In light of the back and forth about what FOX News Channel’s Bill O’Reilly knew and what he says he knew in Argentina, The Oregonian talked to a few people who worked with O’Reilly back when he was at KATU in Portland, Oregon.
O’Reilly was brought to the ABC affiliate in 1984 to boost ratings. He stayed for a year. At the time, he was one of the highest paid people in the market.
The folks who spoke to The Oregonian say they remember O’Reilly was filled with self-confidence bordering on pompous, but not dishonest.
“He never struck me as a dishonest person,” says [former KATU employee Doug] Brazil. “He struck me as a driven person. To achieve those goals, he’s created controversy, because that’s what people seem to like these days. I wonder whether or not he truly believes what he says.”
[Pat] Wilkins doesn’t remember O’Reilly playing fast and loose with facts during his KATU tenure, and says O’Reilly was a good writer. “He was very sure of himself. Lots of people are very sure of themselves, but I think O’Reilly takes the cake on that one.”Click here to read more.