Conservative hero to Middle America over his staunch disapproval of American immigration policy? Or hard-nosed borderline racist, set on stopping the influx of cultural diversity into the American population? The opinions surrounding the outspoken news anchor, opinion journalist and Internet radio talk show host Lou Dobbs are as varied as the opinions that he spouts himself.
A news anchor and opinion journalist at major U.S cable news channel CNN since its inception in the 1980s , Lou Dobbs has made the surprise announcement that he is to leave the channel that he has broadcast his myriad controversial viewpoints from for over 20 years. All that is known presently about the decision is that Dobb’s contract with CNN, set to expire in 2011 has been ended with immediate effect and allegedly, at Dobb’s behest.
Whether Dobbs has essentially been fired , or whether he has left voluntarily to find a freer platform from which to espouse his views is a matter for debate. And debate the public has, with a range of rumours arising to say what Mr. Dobbs plans to do next.
Some U.S newspapers say that Dobbs will front a similar show to the one he presented nightly on CNN , “Lou Dobbs Tonight” on rival news station FOX news , a station noted for being more flexible to Dobbs’ partisan journalism than its rivals. Others , such as the Los Angeles Times have hinted that the long time Republican (at least until the 2008 election, where he declared himself an independent) plans a move into politics – a move Dobbs himself has not ruled out, saying that “some leaders in media, politics and business have been urging me to go beyond my role here at CNN and to engage in constructive problem-solving”.
It is however unlikely that the controversial news anchor’s notoriety will fade in the near future, as Dobbs has set himself up a mini-media empire , with a website receiving millions of hits and an Internet radio show on his own Internet radio station supplying the platform for Dobbs to supply his views “in the most direct language possible”.
