Wow! CNN really on top of it...Reporting Alec Baldwin's Voice Mail

[spanone]

This is a fucking shame. They have Alec Baldwin yelling at his daughter on her voicemail, like anyone in the whole fucking world gives a shit about Alec & his daughter...and like this is news?

News is DEAD.

[Squatch]

1. Fuck Alec Baldwin for trying to be a parent.

How dare he admonish his child? The nerve of an asshole like this to use strong language to teach his kid some manners. What in the hell has the world come to...we should not allow this kind of parenting to persist.

[WestHoustonDem]

3. It's pretty stupid to use strong language in a voicemail

message - regardless of the recipient. This is coming from a parent who has been known to use strong language with my daughter.

[Squatch]

4. Eh. Who are WE to judge how he disciplines his own child?

Unless said discipline crosses the line of abuse. Leaving a strongly-worded message does not even come close to that line.

[ccpup]

10. I would agree with you

only he called her -- perhaps a couple of times -- a "thoughtless little pig". That, to me, crosses a line. Calling an 11 year old girl with a famously beautiful mother and a constant daily barrage of images that could make even the sanest of girls question their body image a "thoughtless little pig" is knowingly cruel.

I've worked with Alec once ... and only once. 'Nuff said.

[Squatch]

21. We don't know 99.999999999% of the rest of things Alec does as a parent

For all we know, he could shower his daughter with love and adoration...and when he chooses to admonish his daughter *THAT'S* what makes the news? :shrug:

[ccpup]

26. good point

but I did see Alec up close for 3 months lose his famous temper over laughably childish things ("not THAT bottled water, the OTHER bottled water!!!!!!!!!!" is a keeper) and working with him on-set is quite literally like walking on eggshells. Much like a shaky alcoholic, you just never know what tiny, unnoticeable thing will set him over the edge ... and it's a HUGE edge once he goes over. Downright abusive, actually. My assistant never cries and Alec made him cry just for sport over there being (non-existent) smudges on his script after my assistant held it for two seconds. Does it need to be said that the script was already falling apart at the seams and looked like it had been run over by a bus? But now it had smudges. SMUDGES!!!!!

The Alec on the answering machine is the Alec I heard coming onto the set or into the make-up trailer every damn morning.

Now, Kim releasing it as court leverage? That's a whole different kettle of fish. And they ain't fresh.

[RaleighNCDUer]

51. How many kiddie stories have pigs as the protaganists?

Might there be one with, say, three pigs? One, a silly, thoughtless little pig; one a worrisom, nervous pig; and one a thoughful, considerate pig? Might he not have been referring her back to the attitudes taught in the story, about the stupid, thoughtless pig, a family reference that doesn't translate outside their experiences?

My mother used to compare me to the Dr Seuss story, the kid who saw it all happen on Mulberry Street, because the kid made up fantastical tales - in short, he was a liar. Overhearing her, one would think we lived on Mulberry street.

Since we don't know the real situation, and we don't know what, if any, little family codes are in play, maybe we should stop being so judgemental?

[Cha]

75. I hate hearing this..cause Alec

Baldwin writes so well about the love of his country.

I know he's a talented dude.

[activevoter]

16. obviously you've never

been belittled as a child, especially by one of your parents. What a shitbag scumball Baldwin is for talking to his child that way. I've yelled at my kids but NEVER, EVER called them names! That's what breaks their spirit and that's something nobody should EVER do! What a serious piece of shit he is for doing that.

[Squatch]

20. Well, that's how YOU act as a parent.

Not everybody is like you, you know? How about you worry about raising YOUR kids and the things YOU would or would not do, and leave Alec to raise HIS child in the manner HE sees fit?

[Dorian Gray]

32. Yes

because we should let verbally abusive parents verabally abuse their children.

Baldwin was out of line. He should treat his daughter with more love and care. She didn't deserve the barage of insults just because she didn't answer her phone. And it's obvious that her mother released this to the press. Poor Ireland is saddled with two total losers for parents. She doesn't have much of a chance.

[PA Democrat]

24. Glad to hear that there is one perfect parent out there in the world.

Most of the rest of us are human and admit to losing our tempers on occasion with our kids. I've apologized to my kids for things that I have said in anger, and we've had great discussions as a result on how to respect each other. I know one thing, I'm glad there weren't any gossip columnists around to only report on my angry words and not the apology.

