GEICO voice actor fired after insulting tea parties (aka telling the truth)

[babylonsister]

I detest the word 'retarded' used by anyone when it's meant to be derogatory, but the rest of his message was spot on, so he gets fired for it. What does this say about GEICO?


http://voices.washingtonpost.com/right-now/2010/04/geico_voice_actor_fired_after.html

GEICO voice actor fired after insulting tea parties


Sometimes you have a headline that makes the rest of the story superfluous, but here's the background. Actor Lance Baxter, otherwise known as "D.C. Douglas," currently known as the man who informs you how much GEICO can save you on car insurance, left a message last month with FreedomWorks in which he asked the group how many "mentally retarded" people it had on staff and what it would do when a tea partyer "killed someone." On April 14, FreedomWorks put his voicemail online.

Today, Douglas reports he's been dropped from GEICO's campaign. His dramatic news release is here; he claims to have been motivated by "the recent gay and racial slurs slung by Tea Party members at Congressman Barney Frank and Representative John Lewis during the Health Care Reform Weekend," and says he's "open to any attorneys taking on this case pro bono."

Press release here:
http://www.prweb.com/releases/freedomworks/geico/prweb3906104.htm

[TwilightGardener]

1. GEICO is a Warren Buffett company.

[Ian David]

2. Sarah Palin, as the mother of a retarded child, says you can use the word if it's satire.

But then again, Sarah Palin is retarded.

[Ian David]

3. On the OTHER hand...

Geico pulls its ads from Glenn Beck’s Fox News show.

Fox News host Glenn Beck has been under fire in recent weeks for his comments that President Obama is a “racist” with “a deep-seated hatred for white people.” Since ColorOfChange called on its members to urge Beck’s advertisers to drop his show, three advertisers have pulled out. Today, ColorOfChange announced that Geico Insurance is joining them:

“On Tuesday, August 4, GEICO instructed its ad buying service to redistribute its inventory of rotational spots on FOX-TV to their other network programs, exclusive of the Glenn Beck program,” said a spokesperson for GEICO Corporate Communications in an email to ColorOfChange.org. “As of August 4, GEICO no longer runs any paid advertising spots during Mr. Beck’s program.“

More:
http://thinkprogress.org/2009/08/11/geico-beck/

[liberal N proud]

4. Does that mean no more gecko commercials?

[lpbk2713]

9. I hope they cancel that bullshit Charlie Daniels commercial.

That guy's an asshole.

[dave29]

5. Makes me glad I just switched from them. And I am saving $1000 per year to boot.

:)

[political_Dem]

6. Now, when you fight back against the Teabaggers, it will cost your job.

The RNC is still taking plays from the Hitler playbook while trying to make their toadies cheat to get past the goal line.

[Blue_Tires]

7. did he identify himself in the message?

if he didn't, why admit to it?

[KharmaTrain]

8. Just Downright Stupid...

Not what he stood for, just how he did it.

Almost every contract these days, especially one as a pitch man, has clauses written about "embarassing the company" while they're serving in that capacity. These gigs don't last long...and not it's not good business to piss off a client...especially if you're gonna be looking for more work again in the near future.

I wonder if it was alcohol or something else that was doing the talking. Sorry to see he lost his gig over speaking the truth, but there are other ways he could have done it. Hell, just spew it on DU...

[Maru Kitteh]

10. We've had Progressive for 12 years or so and they've gone above and beyond for us

When I was driving to Ohio to work for the Kerry campaign at the close of the 04 election, my windshield was shattered by a large steel hook that fell off a semi on the interstate in front of me. I was alone in the middle of BFE Iowa. Damn thing could have killed me. I had glass in my hair, glass all over the car, even glass in my throat.

Progressive completely took care of me and had me back on my way in less than three hours. They sent people who absolutely pampered me. They turned a very scary freakish accident into a more positive experience where - for one of the few times in my life - I felt like a truly valued customer.

[Morning Dew]

11. Lance put together a video of the calls he got - The Teabagger Boogie

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAB0-0Vbff0

[Morning Dew]

12. and here's his blog about what happened

http://www.myvoiceoverguy.com/voice-over/freedomworks-geico-tortious-interference/

[ShortnFiery]

13. Here's D.C. Douglas' side of the story:

http://www.myvoiceoverguy.com/voice-over/freedomworks-geico-tortious-interference/

[safeinOhio]

14. Are these the same people

that insult us cavemen everyday?