For a while, it seemed safe to have opinions about overprotected, pasty professional jaw-flapper Bill O'Reilly. Stephen Colbert won awards for it. But local CN8 host Barry Nolan from "Backstage" just got canned for it.

Nolan protested the fact that the New England EMMY chapter honored O'Reilly and handed out flyers at the event. However, he didn't give that opinion on the air or even spoof O'Reilly a la Colbert. Nolan said that, when O'Reilly was honored by the EMMY chapter, other people booed. Will all of them be fired, too, for sharing their opinions off the clock?

This is sad. Bostonist fondly remembers when Nolan interviewed Slavoj Zizek, a professional jaw-flapper who seems far less uptight than O'Reilly.

[Massachusetts Liberal, Boston Herald, WCVB]

Image of Barry Nolan with cohost Sara Edwards from cached CN8 Backstage page. The page has already been replaced to show Edwards by herself. They move fast.