I guess your ban on name calling only extends to your children, huh?

[Squatch]

25. Good points.

(Especially your closing sentence)

[seabeyond]

33. you are right. there is a line. i never reduce it to name calling. what kind of example

the very behavior i dont allow kids. reduce in maturity. and the ultimate in hurting child, discipline is not about "hurting" child, it is about teaching

on the other hand

it isnt mine to call with another parent either. it is mine ot say i dont do it, not in my house. that is as far as i go with it

[MUAD_DIB]

47. Sorry, but this is not newsworthy. It's a smokescreen. It's dumb to

put it up there for public consumption/titillation.

[youthere]

49. Which mean FAUX new will carry in depth analysis of it most of today.

[MUAD_DIB]

50. Would we expect anything less?

:rofl:

[rasputin1952]

57. Welcome to DU activevoter!

I agree w/you...calling kids names is not very astute.

And while could not care less about Baldwin, looks to me like someone ought to take him down a peg or two, just let him know he's not going to bully people anymore...fire his dumb butt, and let the word out that he is trash. :D

Hit him where it hurts, his ego...:rofl:

[Catherine Vincent]

58. Interesting first post.

Welcome to DU! :hi:

[BeHereNow]

72. W E L C O M E T O D U! ~ I AGREE WITH You 100%

WHAT A PIECE OF SHIT HE CLEARLY IS.
SHAME ON HIM.
DAMN HIM TO HELL.

There is NO excuse for a parent to ever use that sort of language
with a child.

BHN

[WestHoustonDem]

70. I'm saying there are two separate issues here - I don't care who

you're leaving a message for, if and especially if you're a celebrity, you don't leave a recording of yourself being ugly. It's just as likely to come back to haunt you as now.

She may have deserved to be called a pig. My daughter has deserved worse. And how I've dealt with it is my business.

[Honeycombe8]

76. Well, I, for one can judge. It's wrong to call your child a pig. Ipso facto.

No doubt about it. No reason for it. Ever. And to be yelling while you call her that...twice....almost unforgiveable and borderline abuse.

He'll never live this down. Both with the public and with his daughter. She'll never forget it.

[papau]

18. "treating me like shit" and "straighten your ass out" and your mother is liar is as strong as it got

and I don't see that much different that most divorces.

[ccpup]

31. you forgot

him calling her a "rude, thoughtless little pig". Now, to an 11 year old girl, that's a pretty harsh label to be assigned. Sure, I understand losing one's temper -- and Mr. Baldwin is famous for it --, but the "thoughtless, little pig" jab -- said not once, but twice and, in my view, savored for effect -- is knowingly cruel and intended to belittle. To an 11 year old girl at the heart of a custody battle. Not only does she have being 11 to deal with, she has celebrity parents, the public attention that goes with that, parents famous animosity towards each other (as well as being famous for their looks) and NOW she has "thoughtless, little pig" said by dear Dad on an answering machine message released by her Mother.

You can dice it and slice it any way you want, but, at the end of the day, it's just cruel.

[youthere]

35. And for all the world knows he could have called her back five minutes later...

and apologized...Sorry..I'm not going to criticize a parent who said some nasty things out of anger...I've done it myself. I do think it was pretty shitty for his ex to release it to the press. It makes me question HER parenting more than his.

[ccpup]

48. I agree

I don't think either one of them is going to make Parent of the Year. But, then again, who does?

[Honeycombe8]

79. I can't believe what I'm reading. A man yells...YELLS...at his daughter..

who is 11 years old...goes on a yelling rant on the phone. Not because she's doing drugs or having sex. But because she isn't there for their appointment phone call and has done it before (surpise! Kids are not reliable! Hello!)

In the rant that last about 5 minutes, he tells her she's not a human being, and twice yells at her that she's a pig. And threatens her that he's flying there on Friday, and will make sure she learns the lesson that she "WILL NOT" do that again. Believe me, you WILL learn that lesson.

I can see why his wife released the tape. She wants the world to see the real Alec Baldwin. And we have seen him.

(Although she should not have released the tape...but not because of embarrassing him, but because of the effect it might have on the child in the future. Doesn't look like either parent is very good at being a parent.)

