the world and you’ll instantly see how everything is interrelated.
Remember, never just look at the flow of “cause and effect” -often, you spot “motivations” faster by looking at “effect and cause” when they say “we are all connected” they ain’t kidding.
As a jack of all trades kinda guy, this comes natural to me.
I’m surprised the MSM was allowed to run the story.. (come on people, practically every politician in congress “takes money”)
-omg, could it be that we are actually tiring of war??
Seems the trend of people “coming clean” is increasing at a brisk pace..
Can’t wait for when the news breaks that in fact, NASA and all of “western science” is a fraud.
-s
That guy is such a big egomaniac why do you post his image here?
He is a nut case.
#17, soundwash,
Can’t wait for when the news breaks that in fact, NASA and all of “western science” is a fraud.
Take a pill. You’re babbling again.