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Hate website headquartered in San Luis Obispo

February 18, 2011

By LISA RIZZO

San Luis Obispo, the renowned happiest place in America, is also the home of an apparent “hate” website that has created a multinational online forum against the political left, Muslims, gays and undocumented workers.

The website, “I Hate the Media,” (IHTM) is a conservative news outlet that uses humor, satire and even prejudice in its delivery of the news.

“Our goal at IHTM is to point out all the bias and the blindness, all the lies and the lunacy, all the fakes and the phonies, all the morons and the myopic,” the website says.

Recent news headlines include “New survey discovers that Egyptians are schizophrenic” and “Tendency to inbreed to blame for Muslim terrorists’ homicidal tendencies?”

IHTM says it wishes to put an end to most mainstream forms of media. The site says that television, radio, newspapers, magazines, films and music “all deserve to die slow, painful deaths.”

The owners, long time advertising executive Jim deYoung and his online business partner Mark Fleming, run the news site from San Luis Obispo.

DeYoung has long worked as a consultant for advertising and public relations agencies locally and across the country, including formerly being on staff at Barnett Cox & Associates. Fleming and deYoung founded several right leaning websites including ShutUpHilary.com and global warming conspiracy site, ClimateGate.com.

While the identity behind IHTM is not anonymous, it is not well-known either. The publishers only refer to themselves on the web as “The Administrator” and “The Editor.”

All traces of deYoung and Fleming’s names have been sanitized from the site.

DeYoung and Fleming wished to keep their identities under wraps because as they said, “there are lunatics out there.”

While deYoung was not keen on an article being written about the site, he did respond to the request for an interview, contingent on it being in writing. Fleming and deYoung formulated responses together.

Why would deYoung and Fleming want to disassociate their names from their website?

The duo makes a living off of offending people.

“If only some cultural subgroups have been offended, we haven’t done our job very well,” said the IHTM founders. “We intend to offend every group and subgroup. Think of us as equal opportunity offenders.”

Critics contend the content of the website arguably portrays some general stereotypes of Muslims, Mexicans, gays and liberals among others. According to IHTM, the top ten subjects it takes aim at are President Barack Obama, climate change, healthcare, “Obamacare,” election 2010, polls, MSNBC, Islam, CNN and immigration.

Gays may be among those taking offense. From unicorns to rainbow flags, the publishers draw in a slew of homosexual stereotypes in its article “Cramming it in where it doesn’t belong: UK schools introduce gay math, geography and science.”

IHTM faced backlash last June from investigative journalism outlet, Mother Jones, for its creation of “Mexicano Masks,” that were “designed to help legal American residents leach off the welfare system, overwhelm our public schools, overrun emergency rooms, crowd our criminal justice system, swamp our jails, and work without paying taxes.”

Like many news sites, IHTM allows readers to comment. Sometimes the remarks include hateful speech including a Feb. 14 comment made by Fleming.

“Anyone laughing at this video should be taken out and shot,” Fleming said regarding his story about a CBS news reporter who appeared to have a stroke on-air.

One reader responded to Fleming, “You should be shot for spouting such violent rhetoric.”

While another said, “U can borrow my shotgun if you want.”

Fleming continued by linking to a man on Twitter and saying, “Here’s my first target if I were to ever run into him.”

Pete Evans from San Luis Obispo County’s Alliance for Positive Programming which formed to reduce the hours of right wing talk radio on local airways said, “I think they are sad examples of tea party lunatics but may fall within so called first amendment protection, and given the frantic rhetoric we have heard for years now, they don’t strike me as all that strange.”

“This represents polarization in America, we have been polarized before. At some point people are going to have to figure out if they really want to know what is going on in the world or if they want to have their views confirmed,” said Cal Poly Journalism Professor Bill Loving, who considers the site to be an aggregator, a news website that gathers specific types of information from several sources.

