If you're in the military or have family in the military, you may have received what-on the surface-appears to be an appealing offer, to appear on the Montel Williams show for a sympathetic episode about your perspective as a military family. If you're aware that Montel is himself a veteran, you might feel safe in agreeing to appear on his show.
Don't feel safe. Montel sold out. He's just as bad as any other lying, politically motivated media figure who looks down on the military and thinks of your life and sacrifice as nothing more than a political football and a way to get ratings.
They're lying to you. They're waiting to ambush you with their own agenda, embarrass you on national TV, and make you out to be weak, vulnerable, exploited dopes. They want to use you as a tool to attack your chain of command and our elected leaders. As milblogger airforcewife on military.com's SpouseBuzz tells it, they've already tried it on one brave group of military families, who responded by letting them have it and walked out on the taping. It looks like they haven't given up, and they lack all sense of shame, honor, or dignity-they're trying to round up more unwary, trusting people to feed to the wolves. Don't be Montel's sucker! And let them know exactly what you think of their dishonest tactics. Call producer Michelle Pearson at (800) 987-5446, extension 392, and give her a piece of your mind. Or email her your thoughts at
m_pearson@montelshow.com. Do either or both of these things-but the last thing you should do, right after joining the Taliban, is agree to appear on this exploitative liar's show and help his vicious agenda.
Shame on you, Montel Williams.
airforcewife replied to Michelle Pearson of the Montel Williams show by email, in response to her clueless attempt to gather more sheep for the sacrifice in the comments section of the same military blog where her show's shenanigans had already been exposed by a would-be victim who wasn't having any of it. Can you get any more tone-deaf than that? Her reply, and more links, after the jump.
Ms. Pearson:
I am an author on SpouseBuzz, the blog on which you posted several invitations for military people to appear on the Montel Show in a show about "teen families and deployment." I have tried to reach you several times by telephone, but there was never an answer.
It's rather odd that you chose one of my posts in which to leave that comment, as I was a part of a military group that did indeed accept an invitation to a Montel taping about "deployment issues", only to be ambushed and have the subject be one about Anthrax. I was a part of the group that left, and I later posted about that experience and the betrayel we felt by Montel (whom we had assumed we could trust because of his veteran status). In fact, I posted about that experience on SpouseBuzz itself, and it was then linked to by several other blogs and has been quite the topic of discussion.
Quite honestly, I could never in good conscious give my blessings to any military person to appear on the Montel Williams show, as not only my experience was in being used to fulfill agenda; but there have been other military families who reported the same issue with being used also.
Montel Williams has a right to free speech, and as a former military member he should understand that we, in the military DO NOT. Not unless we get out. His misinformation at the taping we attended reduced the wife of a deployed airman to tears. And really, there is not much we can do about it except to realize that Montel is not as honest with military families and issues as his public persona holds him to be.
My husband has deployed twice in the GWoT, both to Iraq and Afghanistan. It is only a matter of time until he deploys again. I am NOT a victim, and neither is he. If Montel really cared anything about military people at all, he would admit the mistake that was made in his program and include more rounded information. Most of all, he would apologize to the people he hurt - the very people he is claiming to help and support.
I doubt that will happen, just as I doubt the issue will be brought to his attention. I'm sure you will find people to sit on the show that will fulfill the agenda he wants to bring to the public. However, it will not be anyone that I have spoken to and made aware of the bias inherent in Montel's shows.
Someday, perhaps, I hope someone will portray military families as they really are - strong, strong families that choose this life and live on pride. The pride that Montel tried to wrench away with us on that show.
airforcewife
Let the Montel Williams show know that they should just give up on trying to smear our brave volunteer military men, women, and families, because each and every one of them knows that Montel's name is mud with from here on out! And please let as many people as you can know about this. Show them to airforcewife's original post about Montel's deception, which is located at the SpouseBuzz blog, here. Spread the word, and let these people-who aren't worthy to lick your shoe-know that they can't get away with this kind of deceitful ambush any more!
Andi's World has more from other military spouses who were ambushed, and other blogs where Montel's producers are trying to snare the unwary.