phil.griffin@nbcuni.com

"Dear Mr. Griffin,
I believe it is a disgrace that Martin Bashir was fired. And that of course is what happened.
What he said about that ignorant self-serving little twit may have been, how can I put this, it may have been the wrong way to express what he wanted to say, but he spoke the truth.

People like Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Ann Coulter, Michele Malkin, Glen Beck, and yes, Sarah Palin, spew lies, hatred and indescribable 'shit' much, much worse than this, all day long, every day, every week, year after year, everywhere. Thinking feeling human beings need SOMEONE who is allowed to speak up and fight back.

But I see you are not willing to stand up and be counted. Thus ends any chance that I will ever in my life watch anything on MSNBC again.

Shame on you and MSNBC

he always gets rid of the best they have. Keith and David were two of the best and both got axed over trivial BS. I think someone above him pulls the real strings. The GE top tier who get antsy when a show host really gets at the truth.

But if we don't express our feelings to him, he thinks it's dandy to be a wanker.

The RW gets its way with MSNBC because they scream louder than we do.

Look at what happened in Europe in the 1930s.....people did not speak up then.

I see a pattern here.

and is really just another CONSERVATIVE talking head ....

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/25/business/economy/25tax.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

Please re-instate Martin Bashir. He has been exiled for a comment about Sarah Palin which, though harsh, is not an unjustified retaliation for her unquestionably harsh and false characterization of President Obama's policies.

I am dismayed that partisan "journalists" and pundits get away with hateful and splenetic attacks on our president while Mr. Bashir, a responsible journalist, is punished for a deserved insult to an egostical second-rate celebrity.

Thank you for posting the email address. I thought of doing it but then didn't have his address. Then when you posted it, I wrote a quick note about my shock and dismay, etc. etc.. If he gets thousands of these, it may not change anything but I believe he will take notice.

I brought up the great journalists Rachel, Ed, Joy, Chris Hayes and others... and accused Phil Griffin of keeping the trash (Scarborough and Mika Mouse, for example). ECK! What a great loss...Keith, Bashir, Phil Donahue, too many to remember... and the animal MURDERESS Sarah, thinks she is a Godess to mankind, when in fact, she is a grifter and a low life, animal murdering liar, QUITTER.

I'm so sick of the GOPee whining until they get their way about almost everything. I can't stand the media and I fucking HATE the GOPee.

they have a few left leaning shows on at night. Truly in the cable/ network world this is all we got, but it is on a station that is quite corporate. They are owned by GE, Universal and that cable giant I can't recall at the moment. No liberals there.

Their main man in the morning is an old repug congress critter, followed by Chuck the Todd.

I think of Rachel, Lawrence, Chris Hayes and Ed as sharecroppers on the plantation with a plantation owner ready to cut them the second they can.
There is still free speech tv.

That are almost gleeful.

Sent note, thanks for the email contact address. Now the half governor needs to get lost in the wildness. Bring Martin back.

going on for a long time.

In 2004, Joe Scarborough appeared on stage at campaign rallies with Bush

http://mediamatters.org/research/2004/08/10/very-moderate-guy-scarborough-appeared-on-stage/131626

[IMG][/IMG]



In 2010, Keith O suspended for private Democratic campaign contributions

http://www.nbcnews.com/id/40028929/#.Up_M-OLhdbU


msnbc.com
updated 11/5/2010 11:13:03 PM ET

Msnbc TV host Keith Olbermann was suspended indefinitely on Friday for making campaign donations to three Democratic congressional candidates, apparently in violation of NBC News ethics policy.

The announcement came in a one-sentence statement from msnbc TV President Phil Griffin: “I became aware of Keith's political contributions late last night. Mindful of NBC News policy and standards, I have suspended him indefinitely without pay.”

The donations were first reported by the Politico website earlier in the day.

show called Scarborough Country.

Rec

Martin resigning holds himself to a higher standard than the RW nuts. For that, I thank him for his honest appraisal of the individuals representing the faux media. I'll miss him and want him to make a hasty return.

So I'm guessing that it is a talking point.

Fail.

I call it election fraud.