While “I hate the media” publicizes itself as a conservative/libertarian news website, deYoung and Fleming say they do not recognize their site as a serious news source, rather satire. “Our job is to comment on the absurd and take the non-absurd to its absurd conclusions.”

That is not to say others don’t interpret IHTM as authentic news.

Loving says, the trouble is “people from the right are more likely to have fewer news sources” and are more apt to seek news that reaffirms their beliefs even if it is in fact misinformation.

“Most of the people that will be consuming this will only use this and other outlets that have the same philosophy,” Loving said. “They are not really getting a fair and balanced perspective of the world. It’s their right but we cannot legalize morality or good intention.”

The irreverent duo is having some cyber success. IHTM is ranked 17,549 in the United States for web traffic according to Alexa, the web information company.

“What’s gratifying is the rabid response of readers from virtually every country in the world,” said deYoung and Fleming. “We even have readers in Iran, which surprises us because we thought Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had outlawed laughing back in 2002.

“Our favorite reader comment of all time said, ‘You guys are like Rush Limbaugh only cooler.’ We wish. The original purpose of IHateTheMedia.com was to make both of us fabulously wealthy. In that regard it has failed miserably.”

Loving said, “If your world views are formed solely by Glenn Beck, IHTM and Rush Limbaugh, you are seeing the world through some very distorted spectacles.”


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“The dehumanizing language of scapegoating and eliminationism — the naming and targeting of other humans for the supposed social ills they incur, followed as always by words urging their excision from society, if not the world — is endemic on the American Right. And among right-wing extremists, it intensifies, grows and metastasizes into something lethal and monstrous.”


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What? Read it again, Zaphod. This time replace “Jew”, Jews, or “Jewish” with the word “group” or “This group” or “this individual” or “he”. I’ll be darned, your brain didn’t shutdown and ignore the facts that remain this time. People are programmed to be repulsed by the very word Jew because of years and years of video showing dead people being……………you know. I am stating the simple fact that they are in a repetitious death spiral or “chicken or the egg” phenonenom of building excessive power as a singular group then consequently being persued by others who feel damaged and who then ultimately punish them severely. After being punished and declaring their “never again” chant they feel they must rebuild excessive power again to curtail being punished only to be punished again. I noted their unusual attributes and suggest they break the chain by realizing this. Hey, I’m half Jewish, I’m caught in the middle! No fun. Thanks for the response.


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notice the quote marks and link; my comment was not posted as a reply to your remarks justme. I posted something related to the mainstreaming of right wing ideologies. none of those words are mine they are an excerpt from the linked article .

“Tl;dr” translates too long didn’t read. I think the people you say (in your long comment) are controlling the worlds are actually Jesuit priests disguised as Jewish elders while trying to reestablish the holy roman empire again!

The world is one hugely complicated confused meme infested gene swarm,


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Opps. My mistake, Zaphod. Sorry. You have a unique style, I’ll remember this from now on.


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Zaphod is right as far as he goes…I find the conduct he describes far more common coming from the left. As a libertarian I have many, many beefs with the Republicans, but you would have to be deaf or have no memory to think that name calling is an exclusive of the right….think “tea-baggers”, “climate deniars”, ” birthers”, “gun nut” and of course the ever popular and ironic “right wing fascist”.(ironic because all histories actual fascist were very left wing= Italian national socialists). Saying it is growing lethal and monstrous is some of the very hate speech that Zaphod was decrying.

Speech you do not agree with is not hateful….your response to such speech seems to border on hateful.


