Conservative talk radio host Rush Limbaugh was accused of “slut-shaming” after making a false claim in an anecdote about progressive pundit Krystal Ball, a former Democratic congressional candidate.
Ball, formerly an MSNBC contributor, blasted Limbaugh for claiming that she had posed for nude photos as a minor, and said that even if she had done so, it shouldn’t have made a difference for her congressional campaign.
Social media blackmail
During his Sept. 4 program, as part of a broader discussion on the number of Republicans retiring from Congress, Limbaugh theorized that some were potentially being blackmailed by Democrats and their allies into stepping down over old secrets and social media posts.
Almost in passing, Limbaugh briefly referenced Ball’s failed 2010 congressional run. “Remember the name Krystal Ball with a K?” Limbaugh said. “Some thought she was attractive. She was running for Congress, and she got elected, and some tweets came out.”
He went on: “She posed nude when she was 14 or 15. She was outraged. ‘How dare you!’ I said, ‘What do you expect to happen? You put a picture of yourself nude on Facebook or MySpace or, you know, My Butt, whatever it is. Somebody’s gonna find that stuff.’ I think some of that is going on, and it’s being used to … Dare I say the word ‘blackmail’? But threaten members.”
Ball calls out Limbaugh for “slut-shaming”
What really happened? Photos of Ball partying as a young adult in the mid-2000s were publicized during her 2010 campaign to represent Virginia’s 1st district, and she eventually lost the race to a Republican opponent.
When Ball found out about the reference from Limbaugh days later, she posted a four-tweet thread on Twitter along with a video clip of herself addressing the matter on her “Rising” program for The HillTV.
“So I have some sort of weird personal/public news,” Ball wrote. “The other day on his show, Rush Limbaugh went on at length about how I posed nude when I was 14 or 15 (I did not.) I’ve been thinking for a few days about how to deal with this. Partly I didn’t really want to call more attention.
“Maybe just ignore it and move on. But the reality is, his show has millions of listeners and the transcript is readily available online. I didn’t want this slut-shaming smear just hanging out there. I’m also lucky enough to have a platform to set the record straight,” she continued.
“But maybe the next person who gets smeared will not,” Ball wrote. “I didn’t want him to think he could just slime anyone with impunity. Most importantly though, if I did ‘pose nude’ at 14, so f****** what? Should women be barred from public service because they have bodies and sexuality?” She concluded by again accusing Limbaugh of “slut-shaming” her and denounced him for attempting to be the “morality police.”
Limbaugh acknowledges mistake
To his credit, Limbaugh acknowledged his mistake during his Sept. 12 program. “I honestly thought it was — ’cause I remember she got very upset that these pictures — she was very mad, and I remember, ‘Well, what do you expect? You know, you go on social media, you do whatever, somebody’s gonna find it and it’s gonna surface.’ It turns out they were party photos, whatever it was, she was upset about it,” he said.
“So we’ve cleared the record. It wasn’t a nude photo, it was party photos. But whatever it was, she was not happy about it, she felt her privacy had been invaded,” he added. “And my point was there isn’t any privacy on social media, particularly if you run for office, people are gonna dig into it.”
716 Responses
Thanks for every other informative site. The place else could I get that type of info written in such a perfect method? I have a venture that I’m simply now running on, and I’ve been on the look out for such info.|
I do not even know how I finished up here, but I thought this put up was once good. I don’t understand who you are however definitely you’re going to a famous blogger if you happen to are not already. Cheers!|
Thank you for the auspicious writeup. It if truth be told was once a amusement account it. Glance complex to far added agreeable from you! By the way, how could we be in contact?|
Hey there! I know this is somewhat off topic but I was wondering if you knew where I could locate a captcha plugin for my comment form? I’m using the same blog platform as yours and I’m having trouble finding one? Thanks a lot!
Hiya very cool website!! Man .. Beautiful .. Amazing .. I will bookmark your site and take the feeds also? I’m happy to find a lot of helpful info here within the post, we need develop more strategies on this regard, thank you for sharing. . . . . .|
We absolutely love your blog and find most of your post’s to be precisely what I’m looking for. Does one offer guest writers to write content in your case? I wouldn’t mind creating a post or elaborating on a number of the subjects you write regarding here. Again, awesome web log!
Hello there! This is my first visit to your blog! We are a team of volunteers and starting a new project in a community in the same niche. Your blog provided us valuable information to work on. You have done a marvellous job!
It’s a pity you don’t have a donate button! I’d without a doubt donate to this outstanding blog! I guess for now i’ll settle for book-marking and adding your RSS feed to my Google account. I look forward to fresh updates and will share this blog with my Facebook group. Chat soon!
Oh my goodness! Impressive article dude! Thanks, However I am having problems with your RSS. I don’t know the reason why I can’t join it. Is there anybody having similar RSS issues? Anybody who knows the answer can you kindly respond? Thanx!!|
Aw, this was an extremely nice post. Taking a few minutes and actual effort to produce a great article… but what can I say… I put things off a lot and never manage to get nearly anything done.|
Hey there! I know this is kind of off topic but I was wondering which blog platform are you using for this website? I’m getting fed up of WordPress because I’ve had problems with hackers and I’m looking at options for another platform. I would be great if you could point me in the direction of a good platform.