[papau]

68. true - and he said he was wrong and that he's sorry -so its worth 5 minutes on NBC's Today Show? n/t

n/t

[Honeycombe8]

77. He yelled at her that she was a pig. Twice.

Is that how your father teaches you to be a responsible human being?

Oh, and he also told her that she's not even a human being.

And that there is some conspiracy going on with her about not picking up the phone when he calls. Like that phone message he left was REALLY making her want to pick up the phone.

Some father. I'd say he needs some anger management classes....quick.

[TahitiNut]

61. As harsh and shameful as that voicemail was, it was far worse ...

... to release such internal family squabbles to the international media. No matter how that voicemail affected a 12-year-old daughter, having it put out to the public and available for years and years to come inflicts a damage that's incalculable.

It's even possible/probable that the 12-year-old wouldn't have even heard it if the mother (Kim Bassenger) had kept it private.

When the kids become the scorched earth upon which the warring armies of the parents fight their battles, the kids (and their kids) become the casualties.

[Cha]

78. You are so

freaking right.

Could Alec sue their "fucked up priorities" ass?

[underpants]

2. This followed the "controversy" over Harry Reid calling the kettle black

Reid was that if we follow the present course in Iraq the "war is lost" we already knew that.

THEN Dana Perino was on (with a pink jacket from some gay nightmare) to say that Reid didn't say anything like that when he met with W when in fact he did. The rest of her interview on pebblebeach was lies and distraction (she mentioned Baldwin too) as per the usual.

[Atman]

5. Alec Baldwin is the liberal's liberal. Gotta keep up...they need SOMETHING!

Yesterday was a train wreck for the republicans. CNN's just trying to toss a popular liberal under the bus because they know America will look away from the political train wreck to watch the celebrity train wreck -- and I'm sure the "See, those compassionate liberals hate their children!" posts are already popping up over at FR and the cesspool.

.

[hatrack]

6. What is this "news" you speak of?

I do not know its name.

[wicket]

9. Here's a link:

LINK

An angry Alec Baldwin is heard on a voice mail message calling his eleven-year-old daughter Ireland "a rude, thoughtless little pig" for apparently not being available for a planned phone conversation.

The recording, published by the celebrity news site T-M-Z-dot-com, was reportedly made during a phone call by the 49-year-old actor to his daughter earlier this month.

Baldwin and the girl's mother, fellow actor Kim Basinger, have been involved in a bitter and sometimes very public feud over child custody since she was granted a divorce in 2002.

A spokesman for Baldwin says Basinger and her lawyer leaked the recording "in violation of a court order." The spokesman adding that Baldwin "should have used different language in parenting his child."

Basinger's spokeswoman says simply: "The voice mail speaks for itself."

[hatrack]

12. Oh, I know that part - but what about this "news" - is it something you can see and hear?

Is it still around, or did it go away with the passenger pigeon?

[wicket]

29. You tell me

:shrug:

[PA Democrat]

17. Thanks. I was wondering how this became public.

Never ceases to amaze me the length that some parents will go to to "win" in a custody battle.

Boy, I doubt that there are many parents who could claim that they have never used harsh words with their kids.

[madrchsod]

27. oh my god....

i wondered where and how the voice mail got to the airwaves. poor kid caught between these two assholes.calling her a "little pig" stupid and damage that can be repaired but kim is down right cruel in releasing it to better her chances of getting revenge

[madrchsod]

22. a long time ago in a far off land

there was this "news" you speak of. there are writings , strange black and white and even grainy color images of men and women who spoke words and images that were called the "news". according to the scholars of the day the word news and reporting of the news was honorable profession. those who reported the news were held in high esteem and scholars have gone so far as to call them gods.
this land was called america, a land only a few now remember....

[spanone]

38. That's my point...It aint news.

[madrchsod]

7. oh my god..... what am i going to tell my children?

who gives a shit?

do you realize just how screwed we be without the access to he world media via the internet?

[dweller]

8. MSNBC went to lengths i'm sure

checking with lawyers before airing the VT shooters videos,etc. to make sure they wouldn't face any legal ramifications, right?

yet a judge has sealed the Baldwin tape. Did the media's lawyers check that info?