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Why do these two hate Helen Thomas for saying the Israelis should get out of Palestine? Really? You want more hating of America by the world, (forget just the Mid East). More billions of our tax dollars to support the Jews hating of Arabs and us?? Really? Talk to anybody whose been to Israel lately? They’re enjoying a better standard of living than us for Christ’s sakes.You support paranoid Jews like Doug Feith, Wolfowitz and the other Israeli citizens who through the Office of Special plans threw out the CIA and other “intel” orgs. reports who couldn’t find any weapons of mass destruct. in Iraq and then reported the lie to the Goofball Pres. who wanted the oil in the deal, thus hundreds of thousands of dead people, plus a destroyed image and economy for the U.S.? All for oil to the Bush boys, money for U.S. military-ind. complex and another enemy of Israel attacked? Do you like the job Greenspan did on us? Think this “genius” didn’t know he was over-revving the economy into ruin for his Jewish run Wall st. and banking cohorts?? Why, like Homeland Sec. is the Fed basically a Jewish org, and never been lead by anyone but Jews? Need more? The latest President is a complete creation of the most treacherous Israeli yet Rahm Emanuel, his senior advisor/Cheif of Staff and as whose job it is to run the White house. It’s crap that he retired from the job to run for Mayor of Chicago, He put another Jewish guy in his place to take his orders. Rahm has that much power, he gets to go home and run America in his underpants from home. He, like the head of the Jewish org. the Homeland Security are Jewish citizens. Rahm joined the Israeli military fixing tanks as a multi-millionaire during the 1st Iraq war. Think he’s Pro-Israel? Emanuel found Obama on the street corners of Chicago, primped him as a “changer” collected the millions required to outspend the Repubs from guess who, his Jewish partners in crime, Goldman-Sachs. When he successfully got Barry in he was the real Pres. behind the scenes. Money for banks and Wall st. Continued death to the Palestinians, not an end to Iraq but added a new war? Not closing of the Cuban prison that held anyone who appeared to not like Israel. Plus a slew of other promises unkept. The Supreme court is 1/3 Jewish while only 2% of the U.S. pop. is. Justice for all? Huh? Why? Money, Honey.They got it. Why are all the U.S.’s enemies the exact same group that Israel calls enemies? Why do we hate Iran who suffered a million dead young men in a war we precipitated and financed by pushing Sadaam into it? Or whose govt. we had overthrown when we installed a cruel dictator, the Shah. Iran has not attacked anyone in 250 yrs. Yeah, let’s get ’em.They stand up to Israel and, Oh My God, kill them all. Who controls and owns the American and mass media who hypnotizes haggard Americans minds into believing Jewish garbage proclaming that there are terrorists behind every tree. Terrorism is a scam to hide the fact that we are and the United States is run by over educated Jewish who through mind control and money caused the downfall of this country. The Jews shot their way into Palestine with our guns and money. They continue to murder women and children unreported here. And these two phonies of the IHTM hate Thomas for saying “get the hell out of Palestine”? There is a reason they can’t get any country in the world to accept them for thousands of yrs. They are always uncaring about what happens to the country they dwell in and always figuring how they can control it’s gov’t and economy thus they’ve been tossed out of all of them, period. Newsflash! It happened here. Have any close Jewish friends? Maybe Jewish blood in your own veins? I do. (No, my Jewish friends, I don’t “loath” myself). Christ, that claim is so weak, stop that one now, puh-leeeze.They know quite well everything I’ve just said. Through persecution and paranoia they feel they must operate the way they do. You’ll hear them say “The wolf is always at the door”. Guess why? Which came first, the chicken or the egg? Sharon once told his govt. not to worry what the Americans would do or say about Palestine because Israelis run the U.S. and the Americans know it. He was right about who really runs America and wrong about us knowing it, now you do. And consider this the tip of the iceberg.

Now, before everyone’s manipulated mind blows a circut and the “anti-semitic” or “KKK” crap pops into their uninformed mind, let me say this. My Jewish dad used to say “we” were living in houses when everyone else was still swinging in the trees”. My take is this: The Jewish seem to be perhaps a little more evolved (someone is always first or in front of things, someone in the middle and someone…..right?). They can project and determine the progression of thought and reactions by, let’s call them, non-Jews. And they were more civilized due to the simple numerical fact they happened to be first to give up tree living by inventing doors and houses, or whatever. OK, these are generalizations, don’t freak, bear w/ me. Now, as ground dwellers and perhaps more civilized that the tree swingers of the time they had a big problem, everyone wanted what they had and they were easy to spot, they were the only one one the….ground.Thus you have a group everyone else had a reason to attack. Everyone else was using muscle and fangs while perhaps the folks my Dad mentioned were using their brains to ward off these “uncivilized” of the time. Of course that’s what happened, what the hell, else? So what does a group who are the only one living on the ground and who must defend themselves by using their heads because they cannot out muscle their enemies, do? They damn well must stick together and never stray from the house (religion) too far. They do that well.

