HOLLYWOOD LOVES THEM a good red scare story, especially one that's been told and told and told and told. Especially if it's about some heroic white guy who was famous and wealthy at the time. And so in 2005 George Clooney enacted the story of the heroic WWII era and red scare hero, the radio and TV journalist (back when there was such a thing) Edward Murrow. Then, two decades later - after George Clooney took a leading role in bringing about the sequel of the national and world nightmare of Trump - he recycled his screen play on the stage which he certainly knew would get him praised and lauded and, I wouldn't be surprised if it also got him loads of money.
Edward Murrow, like most of those who the putrid Joe McCarthy and the red scare politicians and media figures of the time went after, were in no actual danger of being arrested or imprisoned. His career was already falling off as someone who did serious journalism as the corporations he worked for had long been going from serious, heroic journalism to corporate bullshit. But he was never threatened with arrest that I've ever heard or been able to find. Even as a figure of the time to look into, Murrow is a safe one for a mainstream Hollywood actor, no one ever presented evidence of him of having been a communist or even close to communists that I've seen. McCarthy [may he burn in hell for bringing disrepute to the name] accused him of being a communist sympathizer and claimed to have evidence of that which, as always, he never produced because he lied about having it.
I think Murrow's reporting during the blitz was the high point of his journalistic heroism though I will grant there is something heroic in him joining in the already begun attack on McCarthy and the red scare in general. This isn't an attack on him or his legend, though I generally don't care for legend, the kind of crap that show-biz produces, I prefer accurate history to that fluff. I don't think Clooney's theft of valor in his 2005 necromancy had any effect on that. Reportedly it was a protest against George W. Bush and Cheney's invasion of Iraq. NOW THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN HEROIC, IF CLOONEY HAD TAKEN THAT ON AS IT WAS A HOT TOPIC AND ONGOING CRIME DIRECTLY, THAT COULD HAVE ENDED CLOONEY'S HOLLYWOOD CAREER. But, of course, in the typical style of covering hot topics askance which is a show biz specialty, he risked nothing much in doing that.
So, when a real journalist is arrested by Trump, Todd Blanche and his goons, where's the heroic Clooney? Can you point to me a timely and effective protest or objection to it? Don Lemon will go down as having taken chances that Murrow didn't in his 1954 expose on McCarthy and having the Trump II regime that Clooney helped install go after him. You'd think the least he could do was come back to the States, if he is in his new country, France and put his body on the line.
Having for once found some use for the unwelcomed, unwanted "AI" that Google will impose on me, as of a few seconds before posting this, it answers my question to that effect:
Based on the most recent news reports (as of January 30, 2026), there is no record of George Clooney having spoken out about the arrest of Don Lemon.
I doubt a George Clooney will do a treatment of the Don Lemon arrest and persecution because I doubt Hollywood or Broadway will ever treat a Black Person fired by CNN to the same praise as it will a white man who worked for a major corporation.
George Clooney can still fuck off, as Hunter Biden said so satisfyingly.
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