Over the past week, several women have come forward alleging that they were sexually assaulted by legendary comedian Bill Cosby.
Cosby has denied the allegations through his attorney, and none of the cases have gone to court yet, but the 77-year-old has suffered significant fallout from the scandal nonetheless.
NBC has nixed plans for a sitcom starring Cosby, and at least two venues have already canceled performances that were scheduled for Cosby’s upcoming tour.
However, at least one popular media personality has remained in Cosby’s corner. Conservative pundit Glenn beck addressed the issue of the Cosby scandal on his radio show this morning, and offered an impassioned defense of the embattled comic.
Unfortunately, Beck used some truly regrettable language when arguing in Cosby’s favor:
Referring to a video that shows Cosby demanding that an Associated Press reporter bury footage in which Cosby was asked about the charges against him, Beck said the following:
“You want to talk about rape? That’s media rape right there! You said you would not do that. Since when does your ‘no’ mean ‘yes?’ Do you know the definition of ‘no,’ sir? You’ve just raped Bill Cosby! Maybe we should have a lesson on rape.”
While there has been some controversy regarding the AP’s decision to go public with the footage after suggesting to Cosby that they would not, Beck inarguably crossed a line by comparing the organization’s behavior to rape.
His comment is considered by many to be in particularly poor taste, as he made the analogy while discussing a case that involves actual sexual assault.
Beck has yet to respond to the outrage over his remarks, but even though he has a reputation for stubbornly defending his every viewpoint, many believe that he’ll issue a public apology at some point today.