Here’s the point. You will never out think or out manuver them. They are an amazingly intelligent and organized group who will never give in because there is nothing to give in to. We are all heading in the same direction, evolvement. Remember, in everything someone was first, second and on it goes.

It’s the natural order. But, big problem, they are motivated by fear. Fear born of the fact they wear a target on their back. It’s not their fault, all they see from this crazy world are folks who perhaps are a little behind and who are jealous and angry. So now we have an ultra-powerful group reacting on fear. That’s real bad. See Viet Nam, WWII Germany, Iraq, etc.Decisions made through fear of being persued by a group motivated by jealousy and also fear. Result? War and domination.

The fix today? First, stop the killing in the Middle East. Stop muzzling the truth through manipulation of the press, stop using the American military and lives to do your killing. Stop manipulating Wall st. The reason Jews don’t have a country is they damn near destroy them through fear of non-control of the “tree swingers” or whatever their conception of Gentiles may be. I want Jews here on Earth, I want them to operate in society at what they do best and that is getting educated and figuring out how mankind can survive the mess we are in, not killing people they think want to kill them. That is an un-ending scenario. Only through calm thinking and without fear will they be able to work their magic. Do not continue to band together as a trembling, paranoid ultra-dangerous group due to ultra-high intellect. Go ahead and lead IF you have humankind and not just Jewish goals in mind. You do have the control, Gentiles need not wrest it from you, kids dare not attack their parents lest they perish themselves. The Jewish power structure I mentioned earlier are doing evil deeds that history will eventually uncover. It’s time for the world to appreciate the Jewish because we as a species cannot continue to sustain the damage fearful Jews perpetrate on the world and even hope to have enough energy left to find a way out of certain extinction. They can’t “think” us out of our jam if they are too busy thinking up ways to control us. Perhaps you can understand my stance if you understand my bloodline, I’m half Jewish and half European so any damage done by Jews for Jews or persecution by non-Jews toward Jews hurts. I’m also still a 60’s Hippie, my proudest title because that was a time when we all turned in the same direction, Toward the sky, Earth etc. You know, the real stuff we today consider last. Sol et’s not be Jews, or Gentiles or Repubs, Dems, union members, etc. We’re ever so slightly different humans who are riding this dirtball through space headed for ultimate diaster, so high five the passenger next to you and enjoy the ride. It only lasts awhile and we’ve already pissed away too much time.


1

tl:dr


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The comment by justme is not appropriate to this conversation. it should be removed.


-1

Carcrazed, inwhich conversation does my argument belong then? De-program yourself. Noone else can do that for you. Think independantly. Remove it? What scared you? It was the exposure of your false reality.


1

This is a “bunch-a-do-about-nothin” . I didn’t see anything hateful about this site. Yes, it has a few strange headlines here and there that makes a person do a double take and raises ones curiosity but I don’t see a single thing wrong with the site and didn’t find anything racist or hateful about it. If anything it pokes fun at racism.


I’m tired of all this political correct BS rhetoric. We are becoming a society of cry babies. I’m blond and I think blond jokes are hysterical. OH Boo hoo hoo, somebody said something about a blond and we really aren’t all dumb and retarded you know. waaaaaaaa


Maybe they should put out a disclaimer that say’s “for emotionally secure audiences only, cry babies may be offended.


