Right-wing gadfly and ‘destroyer-of-leftists’ Ben Shapiro got a taste of his own medicine when he squared off with the BBC’s Andrew Neil, leaving the ace-debater cursing and calling off the interview. Unfortunately for Mr. Shapiro, public debates are not often won based on celebrity status. This was particularly the case when being interviewed by Andrew Neil, whose signature ‘devil’s advocate’ style proved a bit too adversarial for the normally sharp-witted Shapiro on Friday. “If you want to critique me, I don’t care, I don’t give a damn what you think of me since I’ve never heard of you,” Shapiro frothed, adding that he was not inclined to carry on the interview because of Neil’s “bad motives.” Although Shapiro literally wrote the book on how to “debate and destroy leftists,” he seemed to have a lot more trouble handling a seasoned conservative. If Shapiro had done his homework, he might have realized that Neil is known for conducting precisely this kind of interview, and that the sharp questions don’t even necessarily indicate disagreement in the British context. He nonetheless interpreted the grilling as sensationalist hostility, particularly when reminded of one of his own tweets from 2010 where he claimed that Palestinians like to “live in sewage” and “blow things up.” Hilarous to see @Afneil called a "leftie"Ironically,@benshapiro's car crash interview with @afneil was due to UK/US Culture Clash!British "Devli's Advocate"/contrarian interview style is unknown to Americans. I see it a lot.So v paranoiid Shapiro jumped to wrong conclusion. — Rafe Heydel-Mankoo (@RafHM) May 10, 2019 At this point, Shapiro decided that the only possible explanation was that the deeply conservative and hawkish Neil was actually some kind of militant leftist. There’s a time and place for this gif.... 🤷🏼‍♀️ pic.twitter.com/1lglJ8X6MW — Paula 💜🏳️‍🌈 (@pauladunstable) May 10, 2019 If that wasn’t embarrassing enough, Shapiro then attempted to try to use his celebrity status in order to trounce his opponent, at which point the interview descended into an argument more appropriate for a high school lunchroom: Going through and finding lone things that sound bad out of context and then hitting people with them is a way for you to make a quick buck on BBC off the fact that I’m popular and no one has ever heard of you. Neil in a rather dour tone responded that there are “not many bucks to be made on the BBC,” particularly considering that its a public utility. Shapiro, evidently flustered, then entered into a rather dramatic monologue before cutting the interview short. Neil wryly responded thanking his guest for showing that “anger isn’t a part of American political discourse.” Later in the day, Shapiro did realize his mistake and offered an apology of sorts… at least for mischaracterizing Neil’s position on abortion. Just pre-taped an interview with BBC’s @afneil. As I’m not familiar with him or his work, I misinterpreted his antagonism as political Leftism (he termed the pro-life position in America “barbaric”) – and that was apparently inaccurate. For that, I apologize. — Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) May 9, 2019 Despite the conciliatory tone, the resulting mockery and brutal take-downs across Twitter will undoubtedly give even Shapiro a run for his money. more footage of Ben Shapiro's performance today... pic.twitter.com/Lazf4z61g5 — EnochRoot (@EnochRootDreams) May 10, 2019 Your feels, Ben.They got in the way of your facts. — Marionette Resident of the Uncanney Valley (@Geahk_Burchill) May 10, 2019 Ben Shapiro DESTROYS Ben Shapiro — Jack Greig-Midlane (@gmjackgm) May 10, 2019 Never heard of you but enjoyed watching you get owned 😂😂😂😂😂😂 — CraigD (@IndiScot) May 10, 2019 Shapiro reacted to the ribbing by admitting defeat, after a fashion, by adding the interview to the list of "dumb stuff" he has done and agreeing that "it's Neil 1, Shapiro 0." . @afneil DESTROYS Ben Shapiro! So that's what that feels like ;)Broke my own rule, and wasn't properly prepared. I've addressed every single issue he raised before; see below. Still, it's Neil 1, Shapiro 0. https://t.co/UAtAUtIWtO — Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) May 10, 2019 Like this story? Share it with a friend!<doc-sep>Conservative thinkeur Ben Shapiro was interviewed by BBC host and UK conservative luminary Andrew Neil. It didn't go well for Ben at all. Facing straightforward questions about his beliefs, he had a tantrum, accusing Neil—chairman of The Spectator!—of being a leftist and finally storming off. From The Spectator itself: Ben Shapiro is the famous, fast-talking pundit who regularly 'owns' aggressive campus students with his quick wit and rapid repartee. Alas, Shapiro isn't so 'crazy smart' when he comes up against difficult questions from a real interviewer. Yesterday he just couldn't cope with an interrogation from the BBC's Andrew Neil. He decided that Neil must be a typical BBC leftist and had an epic tantrum. As soon as you take right-wingers out of the U.S. cable news environment or their creationist-style YouTube "debates", they fall completely to pieces under even the most impartial and disinterested questioning. With due respect to Andrew Neil, it's amazing how deferential mainstream U.S. media are to conservatives—and as a result inconceivable to an American conservative that a foreign counterpart might issue them challenging questions. So it's no surprise that Neil would humiliate Shapiro, or that Shapiro would do all the work himself given the barest length of rope. Here's the full 16 minutes: Here's @afneil interviewing @benshapiro – this is the full, unedited version. it is not Fox News or an unmediated YouTube video but a tough interrogation. https://t.co/9hn6MtdSJx — Rob Burley (@RobBurl) May 10, 2019 Neil is absolutely no friend of the left: an HIV/AIDS denialist, climate-change critic and 9/11 conspiracy theorist. Yet, here we are.<doc-sep>
Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro abruptly ended a BBC interview on Friday while telling host Andrew Neil "I'm popular and no one has ever heard of you" in a contentious exchange. The interview, which was conducted via satellite between London and Los Angeles, became heated after Neil claimed that "all the new policies" are "coming from the left, and they're popular," while conservatives were absent of new ideas. ADVERTISEMENT After Shapiro objected to that statement, Neil described the "fetal heartbeat" abortion bill signed into law this week in Georgia as bringing back "the dark ages." The bill would make it illegal to get an abortion if a fetal heartbeat can be detected. “OK, a couple of things ... are you [an] objective journalist or an opinion journalist?" Shapiro asked Neil. "I'm a journalist who asks questions," Neil replied. "You purport to be an objective journalist, BBC purports to be an objective, down the middle network,” Shapiro replied. “It obviously is not, it never has been. And you as a journalist are proceeding to call one side of the political aisle ignorant, barbaric, and sending us back to the dark ages, why don’t you just say you’re on the left?" Neil quickly fired back. “Mr. Shapiro, if you only knew how ridiculous that statement is you wouldn’t have said it,” he said before broaching past comments Shapiro had made on abortion and transgender rights. The interview ping-ponged from there for several minutes before Shapiro said: "Frankly, I find this whole thing a waste of time ... I don't give a damn what you think of me since I've never heard of you." "And I've never heard of you until I briefed myself of this," Neil said in reference Shapiro's new book. After more cross-talk, Shapiro removed his microphone and ended the interview, saying “I think we’re done here.” Shapiro later apologized for misinterpreting Neil's "antagonism as political Leftism." “As I’m not familiar with him or his work, I misinterpreted his antagonism as political Leftism (he termed the pro-life position in America ‘barbaric’) – and that was apparently inaccurate. For that, I apologize," he wrote to his 2.13 million followers.