Opinion: Glenn Beck’s final Fox News Channel show to air tonight

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Glenn Beck, the divisive but popular conservative Fox News personality, will be rolling his blackboard off the air Thursday and heading to the Internet.

Beck, who recently has been ranting about wine being spilled on him in a New York City park, made a name for himself first on radio, then as a host on CNN. Fox gave him a home after CNN let him go and his paranoia and tears were a ratings bonanza for the ‘Fair and Balanced’ network.

One of Beck’s most infamous moments, however, didn’t air on his own show. In 2009 while a guest on ‘Fox and Friends,’ Beck accused President Obama of having “a deep-seated hatred for white people.” Host Brian Kilmeade tried to help Beck out of the hole he was digging for himself but Beck continued:

“I’m not saying he doesn’t like white people, I’m saying he has a problem. This guy is, I believe, a racist,” Beck stated.

A senior VP of Fox News that afternoon said that ‘Glenn Beck expressed a personal opinion which represented his own views, not those of the Fox News Channel. And as with all commentators in the cable news arena, he is given the freedom to express his opinions.”

But when advertisers fled the highly rated program, Beck’s days at Fox were numbered.

Fans of his rants will be able to enjoy Beck on the Web, where he will stream a two-hour live show beginning in September. Beck will charge $10 a month for access to his show.

Radio listeners will still receive Beck’s insights on his nationally syndicated radio program.

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-- Tony Pierce
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Andrew Malcolm is on vacation