O&A Homeless Shopping Spree Reactions

Boston Globe article
Bill O'Reilly segment criticizing the homeless shopping spree

Here's O&A's official press release to the critics:

All we have heard from these "homeless advocates" and the Mayor of Boston, Tom Menino, is how we have exploited these homeless men during our Homeless shopping spree that we put on during the holidays. Every one of these we have done has been a great success and has actually helped these homeless men we have had involved over the years.

If anyone was exploited it was the stuffy snobs that were offended by the homeless shopping in their stunning mall.

If you listened to the show you would have known this wasn't about kicking the homeless. It was about putting the screws to some Christmas shoppers and store employees in one of the richest malls in the area. The homeless were given food and taken to a luxury mall with gift cards to shop for Christmas. Wow, damn us right to hell! How dare we treat those creatures like human beings!

Do we make jokes at their expense? No more than we do anyone else who walks into that studio. We're doing a radio show. Again, damn us for treating them like we do any "real" person that comes in. Were they being used for good radio? Yup, again, just like everyone else. There were a dozen homeless men who had a great day buying things they need for the winter as they were being treated like rock stars by 2000+ fans who pulled out their own money to buy these men things they needed. T

homas Menino the mayor of Boston? He seems to be a bit peeved that we are airing this on the day that they, now hold on, that they COUNT the homeless in Boston! Mayor Menino is and always will be a clueless ass. Regardless of this being a radio promotion, some good did come out of it. How DARE we feed and cloth a few homeless men on a day when some city official in Boston is going to be counting these...uhhh, "people".

The homeless men we took on this shopping spree were treated with respect and had a great time. This wasn't a kidnapping and the comparison to the "Bum Fights" video is appalling. If you want to vent any anger it should be directed at the snotty shoppers who had a problem with the homeless being there in the first place. They left with warm clothes to a cheering crowd and we got a good radio show out of it.

We see some of these guys on a daily basis as we walk from our FreeFM studios to our XM studios in New York City. We talk to them on the air like human beings and our listeners are some of the most generous people I've ever seen always giving these guys money when we are through interviewing them and continue our walk to our studio.

Not good enough? Oh well, sorry. I don't know what a "homeless advocate" does but in all the years we've has an on air relationship with these homeless men I have never seen one "homeless advocate" put a smile on these guys faces and treat them like men. Not like burdens or the helpless animals or creatures that needed to be coddled but like men who still want to just have a little fun and make it through another day.

Listen to the broadcast and let me know if you're still "outraged".