Baldwin should sue, bigtime.


yes, NEWS is dead no matter how titillating the media wants the corpse to be.
dp

[papau]

19. But would GE/Matt Lauer's Today Show break law just to get a progressive? n/t

n/t

[PA Democrat]

11. How did they get this tape?

Did the NSA send it to them?

[FreeStateDemocrat]

15. The corporate whore media is shameless and w/o any journalistic ethics - custody battle cheap tricks...

“The mother and her lawyer leaked this sealed material in violation of a court order,” he continued. “Although Alec acknowledges that he should have used different language in parenting his child, everyone who knows him privately knows what he has been put through for the past six years.”

[fasttense]

13. Alec Baldwin's voice-mail what a scoop!!!1!!! This is HUGE

Do you think they will win an award for such outstanding journalism? The more important matters such as the occupation of Iraq and the AG playing politics with the American justice system, well those stories just don't have the wonderful journalist elements that Alec Baldwin's voice-mail has. :sarcasm:

Corporate media at its best trying to fake the news making the trivial seem important.

[Squatch]

23. You misspelled "Hugh"

[Kingofalldems]

52. Off topic-- but that insignia looks familiar

Looks like a patch I used to have on my uniform.

[Squatch]

53. 29th Infantry Division

I'm currently in that division

[Kingofalldems]

67. That's it! I thought it looked familiar

I was in the 29th about 30 odd yrs ago.

[LostinVA]

60. I noticed that, too

The poster's spelling is screwn up, huh? Seriesly.

[stillcool]

14. Pathetic...

got to fill the air time with something! Maybe I should give CNN a call...I'm going to clean the house now...think they'll be interested?

[Ganja Ninja]

28. Shame on Mr Baldwin for calling his daughter a ..

"thoughtless little pig". Other than that this is an all too common thing where two parents can't get along and try to get the child to take sides. It's the sort of thing that makes me glad I never married.

[seabeyond]

37. makes me glad I never married..... this isn't an indictment on marriage, but

on two individual peoples behavior. i have been married for 13 years and well.... cause of how hubby and i are.... we have none of this shit in our marriage and can name a zillion reasons it is good to be married. it is what the two people create, in what the marriage will be.

[katsy]

30. As if it were the world's business.

It's a divorce proceeding. What business is it of ours?

This is such a voyeuristic society.

The right wing feels Clinton's penis is their business.

They also feel ownership over women's bodies (abortion rights).

The general public seems to feel it's their right to decide who may marry whom.

What candidates pay for their haircuts and how they look in swim trunks, how short they are, red dresses, blue dresses... like these things should be harped upon.

Everyone feels a need to sniff evryone's dirty laundry.

Where's the dignity in that.

The news and dignity is dead. This is a tabloid society.

[tinfoilinfor2005]

34. msnbc said that it would be the top story of the day...

anything to get Iraq and Gonzales off the airwaves.

[Marr]

55. You've got to be kidding. Seriously?

With everything going on in Washington (not to mention Iraq), THIS is going to be MSNBC's "top story of the day"? Amazing.

[PassingFair]

36. I'm glad they don't have MY husband on tape.

Getting the 11 and 15 year olds off to their
bedrooms on Sunday nights can get UGLY around
here.

Remember the dad from "A Christmas Story"?

Get the picture? The kids do a pretty funny imitation, too.

Maybe I should tape it for future use. :crazy:

Basinger is a NUTBALL, but she plays HARDBALL.

[seabeyond]

40. oh, dontcha know. and end of school year and daylite savings,

it has become hell in this house to get the kids to focus on shower (shampoo in hair, soap on face, soap rest of body), brush teeth, feed dog, into bed

is that hard? my kids are genius level. is it really so very very hard. 4 instructions. add what to do in the shower, a couple more. but geez. last night i flipped. lordy.

yup

[TwilightGardener]

44. Oh my God, the shower struggle. My boys just wet their hair and

step out and towel off--my husband has to still go in there and make sure they are using shampoo and soap! I'm glad someone else has this problem!

[seabeyond]

45. lmao...... oh... that is so funny. hm.... yup. n/t

[devilgrrl]

39. Oh I see the "CONCERNED" are in a tizzy over this!

:eyes:

[gollygee]

41. Sometimes 11-year-olds are indeed rude, thoughtless little pigs

I have no idea whether the young Ms. Baldwin is or isn't, but it isn't really the public's business. Shame on anyone for putting this on TV.