Thankfulness to my father who told me about this website, this website is actually remarkable.|
When some one searches for his necessary thing, therefore he/she needs to be available that in detail, so that thing is maintained over here.|
I have learn several excellent stuff here. Certainly price bookmarking for revisiting. I wonder how so much attempt you place to create this type of magnificent informative website.|
Way cool! Some extremely valid points! I appreciate you penning this article and the rest of the website is really good.|
I don’t even understand how I stopped up here, however I believed this publish used to be good. I do not recognise who you’re however definitely you are going to a famous blogger should you aren’t already. Cheers!|
If you wish for to obtain a good deal from this paragraph then you have to apply such strategies to your won web site.|
Hello. excellent job. I did not imagine this. This is a great story. Thanks!
I read this article fully concerning the comparison of most recent and previous technologies, it’s remarkable article.|
Heya just wanted to give you a brief heads up and let you know a few of the images aren’t loading correctly. I’m not sure why but I think its a linking issue. I’ve tried it in two different web browsers and both show the same results.|
Do you have a spam problem on this blog; I also am a blogger, and I was curious about your situation; we have developed some nice practices and we are looking to trade techniques with others, be sure to shoot me an e-mail if interested.
How To Effectively Pre-plan A Nutritious Diet regime This article may help you to a more nutritious lifestyle. Eating oat meal in the morning can provide you with an incredible commence to your day away right. The whole grains in a cup of oat meal may help you whole lengthier. Have a multi-vitamin to dietary supplement your body needs. It will help you the foundation to the nutrients that you may not get an adequate amount of in your foods. Have a multiple-vitamin supplement on a daily basis to ensure that you are obtaining all of the vitamins and minerals that the new proper diet.This helps you will get nutritional vitamins you need throughout the day. Perhaps you have sworn away from steak usage? This can be used as including some additional feel and flavor to grain or vegetable-style dishes. Chinese People and Mediterranean civilizations accomplish this and that’s why there is a great deal much less troubles with coronary heart diseases. Shakes are enjoyable to make and healthy. Right here is one method to push up the nutritional content of your up coming fruit smoothie. Include flax seed with omega3 essential fatty acids or cocoa powder for your fruit smoothie for the anti-oxidant-wealthy select-me-up. Incorporating one of those components will probably not simply provide them with additional nutrition for better resistance. You need to always drink lots of water daily. Consuming whole milk and liquid can make them less feeling hungry after it is mealtime. It could be useful to develop dietary changes for those who have sleep disorders. There are several meals with contrasting consequences, although some can amp you up. It’s a good idea allowing your system a little while after consuming. By eating them correct, Nuts may be an extremely nutritious choice. A little providing of some organic walnuts contain plenty of fibers and scrumptious crunch to your diet regime. The following tips can enhance your lifestyle. Your measure of training with regards to diet needs to have elevated by looking at this report. Keep these guidelines in mind and be sure to use them everyday.
I really like your blog.. very nice colors & theme. Did you make this website yourself or did you hire someone to do it for you? Plz answer back as I’m looking to create my own blog and would like to find out where u got this from. thanks
Hi! Quick question that’s entirely off topic. Do you know how to make your site mobile friendly? My weblog looks weird when browsing from my iphone. I’m trying to find a template or plugin that might be able to fix this issue. If you have any recommendations, please share. Thank you!|
I am not positive the place you are getting your information, however great topic. I needs to spend some time studying more or working out more. Thank you for wonderful info I used to be searching for this information for my mission.|
of course like your website but you need to take a look at the spelling on several of your posts. Several of them are rife with spelling issues and I in finding it very troublesome to inform the reality then again I will surely come back again.|
If some one desires to be updated with most up-to-date technologies after that he must be go to see this web site and be up to date every day.|
Very neat article post.Really thank you! Really Cool.
whoah this blog is excellent i love studying your articles. Stay up the great work! You recognize, a lot of people are searching round for this information, you could aid them greatly. |
Hey there, You have done a great job. I’ll certainly digg it and personally recommend to my friends. I’m sure they’ll be benefited from this site.|
magnificent issues altogether, you just gained a new reader. What could you recommend about your post that you just made some days in the past? Any positive?|
Hey! Someone in my Myspace group shared this site with us so I came to take a look. I’m definitely enjoying the information. I’m bookmarking and will be tweeting this to my followers! Outstanding blog and amazing design.
Great blog! Do you have any recommendations for aspiring writers? I’m planning to start my own blog soon but I’m a little lost on everything. Would you propose starting with a free platform like WordPress or go for a paid option? There are so many options out there that I’m totally confused .. Any ideas? Appreciate it!
Does your site have a contact page? I’m having problems locating it but, I’d like to send you an email. I’ve got some suggestions for your blog you might be interested in hearing. Either way, great site and I look forward to seeing it expand over time.|
Hey There. I discovered your weblog using msn. That is a really smartly written article. I will make sure to bookmark it and come back to read more of your helpful info. Thanks for the post. I’ll definitely return.|
Remarkable issues here. I’m very satisfied to see your article. Thanks so much and I am having a look forward to touch you. Will you please drop me a mail?|
Thanks for the auspicious writeup. It in fact was once a enjoyment account it. Glance complicated to far added agreeable from you! By the way, how could we communicate?|
I for all time emailed this website post page to all my friends, as if like to read it then my links will too.|
Wonderful site you have here but I was curious about if you knew of any community forums that cover the same topics discussed here? I’d really love to be a part of online community where I can get feedback from other knowledgeable people that share the same interest. If you have any suggestions, please let me know. Many thanks!|
Hello to all, the contents present at this web site are truly amazing for people experience, well, keep up the nice work fellows.|