MPN Requests Apology from host of "The O'Reilly Factor" 

Ellicott City, MD - May 15, 1999:Bill O'Reilly, host of The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News, made what appears to have been thought of as humorous comments regarding the military allowing witches to practice on Ft. Hood. Mr. O'Reilly is famous for his hard hitting show and tough questioning of guests but attacking a religion is even unique for him. MPN has received numerous e-mails and calls from viewers of the show regarding his comments.

In response MPN has sent Mr. O'Reilly a letter requesting an apology to both the military, and military Pagans in general. In the letter he was informed that making comments such as "..there is no truth to the rumor that the army is developing a new weapon called ... the Bradley Fighting Broomstick." enforces stereotypes held about witches. He was also informed that intelligent men don't enforce stereotypes.

For a full "transcript" of the story we invite you to go to the URL http://www.foxnews.com/js_index.sml?content=/channel/oreilly/commentary.sml .

Founded in 1992,incorporated in 1997 the Military Pagan Network Inc. acted as a store and group information resource for Neopagans in the military. The corporation now provides material regarding various Neopagan religions to the Chaplaincy, as well as fulfilling its original goal of providing contacts near military bases around the world. In 1997 the corporation expanded its services to include assisting military members with the proper handling of harassment and discrimination. In 1999 the IRS gave the Military Pagan Network, Inc. tax exempt status in accordance with Internal Revenue Code 501(c)3.

Note to editors: If you are interested in viewing additional information on MPN, please visit the MPN website at http://www.milpagan.org/ .
Copyright 1999, Military Pagan Network Inc.

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