THE MOST PROLIFIC AUTHOR OF OUR TIME…. Will Bunch, a braver man than I, attended a Glenn Beck-hosted event in Orlando over the weekend, and has a fascinating report on the deranged media personality’s latest message to his followers. Of particular interest, though, was news of yet another book:
Frequently accused of relying on apocalyptic fear-mongering to build ratings and get attention, Beck provided details of the fictional political thriller that he’s planning to publish in June — called The Overton Window, according to online catalogue listings — that will do little to dispel those complaints, as the tome will portray America sliding into a civil war.
“It’s a story of America at time much like today where the people are confused and they’re being lied to and they’re not sure what’s right-side-up and upside-down,” Beck said. “And there’s one part…there’s a group of people that plays a role called the Founders Keepers…This leads to a battle and a civil war, and life is upside down planet-wide. There’s a group of people that just won’t give up.”
Dave Weigel said the book “sounds like ‘Atlas Shrugged’ with a bit more violence, and with 9-12 Tea Partiers taking the place of underground intellectuals.”
I’m also struck, though, by Beck’s remarkable ability to churn out books for his minions to buy.
It started in late 2007, with “An Inconvenient Book.” A year later, Beck released a Christmas book. He released his next book in June 2009, and then another in September 2009. He released an audio book in May 2009, and another audio book in February 2010. Late last year, Beck even released a photo-companion book to his Christmas book.
His novel will be out in May, followed by yet another book in August, this one on public policy.
For those keeping score, from May 2009 to August 2010 is 15 months. And over those 15 months, Glenn Beck will have published four print books, a photo book, and two audio books.
For a guy who seems to read at a third-grade level — remember, he thinks the word “OLIGARH” is missing a “y” — Beck may very well be America’s most prolific author.
By some estimates, Beck takes in about $18 million a year. Does he really need to exploit his followers so shamelessly?