I fear for when my daughter hits the pre-teen years because I remember how I was and I was AWFUL. Hormones sometimes suck. LOL

[TwilightGardener]

43. I have an 11 year old. And he can indeed be a thoughtless little pig--

and in my worst, angriest moments I have said similar things. I can't condemn old Alec--I would be a hypocrite.

[peekaloo]

42. Oh how Mutt Lauer fretted over the "very disturbing on many levels" voice mail

then, like the true journalist he is browbeat the guy from TMZ over the legality of posting such a message (after broadcasting the message in its entirety with on screen transcript). :eyes: I guess it shows Mutt's impartiality to present another GE employee in a truly bad light, to hell with promoting any product, this is news dammit! :sarcasm:

Sad that Mr. B. talks to his child this way but ironically funny that on NBC's '30 Rock' he plays an upper echelon GE executive, who is a total asshole.

[slackmaster]

46. Poor Mr. Baldwin must have been bullied relentlessly as a child

:nopity:

[BlooInBloo]

54. Anything but gonzo, and renzi, and, and, and.

[Grandrose]

56. Anything but Gonzales or McCain!!!

Gonzales tanked...big time and McCain made a fool of himself...again!!!!
The VT families righteously said No More Killer videos, what are they to do???:eyes: :sarcasm:

[DemGa]

59. Calling a child a "thoughtless little pig"

Looks abusive to me.

[Honeycombe8]

80. It is. Esp. yelling it like that. Twice. And then following it with a threat of sorts...

that he's flying down there to "personally" teach her that she will NOT do that again, etc., etc.

It's a threatening, borderline abusive voicemail. No doubt in my mind that she will never forget it. She might forgive it. But she'll never forget it.

My opinion of him has changed.

[frustrated_lefty]

62. What the hell?

I'm from the generation where we'd be sent out to pick a switch from the tree when we misbehaved.

This whining about how mean Baldwin was is laughable. It's no wonder children these days have an immense sense of their own entitlement, display the manners of pigs, and possess a minimal sense of personal responsibility.

If "daddy" yelling at you is your biggest complaint in life, it's probably time to grow the hell up.

[seabeyond]

63. wow.... she gets called a name and you attack all kids as a whole

i would wonder if the reason kids may have all those things you attribute to them may be adults with rants like yours. personally. not a good example in communication and expectation of one another.

my kids dont fit your horrid description of the "kids today". nor do i see their friends in this lite either. maybe i dont see it because they dont give me all that stuff you describe, cause there is mutual respect, kindness and openness going on, instead of me pointing a finger at their whole generation.

maybe we get what we put out

[DemGa]

65. Being called a pig can very hurtful

Yes, it can scar a child for life.

[Balbus]

64. The voice mail started, "Why did I call? I called because Mitch & Murry asked me to...

They asked me for a favor. I said the real favor, follow my advice and fire your fucking ass because a loser is a loser."

Damn, he's a great actor. And I'm damn glad no one was around to record some of my "verbal reprimands" of my child.

[nadinbrzezinski]

66. But when a station actually reported news

see the backlash

If they report the TRUTH from Iraq, there will be a backlash since it would be very bloody and graphic and you have to think of the children (which is bullshit by the way)

[AtomicKitten]

69. I can't decide what disgusts me more ...

Baldwin speaking to his daughter like that ...
or the MSM playing the message over and over and over again.

Considering Baldwin/Basinger are in a nasty custody battle, the replaying of this message on tee-vee is gratuitously incendiary and in the end none of our damn business.

[tammywammy]

71. What a shame that her mother felt the need to leak this to the public

She should be ashamed. I'm sure the daughter will suffer more b/c the entire world and all her friends know about it, and less from what her father said at the time. And he apologized. I know I acted up a lot when I was her age, and though my parents never called me a pig, I was called a spoiled brat a few times.

[jeffrey_X]

73. Why THIS is news, I will never understand.

Seriously.

[spanone]

74. We used to laugh at the British tabloids and National Enquirer. Not anymore.

Our MSM has become our tabloids.