0

I read “I Hate the Media” at least daily. For those too young to remember (or admit) the website carries on the great tradition of TV political satire, cynicism and sarcasm embodied by award winning shows such as Rowan and Martin’s Laugh In (TW3 ~ That Was The Week That Was) and the Smothers Brothers, but of course with a conservative perspective.

The website does not fabricate or alter the “news” facts ~ they provide links to the traditional media source.

Hate in our “Paradise”? Check out our local TT for endless liberal hate diatribes in the letters section.

Hate on local radio and TV by conservatives? I must be the only one who at times listen to such benign political talk show hosts as Keith Olberman, Rachel Maddow, Randy Rhoads, Ed Schultz or the nastiest most hate filled commentator Mike Malloy. Rush Limbaugh and Mike Savage are no pussycats either but a listen once or twice might awaken some ideas. Of course everybody hates Glenn Beck but his show presents more documented facts than almost anything on TV. Like so many things the messenger is disliked but the message is the truth. All, liberal and conservative alike might learn something by listening to all of this and if you have the guts to open your mind you just might learn something. Sometimes by reading well done but humorous sites like I Hate the Media you might have the kind of light bulb moment you can’t get with a Tweet, a Text Message or a Facebook snippet.


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So I guess I am the only one here old enough to remember the Smothers Brothers, Rowan and Martin’s Laugh In and That Was The Week That Was.

They took the News and found the insanity within using sarcasm, often biting and harsh, and wit more often then not with a liberal bent.

So I Hate the Media does not fabricate (check the links on each article) they explore the craziness with a conservative view.

Hate in our paradise and on the radio by conservatives, try the letters to the editor in the TT particularly written by liberals, or if you prefer AM radio tune in to Mike Malloy or Randy Rhoads, Rachel Maddow, Keith Oberman or Ed Schultz. They certainly out number the sometimes nastiness of Rusch Limbough or Mike Savage. Glenn Beck is perhaps one of the most factually correct shows on TV, but he engenders hate of the liberals more for how he says it rather than what he says. Of course in todays world few take the time to research the truth since you can’t do by texting or Tweeting or Facebooking.

So lets show a little tolerance to the other side, which ever it might be. Ya just might learn something ~ if you have the guts to open your mind!


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” … or if you prefer AM radio tune in to Mike Malloy or Randy Rhoads, Rachel Maddow, Keith Oberman or Ed Schultz. They certainly out number the sometimes nastiness of Rusch Limbough or Mike Savage.” Facts can be confusing to someone who may not be familiar with what an actual fact is; to wit, Rachel Maddow and Keith Olberman are not on the radio, period. Ed Shultz isn’t on the air locally in any regular rotation, leaving (in our area at least, on the public airwaves, Randy Rhodes and Mike Malloy. I am a regular listener to Randy Rhodes and have been since the now defunct Air America debut in 2004. At first I was somewhat put off by Randi but I continued to listen, trying to see what she was really about. I do not believe that she is a “hate monger” at all, especially in recent memory. She does become exasperated with some of her conservative callers when they won’t take a breath and listen to a question she tries to pose to them, but the main point is that she does take conservative callers. Of those of you who listen to conservative talk radio, how often do your hosts of choice actually take liberal callers and give them a real chance to make a point? So that leaves Mike Malloy, broadcast locally on a two hour time delay; he is very vocal, he has a very short fuse (if any at all) with conservative callers when they attempt to make a point, unless they remain coherent and are willing to have an actual dialog. Mike has stated some very controversial remarks, mostly in the past, but I’m sure that he continues to do so now, I just don’t make the time to listen to him very often because I cannot stand listening to time delayed broadcasts. Finally; if you honestly believe that Glen Beck is “perhaps one of the most factually correct shows on TV”, boy do I have some really nice beachfront property to sell you in Arizona or Nevada.


0

Thank you for the correction, many pardons as hearing vs seeing the conversation is point well taken.

