The Independent's journalism is supported by our readers. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn commission.
Bill Maher takes credit for conservative firebrand Milo Yiannopoulos' downfall: 'You're welcome'
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Bill Maher says his controversial interview with Milo Yiannopoulos set into motion the right-wing journalist's recent downfall, which includes the loss of his book deal and his resignation from Breitbart News.
Last week, Maher came under fire for booking Yiannopoulos on his HBO political talk show, "Real Time." The journalist Jeremy Scahill, a frequent "Real Time" guest and founder of The Intercept, cancelled his appearance on the same episode in protest.
"What I think people saw was an emotionally needy Ann Coulter wannabe trying to make a buck off of the left's propensity for outrage," Maher told The New York Times on Tuesday of his interview with Yiannopoulos.
"And by the end of the weekend, by dinnertime Monday, he's dropped as a speaker at CPAC," he continued, referring to the Conservative Political Action Conference. "Then he's dropped by Breitbart, and his book deal falls through. As I say, sunlight is the best disinfectant. You're welcome."
Over the weekend, a 2016 interview with Yiannopoulos resurfaced and sparked new outrage. In it, he made comments appearing to condone sexual relations "between younger boys and older men." The fallout included CPAC revoking his invitation to speak at the conference, the publisher Simon & Schuster pulling out of a planned book deal, and Yiannopoulos resigning as a senior editor at Breitbart.
Though Maher took credit for Yiannopoulos' fall from grace, he told The Times that he didn't intend to ruin his guest — no matter how much he disagrees with Yiannopoulos' opinions.
"I wasn't trying to get him removed from society," the host said. "I'm somebody who, many times, people have tried to make go away. ... It just rubs me the wrong way when somebody says, 'I don't like what this person is saying — he should go away.'"
As for critiques that he went too easy on the controversial guest, Maher said: "It's not my job to hold him accountable to everything he's ever said or done. I had eight minutes with him on the show itself. Sorry I don't have time to go over everything everybody else would want to do. We just had time to sort of start a discussion of the broad view of who he is."
Editor's note: Milo Yiannopoulos has previously written columns published by Business Insider.
• A man who flew around the world for 3 months on less than $1,000 shares his best advice to save a fortune on airfare
• 28 crazy pictures of micro-apartments around the world
• The 21 most expensive countries in the world to live in
Read the original article on Business Insider UK. © 2016. Follow Business Insider UK on Twitter.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments