MediaMatters wrote: New low: Beck and right-wing media minions fearmongering about kids to attack progressives
September 24, 2009 4:20 pm ET — 32 Comments
Glenn Beck and other right-wing media figures have recently fearmongered about how President Obama and progressive policies will harm children; among other things, Beck and these other media figures have repeatedly accused Obama of "indoctrinating" school children, aired unauthorized videos of children singing Obama's praises, and attacked Obama's "school saftey czar." On his September 25 television show, Beck plans to continue the trend by hosting 9-12 Project mothers, along with their children, who are "concerned" about "their kids' futures."
Beck invites 9-12 Project "moms" who are "worried about their kids' futures" to his show
Beck plans to "bring in moms and their kids to see what they're worried are about." On his Fox News show, Beck has repeatedly teased plans to "bring in moms and their kids to see what they're worried about" for his September 25 broadcast, claiming he has "noticed that more and more women are calling into my radio program," and that "t's moms that are concerned into their kids' futures." Beck detailed: "Moms -- they're joining the 9/12 Project. So this Friday, I thought we'll have a studio audience. We'll bring in moms and their kids to see what they're worried are about."
Beck started 9-12 Project, whose members helped to organize 9-12 protests. On March 13, Beck announced the launch of his 9-12 Project, whose members helped organize and turn out participants to the 9-12 "March on Washington," which was heavily promoted by Fox News.
Conservative media fearmonger about unauthorized YouTube video of school kids "praising" Obama
The Drudge Report: "SHOCK VIDEO: School kids taught to praise Obama ..." On September 23, Internet gossip Matt Drudge linked to a YouTube video purportedly showing "chool kids taught to praise Obama." The video, showing young schoolchildren in New Jersey singing a song about Obama, provides no evidence that the children or their parents consented to having the video posted on YouTube.
America's Newsroom: "Many parents ... just don't want this sort of political cheerleading, if you will, in the classroom." On Fox News' America's Newsroom, hosts Bill Hemmer and Megyn Kelly aired the video and asserted that "many parents" don't want kids "singing praises" to Obama. Before showing the video, Hemmer said: "It is one thing to have kids say the Pledge of Allegiance, but we're not sure what's going on with the videotape now online when students are singing praises to the president and why some parents are saying, not with my kid." Later, Kelly teased the video by saying, it's "getting attention on The Drudge Report website this morning. It shows young children singing the praises, quite literally, of the president." She continued:
KELLY: Well, information posted with the clip says that it is from the Bernice Young School in Burlington Township, New Jersey, but the school won't exactly confirm that for us. In fact, they won't confirm anything for us. We have made multiple attempts to ask them about these students, about this tape and how this came about. We are hoping that they can get back to us shortly, so that we can clear this up.
Already we're getting a lot of emails from our viewers. It went on from there -- you saw a clip of the children singing. Then came a bit of a chant by the children where they praised President Obama for all his great accomplishments, saying, quote, "You're number one. Hooray, Mr. President, we're really proud of you." And on and on it goes.
You know, many would have no problem with this. Many parents would, and just don't want this sort of political cheerleading, if you will, in the classroom. We just don't know the details behind the tape, but it certainly caught our attention and we're trying to find out from, again, from this school, which we have multiple calls into. The B. Bernice Young Elementary School, Bernice Young Elementary School in Burlington, New Jersey. And as soon as we have it, you'll have it. [America's Newsroom, 9/24/09]
The Fox Nation: "School Children Sing Songs of Obama's Glory." On September 25, the allegedly fair and balanced TheFoxNation.com posted the video with the headline "School Children Sing Songs of Obama's Glory."