No one can "fire" Limbaugh.

and also with cumulus. So apparently they pay him. Although the contract MAY stipulate that he has complete editorial freedom.

and basically sells them broadcast rights. I would bet they have virtually NO editorial control over him, just the ability to not broadcast his show (but they'd probably still have to pay him).

can refuse to advertise on his show/stations, etc

I'm not saying there are no repercussions, just that Limbaugh always has his boss's backing since he's his own boss. Radio stations can refuse to broadcast him, but I bet they still have to pay him until the contract runs out.

#PissOnPalin

Her slavery comments were more dispicable.

I don't tweet, but if I did, I'd steal it!

that were better off than they would have been back in Africa!

I'm sick of this shit!

I haven't heard that one. Please enlighten.

I have heard Rush and Beck and Ingraham and Savage, and all the other right wing blowhards, say just as bad as Bashir said, and they are still going strong. I do not condone what Bashir said, but I get so pissed off when this is standard procedure for conservatives, but somehow, liberals are not allowed to do it.

the POTUS is acting like a dick" WTF?

Bashir told the truth. He accurately described slave life, something that the twit from Alaska hasn't the capacity to grasp. For this, he is fired.

That is not even close to what crap limp blah spews and spouts.

called "The BOD Report" with hosts Bashir, Olberman and Donahue. Put 'em on Al Jazeerah.

Somebody must have defecated in Sara Palin's mouth, how else would so much of it have gotten into her brain?

Sarah Palin comparing the debt to slavery:
[center]

Now, if, insead of trying to make a point, I were upset at you and that were intended as a personal attack, that post would be removed by a DU jury, even if there is some truth in it.

If instead of saying "that's what someone should do to Sarah Palin", Mr. Bashir "that's the slavery Mrs. Palin knows nothing about" he'd still be working for MSNBC today.

There may very well be a double standard here, but it really has to do with who is setting the standard and who the audience is. MSNBC and regular viewers of MSNBC expected more of Martin Bashir. Rush Limbaugh, on the other hand, doesn't expect any more of himself than the garbage he spews every day and neither do his dittoheads. MSNBC has higher standards than Rush Limabaugh. I don't know if that really counts as a double standard.

In 2008, while working as a reporter on Nightline, Bashir gave a speech to the Asian American Journalists Association convention in Chicago where he made a "tasteless" comment on the dress being worn by one of his colleagues at ABC News, Juju Chang, a reporter for 20/20.

He said, "I’m happy to be in the midst of so many Asian babes. I’m happy that the podium covers me from the waist down."He continued and said that a speech should be "like a dress on a a beautiful woman — long enough to cover the important parts and short enough to keep your interest — like my colleague Juju’s." ABC News suspended him.

s.

ignoring palin is dumb strategy as long as they have the loudest megaphone on the planet.

If I want to know that doofus is saying, I come to DU. Somebody is guaranteed to latest outrageously stupid droppings from Limbaugh, Beck, Mrs. Palin, Mrs. Backmann, Hannity, O'Reilly . . . .

radio stations every day and how much repetition it gets. and previous to the last 5 years there was little reaction to their racism and sexism and other stupidities. even previous to the last 2 years, since sandra fluke. if liberals had reacted to limbaugh's treatment of anita hill (to get clarence thomas on the supremes) the way liberals reacted to his his attack on sandra fluke the country would be quite different now. he's done similar to hundreds of people during that delay.

they put carnival barkers on every corner and stump in the and for most of that 25 years the democracy-loving thinking americans they were calling treasonous thieving sluts just walked by. the lies they sold all that time have created the alternate reality we're dealing with now. the tea party is the talk radio base is an amorphous easy to manage made-to-order constituency for ALEC, the kochs and think tanks.

the swiftboating is one thing- the alternate reality, history rewriting, corruption enabling, and national discourse distortion is the real problem.

And it would be great if somebody followed the money from hate radio's coffers back to its source in David Koch's checkbook.

However, no one needs to give any of these assholes any free publicity while doing it.

aint. and no protests.

they have nothing, have been wrong about everything, and are lying us into one disaster after another. they can sell their shit because in most parts of the country there are no free alts for politics while driving or working.

i suspect if some of those people and the lazy unconcerned people they infect saw more concerned americans figuratively getting in those carnival barkers faces in real time there would be a lot less true believers and the media and pols would be less inclined to repeat their shit.