Your impression of Ms. Rhoads is certainly a perspective that could be considered but her whole demeanor is one that could be characterized as hostile frequently to callers of her own political persuasion.

Nice dance regarding Mike Malloy . Nasty, hate filled and quite often antiAmeican and antisemetic would be just the beginning of a definition. Name calling and antagonistic epithets are also just part of his live or delayed show. He is a hater capable of disliking all sides in a vile way.

Perhaps your appreciation of the truth is that of a blind man feeling the different anatomical parts of an elephant. Where you stand during the process might guarantee you know what your feeling but opening ones eyes might reveal the whole truth. That is not meant as a personal attack as we all tend to get smug in our personal reality set, and who has enough time to fact check everything especially when we “feel” it can’t be correct.

And if you have a really great deal on beach front property in Arizona it probably is not safe due to the Mexican drug cartels ~ is that why you are selling?


0

Arizona is not safe because of vigilante patriots like Jim Gilchrist and cold booded racist murderer Shanna Forde


0

Very ironic the numbers of “jump to conclusion” people there are here… Must be the stronghold of liberal public employees.

So quick to condemn and spread a rumor…


0

Word!


Very vivid imaginations of hate.


I just have to remind myself that Liberalism is a mental disdorder.


0

Facts versus words, good point.

It will always be a question of the truth versus those who chose not to acknowledge truth as opposed to opinion, and statements about opionions as if gosple

There are a great many websites

out there (too many?) espousing opinion as opposed to the facts. Many web sites welcome the controversy as opposed to telling the truth, it is very good for business.

Everyone has an opinion yet we are limited to a certain number of truthful or trustworthy website or news outlets… We get our news or “what happened” from a limited source, yet the Truth does not make the surface very often. Opinion makes headlines everyday…


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Ironic that people go to a website that is satirical to affirm their own opinions, and are calling the satire “The Truth.”


Folks, it’s Satire. By definition, satire wouldn’t work if it entirely lacked truth, so yes, there is some truth on a satirical site, but it’s not The Truth. Be wary of ALL online sources: satirical, straight news, entertainment. Most importantly, because it’s posted on the web doesn’t make it factual, no matter who posts it.


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Say what you will, John Stewart remains the most trusted broadcast journalist in America.


0

And this implies what, exactly, concerning the state of journalism in Amerika?


0

“By LISA RIZZO”

News or opinion? Is this just another in a long line of young people seeking to pad their resume and move on?


0

It was news to me and I appreciate the story, like most of CCN’s work.


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Question: How many posting here are public employees and how many think the questions about public pensions is off base?


0

Question: How long does it take for a public employee to stand up

and admit there is a problem?


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I don’t have a problem with DeYoung & Fleming’s web efforts. I recall quite a few similarly-themed letters to the editor penned by Mark, and hadn’t seen any in awhile. This explains it.


If they weren’t getting their political rocks off on the web (based on their online rhetoric and self-important post in this forum) I’d be concerned that DeYoung & Fleming might be plotting some spectacularly violent public event, aka Jason Lee Loughner in Tucson. So I’m pleased to see them expressing themselves online. Keep it up guys!


0

So how is this a problem?

This s another in a long line of websites that reports “the news” and is reponded to by myriad of web pages

where”s the offence?


0

That’s an AWESOME Web Site!!


Thank you SO MUCH to CCN for turning me on to it!!


0

I like it too.


0

Lisa, we’re very disappointed in your journalistic integrity. You asked and we answered many questions in an email interview. You ignored the answers almost completely and/or took them out of context. In the spirit of fair play, we are publishing them here for your readers. We are only leaving out the “off the record” part of the answer we submitted to Question #4, as it detailed death threats from leftwing lunatics that we do not need to further encourage.


By the way, cute trick on the “Anyone laughing at this video should be taken out and shot” comment. That was directed at people on other sites who were laughing at the poor CBS reporter who appeared to have suffered a stroke on TV this week. The answer was appropriate (please read story and readers comments: http://tinyurl.com/46g3fcw)


This is our one and only comment on the article. We urge anyone to come to IHateTheMedia.com and read several articles in their entirety before making any uninformed comments.