fearmongerkids2
Beck: Song sounds like "a hymnal for a dictator." On the September 24 edition of his radio show, Beck said: "I want to show you, and tonight I'm going to play the tape for you, of indoctrination that is going on. We've been going through all of this indoctrination for the last few days. Tomorrow, I do a full hour live with moms, and their children, and we're going to talk a little bit about things they're concerned with -- and indoctrination I know will come up. Play this, this is -- do we know where this is from? Elementary School in Burlington, New Jersey. The B. Bernice Young Elementary School. The woman who did this is, I believe, an activist, she's the principal, or the teacher. I don't have her name here. But listen to -- this is -- these are elementary school children, and they are singing a song for Barack Obama." After Beck played audio of the video and read the words out loud, he said it sounded like "a hymnal for a dictator. ... Does anybody see what's going on? Does anybody see what's going on?" Later, Beck said: "This is indoctrination. This should horrify the American people." [Premiere Radio Networks' The Glenn Beck Show, 9/25/09]
Beck also promoted the video September 24 on his Twitter feed: RT @keepthemhonest: How young does Obama target (more indoctrination video) http://is.gd/3C1Qc @glennbeck #tcot
Burlington Township School District superintendent: Song is from Black History Month activity, and the "recording and distribution of the classroom activity was unauthorized." The school board's superintendent wrote in a letter to parents that "[t]he video is of a class of students singing a song about President Obama. The activity took place during Black History Month in 2009, which is recognized each February to honor the contributions of African Americans to our country. Our curriculum studies, honors and recognizes those who serve our country. The recording and distribution of the class activity were unauthorized."
God bless my Alma Mater. Especially in the context of the song itself, which is thoroughly innocuous, it's hysterical that they think that some third grade school teacher in suburban Philadelphia is being instructed by Obama's New World Order to brainwash these children. In case you want, here's the story as carried by Faux:
Faux News wrote:Elementary School Students Taught to Sing Praises of President Obama
Nearly 20 young children are captured in an online video as they sing songs that overflow with campaign slogans and praise for "Barack Hussein Obama," as they repeatedly chant the president's name and celebrate his accomplishments.
FOXNews.com
Thursday, September 24, 2009
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Children sing songs praising President Obama's "great accomplishments" in a video that was reportedly made in a New Jersey elementary school. (YouTube)
Children sing songs praising President Obama's "great accomplishments" in a video that was reportedly made in a New Jersey elementary school. (YouTube)
Parents of students at a New Jersey elementary school are up in arms after a class of young kids was videotaped being "brainwashed" into singing the praises of President Obama.
B. Bernice Young Elementary School was placed on lockdown Thursday after the school's principal received death threats over a YouTube video that showed nearly 20 children being taught songs lauding the president. Back to school night events appeared to be continuing as planned Thursday night at the school, but it was known whether Principal Denise King would attend.
Video of the students at the Burlington, N.J., school shows them singing songs overflowing with campaign slogans and praise for "Barack Hussein Obama," repeatedly chanting the president's name and celebrating his accomplishments, including his "great plans" to "make this country's economy No. 1 again."
One song that the children were taught quotes directly from the spiritual "Jesus Loves the Little Children," though Jesus' name is replaced with Obama's: "He said red, yellow, black or white/All are equal in his sight. Barack Hussein Obama."
The video has set off families in Burlington who said they were horrified that their children at the Kindergarten through Second Grade school were being "indoctrinated" to view the president like a cult figure.
"I'm stunned -- I can't believe it's our school," said Jim Pronchik, who told FOXNews.com his 8-year-old son Jimmy was one of the 18 students in the video. "We don't want to praise this guy like he's a god or an idol or a king or anything like that. That's the wrong message to be sending."
Click here to see the full lyrics to both songs.
Pronchik said he and his wife were never informed about the lesson, which the superintendent of Burlington Township schools says was held in February as part of Black History Month "to honor the contributions of African Americans to our country."
Superintendent Christopher Manno said in a written statement Thursday that the taping itself was out of order, but failed to address whether the lesson was approved. "The recording and distribution of the class activity were unauthorized," he wrote in a note to parents and the media.
Other families arriving at Bernice Young Elementary to pick up their children said they were outraged at the songs, which also tout a fair-pay bill Obama signed in January: "He said we must be clear today/Equal work means equal pay."
"I felt this was reminiscent of 1930's Germany, and the indoctrination of children to worship their leader," said Robert Bowen, father of two children at Bernice Young Elementary.
"I thought that if this was a civics class in say high school or upper level middle school, in might be appropriate to discuss policies or politics, but as far as children in first grade, second grade -- those types of levels -- it's inappropriate to discuss how a president is changing the world after only six weeks in office."