How many advertisers have bailed?

M.B. is not a stand up comic.

from what I saw in her clip, there was nothing remotely racist in what Palin said. Nor ugly. Granted, I just saw the little clip that Bashir played as part of his rant, but saw nothing there to justify the ugliness of his response. Is Easley being honest with that phrase "Sarah Palin's ugly racism".

I think it's a double standard too.... but I also kinda get it.

Maybe Bashir can get HIS own radio show.



The real problem is that Sarah Palin and her ilk are even taken seriously enough to be talked about at all. I mean, why are serious people involved in serious stuff like Government even remotely spending a nanosecond on the likes of Palin? It's insane.

But Palins, and Bachmanns and Gomerts and so on can do real harm and cannot be ignored now, because one side thinks they're relevant.

One I've given too many chances too. I never watch network news, but when I did it was always Martin and occasionally others on MSNBC. Now I'll just stick with the intertubes.

I heard him make his statement live and thought it might have gone too far. But I don't have ancestors who were brutalized as slaves either. I understood his passion. His apology for saying what he said and saying it poorly was enough for me.

Too bad he worked for a network who couldn't handle the heat.

His apology was so cheesy and pseudo-contrite that I could hardly watch.

I thought sure that the NBC PTB had just put the fear in him, and that he would survive as a compromised/progressive-lite host but guess not.

He lost me completely with that apology. I was probably as ticked at him for apologizing as the most genuine 'bagger was for him saying anything Against half-term/half whit.

Hannity, Savage. Levin, O'Reilly, Cavuto, Huckabee, Rivera & PALIN HERSELF! The racist, dog whistle shit that these people have spewed would have had the Secret Service at their doors 30 years ago.

YOU ARE COWARDS. Damn ill miss Martin.

I'll pass.

That attitude simply amazes me considering the other side has no scruples. They laugh at our "high ground"

msnbc isn't liberal. They were owned by GE and now Comcast, they control the narrative. msnbc can put a liberal slant on what spending should or shouldn't be cut, when they should be talking about income inequality instead.
This is what happens when one strays from the narrative, Donahue, Olbermann, Ratigan, Uygur, Bashir. Schultz was demoted and then brought back, if he keeps talking about the TPP he will be history. Maddow spends most of her shows talking about social issues. Odonnell was cut to 4 days a week and is coming close to getting canned.
The biggest lie out there is what Palin pushed the most; the media is liberal. lol. 6 corporations control all of the M$M and the owners are far from liberal.

I can't believe it!

DAMMIT

and neither will anyone else.

and looked forward to watching Martin's take on the RW bullshit.

Guess I have a free 40 minutes to do other things.

"Abraham, Martin & John"
I am just so frustrated with the system & earlier share this on another thread here re: this topic:
Please don't get you panties in a bunch (or boxers), I know they haven't accomplished what Abraham, Martin & John have but all of these men have stood up against inequality, and for minorities and the poor.

"Keith, Martin & Cenk"

Has anybody here seen my old friend Keith
Can you tell me where he's gone?
He woke up a lot of people,
But it seems good he left MSNBC
You know, I just looked around and he's gone.

Anybody here seen my old friend Cenk?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
He woke up lot of people,
But wouldn't sell out...I just looked around and he's gone.

Anybody here seen my old friend Martin?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
He woke up a lot of people,
But it seems good he didn't sell out too.
I just looked 'round and he's gone.

Didn't you love the things that they stood for?
Didn't they try to find some good for you and me?
And we'll be free
Some day soon, and it's a-gonna be one day ...

Anybody here seen my old friend Dylan?
Can you tell me where he's gone?
Thought I saw him hiring vets and organic farming,
perhaps someday with Keith, Martin and Cenk.

Bashir has more integrity in his little toe than Rush has in his entire body.

Firing people at Christmastime is such a Mitt Romney thing to do!!

"dick" on the mourning joe show and barely a ripple.. anyway, no "firing" for him.

What a drag...

if he doesn't shut up about the TPP.

