KO KO'd

[BT]

MSNBC suspends Olbermann over political contributions
By Michael Calderone michael Calderone Fri Nov 5, 2:04 pm ET

Olbermann gives to Democratic candidates

MSNBC suspended "Countdown" host Keith Olbermann Friday after the news that he donated to three Democratic candidates.

"I became aware of Keith's political contributions late last night," MSNBC President Phil Griffin said in a statement. "Mindful of NBC News policy and standards, I have suspended him indefinitely without pay."

[Related: MSNBC's election night lineup criticized]


Olbermann gave the maximum individual donation of $2,400 to three candidates in Tuesday's election: Arizona Reps. Gabrielle Giffords and Raul Grijalva and Senate hopeful Jack Conway, who lost in Kentucky to Republican Rand Paul. (Grijalva appeared on Olbermann's "Countdown" on Oct. 28, the same day the host donated to his campaign; Conway was last a guest in May).

Olbermann, in a statement to Politico, said that he "did not privately or publicly encourage anyone else to donate to these campaigns nor to any others in this election or any previous ones." Also, Olbermann said he had not "previously donated to any political campaign at any level."

But the revelation raised clear ethical issues.

Olbermann, a liberal commentator, gives his opinions each night on the air. But NBC News editorial staffers -- like journalists at most news organizations -- are forbidden from giving to political candidates. Also, Olbermann anchored election coverage Tuesday night without disclosing that he'd given to candidates who were running for office.

By punishing the network's biggest star, Griffin showed how little tolerance there is for hosts to make undisclosed political contributions while covering those political races.

An MSNBC spokesman told The Upshot that The Nation's Chris Hayes, an MSNBC contributor who has filled in before for Olbermann and Rachel Maddow, will host Friday night's show. Hayes has spoken publicly before about donating $250 to a friend's Congressional campaign in Alabama. He made the last donation in 2009, before becoming an MSNBC contributor. [UPDATE: MSNBC now says Hayes will not be subbing tonight]

MSNBC already attracted criticism this week for having its liberal hosts and commentators anchor election night coverage. Typically, nonpartisan journalists anchor major news events?such as election results?while  commentators like Bill O'Reilly (Fox News) or James Carville (CNN) offer analysis.

It's ironic that Olbermann gave to political candidates after criticizing Fox News because its owner, Rupert Murdoch, gave $1 million donation to the Republican Governors Association. "Fox News has put its money where its mouth is," Olbermann said in an August segment that questioned the network's impartiality.

In October, Olbermann again raised the issue of Murdoch's donations, during an interview with Democratic Rep. James Clyburn. Olbermann asked whether there was "a legislative response to the idea that there is a national cable news outlet that goes beyond having a point of view and actually starts to shill for partisan causes and actually starts to donate to partisan groups of one party."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_upshot/20101105/bs_yblog_upshot/msnbc-suspends-olbermann-over-political-contributions

[Kramer]

He's a nothing.

[Xavier_Onassis]

And yet, he is clever and far more amusing than you will ever hope to be.

[R.R.]

And yet, he is clever and far more amusing than you will ever hope to be.

KO is reading off a teleprompter what somebody else wrote for him to say, jackass, much like your beloved one term president.

[Christians4LessGvt]

Is this a stunt?
I can't stand Keith Olbermann...but
Not sure it would be legal for me to bar an employee from making a private political contribution?

[Plane]

Is this a stunt?
I can't stand Keith Olbermann...but
Not sure it would be legal for me to bar an employee from making a private political contribution?

I think a dont ask and dont tell policy should be sufficeient.

[sirs]

Gonna have defend Keith as well, on this one.  We all know what a fringe left lunatic he is.  Why on earth would it be a problem for hom to donate to some Democrats?  How can that possibly "taint" Keith's supposed "objectivity" given his SOP?  Now, I can understand if there's a policy already in place that says you can't, and him having done so was merely an effort to play the old "rules don't apply to me" liberal MO, but come on, why is there a policy in the 1st place, when you hire someone who's so far left, he's nearly right?

[Kramer]

And yet, he is clever and far more amusing than you will ever hope to be.

You do know he is incontinent? I think he uses adult diapers.

[sirs]

MRC President Brent Bozell issued the following statement in reaction to news that MSNBC had suspended Countdown host Keith Olbermann "indefinitely" for donating to three Democratic candidates in violation of NBC's policy.

In October, Olbermann had blasted political donations from Fox News owner News Corp, slamming Fox as "a media outlet that has now put its money where everybody has known its mouth has always been."

"Keith Olbermann is officially the Worst Hypocrite in the World. He rails about a "national cable news outlet" that "starts to donate to partisan groups of one party," then does exactly that.

"But it begs a bigger questions: why did it take NBC so long? This man has been using his perch as a newsman at MSNBC to promote a radical left-wing and hate-filled agenda for years. And they fire him over three contributions? NBC needs to review its own policies."


Commentary

[BT]

He'll be back on the air Tuesday, last i heard.

[sirs]

Don't hold your breath on his extolling the error of his hypocrisy

[BT]

I believe his job is to condemn the hypocrisy of others. He is a partisan liberal after all.

[sirs]

Absolutely.  Need to focus on that speck in someone else's eye

[BT]

Absolutely.  Need to focus on that speck in someone else's eye

That plus campaign donations are free speech.

[sirs]

Yea......and?