Former senator John Edwards, who has been throwing punches at Rupert Murdoch and his Fox News Channel, demanded yesterday that the other Democratic presidential candidates return contributions from Murdoch's media conglomerate. "John Edwards will never ask Rupert Murdoch for money -- he won't accept his money," said a statement e-mailed to supporters.Courtesy MediaBistro. What appeals to me about this little rock fight is how Edwards, as the underdog in the Presidential race, has once again put himself in a no-lose situation. The more he slams Fox News and its owner, megalo-titan Rupert Murdoch, the more Fox News attacks him, resulting in free publicity. Edwards can then send out more mail to his supporters depicting himself as a victim of right-wing attacks, resulting in more donations.
Not so fast, Murdoch's people say. His publishing unit, HarperCollins, paid Edwards a $500,000 advance -- and $300,000 in expenses -- for his 2006 book Home: The Blueprints of Our Lives. "We assume the senator is going to give back the money from his advance," News Corp. spokesman Brian Lewis said.
Edwards spokesman Eric Schultz said his boss donated the book payments to charity and that the expense money went to staffers and vendors.
I was thinking yesterday of that old ploy by abortion clinic defenders of organizing pro-choice people to pledge donations to Planned Parenthood for each anti-abortion protester who showed up at a clinic, thereby de-motivating the protesters. It would be nice if there were some kind of similar process for, say, Ann Coulter: Every time she opens her mouth, more money is donated to the Democratic National Committee or, even more fitting, Code Pink, whose Medea Benjamin is simply the far-left photographic negative of Coulter.
technorati: John Edwards, Rupert Murdoch, Fox News, Ann Coulter, Medea Benjamin
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