This is why the status quo and another corporatist Democratic presidential candidate is not acceptable. We want a candidate that recognizes the danger the nation is in. We are facing the greatest enemy the nation has ever known.

if Limbaugh were on national television, he would have lost his job a long time ago. (See Monday Night Football gig. How long did he last? Two weeks?)

As well as anybody on Fox News and any right wing/ Tea Bag hack.

And that is what really pisses me off.

Martin was one of the best hosts on MSNBC in a long time. His remarks were truthful and contained language not made for TV, but at least they were truthful. IF the truth is not what MSNBC wants on their channel, then Martin should have been fired. Having listned to him for quite a while now, he was honest in his assessments as well as tolerant of the "right" and their antics. How does someone show his/her assessment of a situation without possibly using a wrong word once in a while. How many times times have we seen/heard O'Reilly, Limbaugh, etc spew filth that would make all of us cringe? Martin was of great value to MSNBC and he will be missed. Replacing his opinion and journalistic way will be difficult. Good luck Martin, I hope you find a good home.

I'm always reminded of Garrison Keillor's Comedy Theater skit, "Adventures in Ethics: Buddy and his Talk Show." Buddy's new call-in talk show is meant to be the "Limbaugh of the liberals." He has to lie, insist that Newt Gingrich and the NRA are going to round up pets to sell to firing ranges as targets for neo-Nazis, Newt Gingrich is going to make history classes include the Nazi point of view, etc. His listeners call in, weeping and angry. He complains to his agent that it's too sleazy; she says, "Can't go to a war with a pocket full of marshmallows." Then his conscience starts talking to him, making him feel guilty. We should lead a moral life, but if our goal is for the common good, could our society even continue to exist?

But this would never happen. There can't be a Limbaugh of the liberals. Nobody would believe that Newt Gingrich and the NRA are coming for their kittycats, and normal people have better things to do than call in to radio programs weeping and ranting.

big difference bewteen the two.

and most of the money are controlled by conservatives. One should never expect truth or even fairness from such a power elite. Conservatism is predicated upon the belief that wealth should rule. Keeping the lower orders in line requires dissemination of that belief 24/7, with the caveat that carefully controlled liberal expression is required to maintain a facade of equivalency in perpetuating the status quo.

their time and careers on palin????

Ignore it. It will eventually self-destruct.

Playing with it is dangerous and unhealthy. It's what they want you to do.

fuck msnbc.

Rush would have to fire himself, he owns a majority of his radio program.

essentially fired.

Also, liberal KTLK in Los Angeles (Stephanie Miller/Randi Rhodes) will be switching to conservative talk in January. Limbaugh could lose stations, but in fact he is not. I am not writing this in support of him or his political views, I'm just stating facts. (I'm in the media business.)

K&R

There is no equivalency.

face.

that's the difference, enabling the hypocrisy because the 'left' gives RW radio a free speech free ride.

this wouldn't happen if the 'left' finally pulled their ipods out of theirears and made some organized effort to challenge the talk radio monopoly that's been kicking their ass for 25 years.

when Clinton signed the Telecommunications Act of 1996, it allowed radio ownership to be consolidated into the hands of a few fascist right-wing corporations. Rush, Hannity, et al and have been allowed to freely and without repercussions spew hatred, racism, and the daily right-wing talking points and have been supported by ad dollars from right wing think tanks .
The "left" save few lone voices in the wind such as Randi, Thom, Bill Press, and Stephanie Miller, aren't given the same access because the ownership of the outlets are in the hands of very few.

to buy up a lot of stations.

but the real problem is there is no challenge to it outside the specific rush boycotts.

there is no written record of wht the main talkers are saying nationally and locally- that could be done with some transcription software - it's a tragic miscalculation by the left.

and to allow many of our major schools to rent their sports logos to those radio stations for a few bucks while they attack teachers, public ed, and basically everything those schools say they support in their mission statements, without major complaint by progressive orgs and politicians is idiotic. probably 30 -40% of RW radio piggybacks our publicly funded schools.

https://sites.google.com/site/universitiesforrushlimbaugh/

If FOX news and RW radio want to spew vile language and lies, it's their problem.

I'm glad MSNBC has some sense of decorum.

Two wrongheaded people don't make a right.