Merriam-Webster defines “persecute” as follows:
per•se•cute
verb \ˈpər-si-ˌkyüt\
: to treat (someone) cruelly or unfairly especially because of race or religious or political beliefs
: to constantly annoy or bother (someone)
Persecution then, of course, is
: the act or practice of persecuting especially those who differ in origin, religion, or social outlook
: the condition of being persecuted, harassed, or annoyed
It is clear from this that the Fox News business model is based on persecution – persecution of gays, Latinos, atheists, women, liberals – basically everyone who fails to toe the conservative line.
So it is amusing to read that Fox News’ Gretchen Carlson, who makes her living as a persecution peddler, complains that she is being persecuted for her role in the film “Persecuted,” which opens last weekend, because of her employment by Fox News.
The film itself is a Religious Right self-persecution fantasy. As Wikipedia explains of the plot, “Reformed drug addict and America’s leading evangelist John Luther (James Remar) opposes Senator Donald Harrison’s (Bruce Davison) Faith and Fairness Act which Luther believes compromises Christianity. To destroy Luther’s credibility and ensure passage of the bill Luther is framed for the rape and murder of a teenage girl.”
Check out the trailer:
Gretchen Carlson isn’t the film’s only – or largest – problem. The insistence that, as they persecute everyone around them, conservative Christians are themselves somehow persecuted, is a fantasy most Americans don’t find compelling.
And it doesn’t even pull this off. Kyle Smith at the New York Post opined, “The Lord works in mysterious ways but ‘Persecuted’ works in blundering, obvious ways, straining a Christianity-under-attack theme through a dopey thriller.”
And The New York Times’ Neil Genzlinger felt the same:
This terrible attempt at a political thriller for the religious right is aimed not at Christians in general but at a certain breed of them, the kind who feel as if the rest of the world were engaged in a giant conspiracy against their interpretation of good and truth.
Oh dear. Imagine Gretchen Carlson, who is employed by blunderingly obvious Fox News, appearing in such a film. It could not have been much of a challenge.
Rotten Tomatoes gives it a 0%.
Drew Zahn at World Net Daily relates Carlson’s tale of hypocritical woe:
“Persecuted,” the new movie thriller about a preacher turned fugitive and framed for murder, is getting anything but a “fair and balanced” reception from prominent critics, thanks to its inclusion of Fox News star Gretchen Carlson in the cast.
Despite the film’s strong numbers in several Midwestern markets, news outlets on the coasts have been quick to condemn it, zeroing in on the Fox News star’s acting debut.
Carlson says,
I’m used to being attacked simply because of where I work,” added Carlson. “But I am shocked to see so many criticizing the movie because of my association with Fox News of which I am very proud.
And that should tell you something right there. She is proud of being a persecutor, and doesn’t think she should be “persecuted” for it though we would be right to question whether criticism of dishonesty could reasonably be called persecution. Of course, Carlson works for Fox News, where reason of any type is not welcome, and it shows in her parsing of the situation:
‘Persecuted‘ is about freedom of speech and freedom of religion, and if anyone has watched me on Fox News over the last nine years, they will know that those are issues I speak about and am very open about,” Carlson told WND. “This film is really emblematic of these issues that are being discussed in many circles across the country right now. One of the draws of this film is it’s supposed to be thought-provoking in the sense that when you leave the theater you say to yourself, ‘Maybe I should be thinking more about these rights that were given to me centuries ago by the people who fought so hard for these freedoms.’
Freedoms Carlson is now happy to help limit to a few wealthy, mostly white elites and their white-skinned, pseudo-religious and catastrophically under-educated dupes, while the rest are cast out of the “Promised Land” that is America like Canaanites out of Israel because that’s what the Almighty, cast as the Big Rich White Guy in the Sky, wants.
The film should be a great fit for Carlson, one aimed at a familiar audience of white folks who feel a loss of privilege in that they can no longer freely persecute all those who are different from them, because, as it turns out, people actually don’t like being persecuted.
The Religious Right’s equation of “they reject our message=they are persecuting us” doesn’t sell in the larger market, though it may titillate bigoted and myopic white folks. Carlson best get used to being on the outs with America. When all the angry old white folks die off, she’ll find the Fox News’ bubble almighty constricting.
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