Waterboarded Shock Jock Mancow: 'Absolutely Torture'

By Harry Kimball, Newser Staff

Posted May 22, 2009 4:42 PM CDT

(Newser) – A Chicago radio host submitted himself to a waterboarding demonstration to prove it isn’t torture, but it didn’t work out that way, NBC affiliate WMAQ-TV reports. “Way worse than I thought it would be, and that’s no joke,” Erich “Mancow” Muller said. “I don’t want to say this: absolutely torture.” The Marine who administered the technique said the average person lasts 14 seconds. Mancow lasted 6.

[Images (3)]

[Videos (1)]

[Quotes (1)]

A protestor after a live waterboarding demonstration. (AP Photo)

Protesters demonstrate the use of waterboarding. (AP Photo)

"Mancow" Muller (©holga_new_orleans)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

Video of today's waterboarding. Not pleasant. (kdblack83)

View larger videos >>

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next »

I wanted to prove it wasn't torture. They cut off our heads, we put water on their face. I got voted to do this but I really thought "I'm going to laugh this off."
- Erich "Mancow" Muller

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

To report an error on this story, notify our editors.

OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

AP Photo

35 Brutally Honest Reasons Men Say No to Sex (The Stir)

Man in Mugshot Explains Why He Has Half a Head (HuffPost)

Another Sign Rihanna and Chris Brown Might Get Back Together? (Celebuzz)

These Exes Were Spotted Making Out … and That's a Bad Thing (Bleacher Report)

Which Entertainer Pulled Out of 'Inappropriate' Whitney Tribute? (NewsOne)

Partner Links

A snapshot of the day's best news stories.

View Larger Grid

All Today Yesterday Pick a Date

COMMENTS

Read the comment policy

Showing 3 of 20 comments

drlarrymitchell

May 24, 2009 11:52 AM CDT

This moron Mancow had the hubris to believe his own bullshit and go under the process himself. It was bullshit macho bravado- not a decision to repent his stupid ways. Having bashed him for the reasons he did this, I do applaud him for admitting he was wrong. Even if he didn't do that, he had more guts than Hannity ever will to actually go through with it. And while stupidity may equal guts in this particular instance, he still walked the walk. Hannity is a pussy piece of shit who will never do that.

EpicFailGuy

May 24, 2009 11:34 AM CDT

I could have sworn hannity said he would do this...where is he? And I've been waterboarded. It's a terrible experience. I lasted 25 seconds.

Shannonals

May 24, 2009 8:47 AM CDT

Verminator your comments are nothing more than racist hype

What's Popular Now on Facebook

Rick Santorum: Birth Control Is 'Not OK'

Valentine's Day Role-Playing Goes Very Wrong

NBC Chicago (Source Grid »)

Crime & Courts • Entertainment • Politics

entertainment • torture • Chicago • talk radio • shock jocks • waterboarding • Erich "Mancow" Muller • NBC Local

More Newser Stories

Obama Re-Affirms: Waterboarding Is Torture

That torture is still being debated is Obama's fault, says Andrew Cohen

(NEWSER) - Just a day after Herman Cain and Michele Bachmann said they supported waterboarding , President Obama re-affirmed that the procedure is torture and "contrary to America's traditions," reports the AP . Obama and his administration have said that waterboarding is torture and illegal since taking office, but after several Republican candidates revived the subject in Saturday night's foreign policy debate, the president re-stated his position in a news conference at Hawaii's APEC meeting. More»

Ex-Weezer Bassist Dies in Hotel

Drug overdose suspected in death of Mikey Welsh

(NEWSER) - Former Weezer bassist Mikey Welsh has been found dead in a Chicago hotel room at age 40, reports the Chicago Tribune . Police suspect a drug overdose is involved. Welsh was found unresponsive yesterday afternoon after he failed to check out of his room at 1pm; he was reportedly in town to watch his former band play tonight. Current bassist Scott Shriner tweeted this morning: "Really bummed about Mikey. My heart goes out to his family and friends. Such a talent... he made a special mark on the world with his art." More»

USS Cole Terrorist Faces Capital Charges Again

Original charges were dropped because suspect was tortured

(NEWSER) - One of the "high-value" detainees imprisoned at Guantanamo Bay has been charged with planning the 2000 terrorist attack on the USS Cole in Yemen that killed 17 US sailors, reports the LA Times . Abd al Rahim al Nashiri, a Saudi of Yemeni descent, faces the death penalty if convicted of planning and orchestrating the attack on the Cole as it was docked in a Yemeni harbor. More»

Prosecute Bush, Cronies: Human Rights Watch

Group wants torture allegations investigated

(NEWSER) - Human Rights Watch wants George W. Bush and his top officials prosecuted for war crimes and criminal conspiracy, the Guardian reports. In a new report, the US group calls for foreign governments to move forward with the prosecution if the Obama administration does not investigate. In addition to allegations of torture and prisoner mistreatment, the report also accuses the Bush administration's legal team of conspiring to prepare invalid opinions authorizing such abuses. More»

Torture Didn't Lead Us to bin Laden

The practice is Un-American and must stop: John McCain

(NEWSER) - Some have used the death of Osama bin Laden as evidence to support the use of torture—but claims that such techniques led us to the al-Qaeda leader are simply not true, writes John McCain in the Washington Post . The senator points to former attorney general Michael Mukasey’s assertion that, under “harsh interrogation techniques,” Guantanamo prisoner Khalid Sheikh Mohammed revealed the name “of a trusted courier of bin Laden.” “That is false,” McCain writes. More»

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most thought-provoking and entertaining stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Partnering with: Slate

View Newser on the mobile website