April 26, 2015. Bob Schieffer (above) is the host of Face The Nation, which airs on CBS, a network he has been on for YEARS. 2015 is in fact his 47th year with CBS. Schieffer is about to interview the Family Research Council's most prominent figure, Mr. Tony Perkins. But the thing is, he precedes his interview with a very accurate statement:

SCHIEFFER: I'm going to start with probably the most vocal opponent of same-sex marriage and that is Tony Perkins. He is the president of the Family Research Council. And, Mister Perkins, I'm going to say this to you upfront. You and your group have been so strong in coming out against this -- and against gay marriage -- that the Southern Poverty Law Center has branded the Family Research Council an anti-gay hate group. We have been inundated by people who say we should not even let you appear because they, in their view, quote, "You don't speak for Christians." Do you think you have taken this too far?

That's right: the 78-year-old pretty much nailed Mr. Perkins on his program, if you look closely at the text highlighted in bold.

And here, I present you actual Perkins quotes as a reason why:

“The videos are titled 'It Gets Better.' They are aimed at persuading kids that although they'll face struggles and perhaps bullying for 'coming out' as homosexual (or transgendered or some other perversion), life will get better. …It's disgusting. And it's part of a concerted effort to persuade kids that homosexuality is okay and actually to recruit them into that lifestyle."
— Tony Perkins, FRC fundraising letter, August 2011

"Those who understand the homosexual community—the activists—they're very aggressive, they're—everything they accuse us of they are in triplicate. They're intolerant, they're hateful, vile, they're spiteful. .... To me, that is the height of hatred, to be silent when we know there are individuals that are engaged in activity, behavior, and an agenda that will destroy them and our nation."
— Tony Perkins, Speaking to the Oak Initiative Summit, April 2011

“While activists like to claim that pedophilia is a completely distinct orientation from homosexuality, evidence shows a disproportionate overlap between the two. … It is a homosexual problem.”
— FRC President Tony Perkins, FRC website, 2010

As for Schieffer's mention of the SPLC statement, here is said statement, in whole:

The Family Research Council (FRC) bills itself as “the leading voice for the family in our nation’s halls of power,” but its real specialty is defaming gays and lesbians. The FRC often makes false claims about the LGBT community based on discredited research and junk science. The intention is to denigrate LGBT people in its battles against same-sex marriage, hate crimes laws, anti-bullying programs and the repeal of the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy.

To make the case that the LGBT community is a threat to American society, the FRC employs a number of “policy experts” whose “research” has allowed the FRC to be extremely active politically in shaping public debate. Its research fellows and leaders often testify before Congress and appear in the mainstream media. It also works at the grassroots level, conducting outreach to pastors in an effort to “transform the culture.”

Unsurprisingly, the homophobia promoters have decided to knock this elderly man for comments he made during the interview. Perkins commented on this historic event in a way that just SCREAMS flawed. Such flaws are highlighted in bold:

Fortunately, CBS didn't give into the censorship and allowed us to respectfully disagree with the media's narrative on marriage. But it was disappointing to see that any media outlet would rely on a group like SPLC that has actually been linked to domestic terrorism in federal court and traffics in politically-motivated, inaccurate, and biased claims. After taking a deeper look at the SPLC's motives, the FBI removed links to the SPLC from its 'hate crimes resources' page and the Department of Defense, along with the U.S. Army, have distanced themselves from SPLC's materials.

First of all, the SPLC has in NO WAY been linked to domestic terrorism. As for the statement about the Federal Bureau of Investigation's SPLC relationship, it continues to list SPLC as a partner in the fight against hate crimes on its website, according to the website As Good As You.

A coalition of right-wing groups that called themselves the Conservative Action Project (CAP), wrote an open letter to CBS News' David Rhodes demanding Schieffer apologize for giving an interview that they saw as "an assault against Judeo-Christian people of faith." Look at the bottom of the letter, and you'll find that it was mostly signed by fellow organizations who've been described by the SPLC as "hate groups" for advancing false and damaging smears about the LGBT community. Read it...IF YOU DARE!

As if that weren't bad enough, he got kicked randomly by sites like The Weekly Standard, Newsbusters, and WorldNetDaily, all of which are also offensively homophobic.

Perkins was described by Farce News' Todd Starnes as a "good and decent and honorable man" (which, um, he ain't) and had his support aided by Rev. Franklin Graham.

We end this quote with the last paragraphs of Media Matters' coverage of the situation:

The right-wing outrage following Schieffer's interview illustrates why it's so important for the media to properly identify members of hate groups when using them as sources or booking them as guests. Hate group leaders like Perkins know that they won't be taken seriously if audiences are informed about the fringe extremism that motivates their anti-LGBT politics. Hate groups thrive when they're able to disguise themselves in the mainstream media as serious, reasonable policy organizations.

Perkins will likely think twice before agreeing to appear on CBS again, and that's a good thing. Hate groups should be afraid of the sunlight and accountability that results from appearances in major media, which has a responsibility to reveal the agenda behind the facade.

I like this. I really like this. Hate-filled sludge being discredited in front of the entire nation, that is.

4387782
oh god, It's almost as good as that thing where a an old lady in Sweden who was part of a very rasistic party was intervjued, not even knowing she was on the candidate list for a position in the ministry and spewing otu the most incorect, stupid stuff ever!

4387782

Someone give the old man a beer.

4387782 I always raise an eyebrow when the 'Christian' right says Judeo-Christian tradition in America. Most all Jews, from secular to Orthodox, want nothing to do with the religious right in the USA. Why? Most only try to get close to Jews to convert them.

4389681

SD?

4387782
Good on Mr. Schieffer, and yeah that group does not speak for us all.

4400022 You bet.