Fox Clarifies Glenn Beck's Gold Deal

Last week, Jon Stewart blasted Beck for extolling gold on his television program while being identified as a "paid spokesman" for gold-coin seller Goldline International. Was a conflict of interest at play? According to Fox News senior vice president of development Joel Cheatwood, such a paid gig would be "problematic without question." Beck's representatives told the network that the talk-show host is not a paid spokesman. For its part, Goldline is apparently a longtime advertiser on Beck's syndicated radio show and has continued to advertise on his television program. As for the "paid spokesman" designation on Goldline's website, the president of the coin-selling company said they used the term "because we felt it was important to tell people that there is a payment going to somebody," but that Goldline did not pay Beck on an individual basis to promote the company. Beck's designation on the Goldline website has since changed to "radio sponsor."