re: #228 prairiefire

Certainly many more people watch these entertainment shows than to Beck, but the audiences are fundamentally different in key ways. I don’t see many people using the Mentalist to help them understand history or public policy. A good number of his viewers watch in order to be better informed about what’s going on in America and the world. Have you seen the signs at the Tea Party rallies thanking him? A smaller amount of committed and faithful followers is a lot more powerful than a much larger, but lazier group that just wants their beer and boobs. That’s the key difference, and that’s what makes him dangerous.