HBO late-night host Bill Maher condemned Geraldo Rivera during his show Friday night, telling the Fox News correspondent he used to be a “crusading reporter” who fought against media biases in journalism, but sold out when he joined the cable news network.
“This is what I don’t get,” Maher told Rivera. “I remember thinking of you as a crusading reporter who was fighting against the spin. I feel like now you are the spin.”
“I think that your characterization of Fox is a stereotype, with all due respect,” Rivera replied. “I’m pro-choice. I’m pro-immigration reform. I’m pro-gun control. And I’m on Fox News.”
Riveria said people mistakenly think some of his colleagues, like Sean Hannity, represent the sum total of those working for Fox News, giving the network its reputation, but added that there are a lot more voices to be heard there.
Rivera won a Peabody Award for his coverage of the mistreatment of disabled patients at Willowbrook State School in Staten Island and in the 1980s he became the first TV news anchor to talk about AIDS on air.
