When what could be considered misguided or inappropriate remarks are made about a liberal female public figure and a similar situation occurs with a conservative female public figure, Minnesota Republican Rep. Michele Bachmann and others have claimed there’s a perceived double standard as it pertains to the reaction from the media.
For instance in 2008, then-MSNBC anchor David Shuster made the comment that it seemed like then-Democratic presidential nominee contender Hillary Clinton was “pimping” her daughter out for the sake of furthering her campaign. There was instant outrage and Shuster ultimately served a suspension from MSNBC.
However, on Friday night’s “Real Time” on HBO, host Bill Maher referred to former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as a “dumb twat.” It was hardly noticed by anyone in the media beyond Fox News, and Maher doesn’t look as if he’ll be punished anytime soon.
But on Wednesday night’s “On the Record with Greta van Sustren” on the Fox News Channel, Palin had the opportunity to respond to that standard, which she dismissed as being part of the business of politics.
“Of course – women are held to a different standard in all areas,” Palin said. “My point is going to be so what – let’s just work harder, produce more, produce better and get over it. I’m through whining about a liberal press that holds especially conservative women to a different standard because it doesn’t do me any good to whine about it.”
As far as Bill Maher’s remarks, she said she wasn’t going to demand an apology from Maher, nor did she expect the National Organization for Women to come to her defense, which they reluctantly did.
“We wish that it were fair,” she said. “But nobody has ever promised life was going to be fair. In politics it really isn’t fair – the scrutiny, the double standards and all that. But again, when it affects me personally, I’m dealing with it I guess in a different way than others — others who want to bring more light to it and demand that Bill Maher apologize or that NOW defend me for something that was said — by the way I need NOW’s defense like a fish needs a bicycle. I don’t want them to defend me. But my point is when a shot is taken at me, you know it is water off the duck’s back because I know the important things in life that we need to concentrate on especially national and international issues that are so important that our country. You are right when it comes to other women, when it comes to my daughters, when it comes to you Greta — if somebody says something that is not true or is spun in such a … I’m not going to retreat on that. I will reload and I’ll tell them what I think about them and hold them accountable for what they say about other women because in that respect, it is not fair.”
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But, the former Alaska governor did take an opportunity to praise Fox News as it compares to MSNBC and HBO.
“Greta, I don’t think I’ve ever — I don’t think I’ve heard hosts on Fox say the things that hosts on MSNBC would say or HBO, you know the darling of HBO, you know keeping it classy and the gross things they say,” she said. “I’ve heard that said about conservative women.
And in a perfect world, she said there would be more “civility,” but the need for civility shouldn’t be placed on the front burner, she explained.
“Well, you know, I wish there was more civility, I guess,” Palin said. “You know, we teach our kids to — they need to be speaking kindly, too and you have adults out there on the air saying very vulgar things. But you know, again, we need to concentrate on what really matters in this world. There aren’t enough hours in a day to be consumed with things like that, Greta. I anyway have got to be focused on thing I can do to effect change in this country.”