The Q&A, as sent to you:


1. Between you and Mark Fleming it is apparent you are both founders of [redacted], a LLC and founders/publishers of “I hate the media.” Is this accurate? If not, can you please clarify?


That is correct. And a dandy little enterprise it is.


2. Would you like to describe the website and its purpose as you have intended it?


IHateTheMedia.com offers satirical news and commentary on media, politics and pop culture from a conservative/libertarian point of view. Like all satire, it’s meant to offend. Our favorite reader comment of all time said, “You guys are like Rush Limbaugh only cooler.” We wish. The original purpose of IHateTheMedia.com was to make both of us fabulously wealthy. In that regard it has failed miserably.


3. Where is the site managed from? What is your role in day-to-day operations?


If you have somehow concluded that there is any management skill involved in IHateTheMedia.com, you are sorely mistaken. It is chaotic and sporadic at best. We are partners, but each of us thinks he is the brains and the other is a moron. IHateTheMedia.com intergalactic headquarters is located in a secure bunker in a top secret Central Coast location


4. It appears your names have been sanitized from the site. Is this the case? Why?


Sanitized? That implies something nefarious, that they were there at one point and that we removed them in the dark of night. C’mon, it’s not like we’re Arianna Huffington or Malcolm Forbes and putting our names on the site would mean anything or attract any additional readers. But now that IHateTheMedia.com has become so popular, we keep our names out it because there are lunatics out there.


5. Some cultural subgroups take offense to some of the site’s content and headlines, particularly Muslim, Gay and/or Mexican people. For example, the story that infers inbreeding is to blame for Muslim suicide bombings “Tendency to inbreed to blame for Muslim terrorists’ homicidal tendencies?” and “New survey discovers that Egyptians are schizophrenic.” How would you respond to critics that contend the site adds to division in America and the spread of misinformation?


You insult us. If only some cultural subgroups have been offended, we haven’t done our job very well. We intend to offend every group and subgroup. Think of us as equal opportunity offenders. Please point out the groups that have not yet been offended and we will take care of that oversight immediately.


Do not mistake IHateTheMedia.com for a serious news site. That’s the job of swashbuckling pirates and muckrakers like CalCoastNews.com. Our job is to comment on the absurd and take the non-absurd to its absurd conclusions.


To respond to the specific articles you mentioned, we didn’t write the story about Muslim inbreeding. We simply commented on an essay by a Danish psychologist about first cousin marriages among Muslims. We made light of the story and took it to its absurd conclusion with a photo and caption that said, “Little Akbar and his father who is also his uncle and his cousin and his brother.”


Other IHateTheMedia.com stories that same day made fun of another conservative website, Chris Matthews, the unauthorized Obama biography, Chris Christie, things that must be banned to keep America safe, CNN, John Bolton and ObamaCare.


The story about the schizophrenic Egyptians was based on an actual Pew Research study that said, “…the Pew researchers found that 84 percent of Egyptians favor the death penalty for people who leave the Muslim religion. In another survey, Pew found that 90 percent of Egyptians say they believe in freedom of religion.” Surely we can’t be the only people who find those two facts contradictory and funny as hell.


Other IHateTheMedia.com stories that same day made fun of a teacher/student sex, the U.N. Secretary General, the New York Times, Michelle Obama, Time magazine, and Chuck Schumer.


Two things you may find interesting that will surely upset your preconceived notions about IHateTheMedia.com:


– 1. We have some very good friends, a long-time couple, who happen to be gay and conservative. Every time we do a gay-related story, we think to ourselves, “Will this offend Mr. X and Mr. Y?” We told them that once. They laughed and said, “Screw ‘em if they can’t take a joke. Go for it.”


– 2. Our biggest (based on number of comments left every day) and most popular (based on comments from other readers) reader is a conservative black woman.


