The interplay between a noxious radio/TV host like Beck and his sponsors is viewed by some as a sideshow at best, but in the case of Beck his entire shtick is built on ginning up non-stop fear in his audience -- one minute it's global economic collapse, but a minute later it's identity theft. Indeed, the relationship between Beck and the odd list of gimmcky products he peddles get a major shout-out in my forthcoming book, The Backlash: Right-Wing Radicals, Hi-Def Hucksters and Paranoid Politics in the Age of Obama. It's important to see how Beck is a modern medicine man who tells you the disease and then also offers the cure...for the right price -- whether it's Goldline or Beck's latest book or American Revival gig or, in the case of identity theft, a company called LifeLock.
For years now, Beck has been delivering heartfelt-sounding paid testimonials for the Arizona-based identity-theft protection firm, often in the worried-but-sincere same tones as he delivers his apocalyptic warnings about the breakdown of American society. This is what he said about LifeLock in a recent radio show, as captured by Forbes magazine in its recent article, Glenn Beck, Inc.: "I wish I could protect my children--
got a boyfriend in New York City--I can't lock my children up, but I can lock my computer up. ... " At times, an ad with Beck touting LifeLock appears on the lucrative homepage real estate on GlennBeck.com, and the firm still advertises on Beck's Fox News Channel show.
But here's something that Beck doesn't mention in his testimonials:
the Federal Trade Commission said Tuesday that the claims were bogus (.pdf) and accused Lifelock, based in Arizona, of operating a scam and con operation. The commission announced, along with 35 state attorneys general, that it had levied a fine of $12 million against the company for deceptive business practices and for failing to secure sensitive customer data.
http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/attytood/Another_Beck_sponsor_gets_dinged.html
http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/threatlevel/2010/03/lifelockcomplaint.pdf