Parents said the songs were performed in Elvira James' second grade class. James, who refused to comment to FOXNews.com, retired at the end of the previous school year on a full pension in New Jersey.
Bowen said he thought there should be consequences for having provided such a one-sided lesson to impressionable students there.
"It's something that there should be serious repercussions for ... the administration here, and I think the school board needs to be answerable to the parents of the community," said Bowen. School board members did not respond to requests for comment.
Though the school was not planning to address the tape during back-to-school-night events, many parents were heading in with with a lot of questions about the tape.
"This video is disturbing," said a grandparent named Sandy, who spoke on the condition that her last name not be included. "We don't teach politics in pre-school -- or kindergarten or first grade."
"This has no place in the classroom," said Sandy, added Sandy, who told FOXNews.com she has two grandchildren attending Bernice Young Elementary. "It may have been the opinion of one or two, and someone should pay the consequences for it."
The author of the songs is unknown, but a woman -- possibly a teacher -- can be heard in the beginning of the video correcting and helping a student who has forgotten the words. Another woman, the person holding the camera, cheers the students on: "All right," she says. "I like that."
"Alteredbeat," the YouTube user who posted the video on the Internet, told FOXNews.com that the video was first put online by Charisse Carney-Nunes, an activist and author of the children's book "I Am Barack Obama," which her Web site says "allows children to see themselves through the inspirational story of President Obama." Carney-Nunes has been promoting the book during visits to schools on the east coast.
A poster for the book can been seen near the stage of the auditorium in the video of Bernice Young Elementary, but it is unclear whether Carney-Nunes had visited the school or was present during the filming.
"Alteredbeat" told FOXNews.com that he reached out to Carney-Nunes, who insisted that the program had been filmed in June as part of a Father's Day tribute to President Obama. "The kids made up the songs on their own," she wrote, according to the YouTube user.
"Alteredbeat" originally posted the video Sept. 6, two days before Obama made an address to the nation's schoolchildren in which he praised the American education system as the best in the world and urged students to stay in school.
"At the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, and the best schools in the world," Obama said.
FOXNews.com's Cristina Corbin and FOX News' Michael Sorrentino contributed to this report.
Having spoken to Superintendent Manno as recently as a year and a half ago, the whole idea that he's brainwashing our children is absurd, but that's anecdotal.
And lyrics, as linked in the actual Fox story.
Song 1:
Mm, mmm, mm!
Barack Hussein Obama
He said that all must lend a hand
To make this country strong again
Mmm, mmm, mm!
Barack Hussein Obama
He said we must be fair today
Equal work means equal pay
Mmm, mmm, mm!
Barack Hussein Obama
He said that we must take a stand
To make sure everyone gets a chance
Mmm, mmm, mm!
Barack Hussein Obama
He said red, yellow, black or white
All are equal in his sight
Mmm, mmm, mm!
Barack Hussein Obama
Yes!
Mmm, mmm, mm
Barack Hussein Obama
Song 2:
Hello, Mr. President we honor you today!
For all your great accomplishments, we all doth say "hooray!"
Hooray, Mr. President! You're number one!
The first black American to lead this great nation!
Hooray, Mr. President we honor your great plans
To make this country's economy number one again!
Hooray Mr. President, we're really proud of you!
And we stand for all Americans under the great Red, White, and Blue!
So continue ---- Mr. President we know you'll do the trick
So here's a hearty hip-hooray ----
Hip, hip hooray!
Hip, hip hooray!
Hip, hip hooray!
Long story short: no one would give a shit if the Burlington Township School District sung songs in praise of George Bush, but they're too progressive a community who raise their children in too tolerant an environment, for which I'm personally very thankful, so instead they sing about Obama. Is this a choice the teacher should have made? Perhaps not. But Fox is, as always, blowing this way out of proportion because it's about their personal three headed dragon.
That said, I'm glad I'm not in Burlington to hear the shit that will fly at the next Board of Education meeting.
Your head is humming and it won't go, in case you don't know, the piper's calling you to join him
PRFYNAFBTFCP