We think you betray your prejudice simply by asking the question, “How would you respond to critics that contend the site adds to division in America and the spread of misinformation?” Targets of satire are usually offended. If they’re not, they have a highly-developed sense of humor or they’re too dumb to know we’re making fun of them. We would tell those critics that we do nothing that Saturday Night Live doesn’t do except that we do it from a conservative/libertarian point of view.” Fact is, we’re usually funnier than SNL. Not as funny as when Eddie Murphy was on the show, but a lot funnier than when Al Franken was.


6. The site is undoubtedly clever and sometimes humorous. At its inception did it represent your views or was this a money making idea?


Sometimes humorous? Sometimes? That hurts. That really hurts. We initially thought that IHTM would make us the conservative T-shirt kings of America. That didn’t work out so well. Luckily, we have so much fun doing the site that we’re happy with the minimum wages it provides us.


7. Is “I hate the media” finding success in terms of hits and advertising? What is the average readership?


We can’t complain. It just keeps growing. Each month is larger than the prior one. We’re not the DrudgeReport yet, but we keep plugging away. Advertising is minimal, just a few Google Adsense-generated ads that pay for our daily coffee and heroin. What’s gratifying is the rabid response of readers from virtually every country in the world. We even have readers in Iran, which surprises us because we thought Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had outlawed laughing back in 2002. Alexa.com ranks IHateTheMedia.com as the 17,810th most visited site in the United States. By way of comparison CalCoastNews.com is number 109,489. If you guys were smart, you’d have us interview you because it looks like you could use the traffic.


8. BCA tells us you are no longer employed at the firm but will be working more as an independent consultant. Is this the case? When did you leave the company and what is your current position?


The Editor works as a consultant with a lot of agencies in SLO County and around the country, including BCA. For several years he was on staff at BCA part time. That hasn’t been the case for several years. Both of the partners at IHateTheMedia.com are supposed to be retired, but neither of us seem to have the retirement gene.


9. It seems to be a paradox that the founder of “I hate the media” is a long time publicist that has a history of working closely with the media on behalf of public relations clients. But in its FAQ section the site wishes the death of television, radio and newspapers among other forms of media. How do you respond?


Now you’ve gone too far. Now you’ve offended The Editor. He’s never been a publicist nor in public relations. He’s an ad guy – a creative director and copywriter. Public relations and advertising are like two different planets orbiting the same star.


There’s no paradox at all. We hate what the media has become. Look at the current sorry state of newspapers, radio and television. This interview is a perfect example. It is one website interviewing another website. Where’s the Trib? Where’s KSBY? Where’s Congalton?


10. What other websites have you started? How are you connected to “Shut up Hillary” and “Climategate”?


We start websites as often as some people change their underwear. More often, probably, than some. At one time we bought and sold URLs just for fun and every once in a while we made a few bucks at it. ShutUpHillary.com has been inactive for quite a while. ClimateGate.com is virtually inactive and requires only about ten minutes of our time each week.


11. Can you provide us with Fleming’s contact information so he has an opportunity to respond?


That won’t be necessary. We answered these questions together.


— Mark Fleming


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threats from leftwing lunatics now that would be news. put up or—- up.


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Mark Fleming — Given the work you do, you don’t get to question the journalistic integrity of anyone. Nice try at attempting to put this back on the reporter, but it won’t stick. You are fostering hate and misconception and fear under the umbrella of satire. Better run to the cave and stock up on supplies. You’ll probably be in hiding for awhile. Just like you tried to hide your name on the web site.


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Mark —


Thank you for the additional information. Paints a significantly different picture than the article above.


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“Please point out the groups that have not yet been offended and we will take care of that oversight immediately.”


Glenn Beck’s Fans, Rush Limbaughs Fan’s, Sarah Palin’s Fans, start there.


Also the Alexa ranking is marketing Bs, neither site is using the alexa bug, alexa wants conversions.


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