OP - Why MSNBC is letting Olbermann off the hook

Last Friday, MSNBC announced that Keith Olbermann, host of “Countdown with Keith Olbermann,” the network’s highest-rated show, would be suspended indefinitely for making three political contributions to Democratic candidates. The contributions violate NBC News policy, which disallows journalists from making political contributions without permission from network brass.

Bowing to public pressure, MSNBC President Phil Griffin announced on Monday that Olbermann would return to work on Tuesday night after serving a suspension of four days.

A petition in support of Olbermann organized by the Progressive Change Campaign Committee reached 200,000 viewers in a matter of hours, and Olbermann, in his return to the network on Tuesday night, said he had personally received approximately 21,000 tweets in his defense.

I understand the argument was perpetuated by Olbermann’s supporters. Yes, he is clearly not a newsman; he is paid millions of dollars to offer his commentary on current events. It’s always been quite clear what side of the political spectrum he falls on, and so he should be allowed to donate to political campaigns. It is legal for an American citizen to partake in such endeavors, as the Federal Election Commission allows an individual to donate up to $2,400 to any given national candidate for public office. On top of this, it’s public information, as anyone can locate one’s political contributions online.

With that said, I think this argument, though mostly accurate, ignores a few basic facts.

For one, whether or not Olbermann or his supporters agree with it, donating to political candidates is barred by NBC News policy. This policy was enacted years ago in order to preserve journalistic integrity. If reporters donate to political candidates, how can they report a story fairly and objectively? They clearly have an interest at stake that cannot be ignored.

Sure, one could argue that Olbermann is not a reporter and thus should not be subjected to the policy. However, Olbermann’s role at the network is more than just offering his opinion. For one, he served as an anchor on the set of the network’s midterm election night show and was charged with reporting and depicting congressional race results. Olbermann also interviews multiple guests every weekday evening, many of whom are political representatives. How is he supposed to conduct an honest, unbiased interview with a political candidate that he openly supports?

The latter was the case with one of the three candidates to which he contributed the maximum $2,400—Arizona Rep. Raul Grijalva. Olbermann admitted to donating to the congressman’s campaign the same day that he interviewed him on “Countdown.” To be fair, Olbermann donated to the man’s campaign after he conducted the interview, but regardless, it is not entirely ethical. I find it difficult to believe Olbermann’s naïve explanation that he decided to donate to the campaign after Grijalva appeared on his show. In fact, I think it’s fair to assume that Olbermann’s support of the candidate, which likely dates back to before the interview, affected his (interview) questions and approach.

Olbermann also donated $2,400 to Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and Kentucky Senate candidate Jack Conway.

Many Olbermann supporters have been quick to explain that MSNBC host Joe Scarborough and commentator Pat Buchanan, both of whom fall on the opposite side of the political compass as Olbermann, have both donated to political candidates during their time at MSNBC. In at least Scarborough’s case, though, we have learned that he was granted permission from MSNBC network executives to make the donations.

Sure, it’s interesting, to say the least, that MSNBC has not reprimanded at least Buchanan, assuming he did not clear the donation. But to use this as a primary defense of Olbermann is rather childish. Not everyone who speeds on the highway gets pulled over by the police. Yes, it may be a poor analogy, but it’s a part of life.

Olbermann backers have also pointed to Sean Hannity, a primetime host on Fox News, and his political contributions. This summer, Hannity donated $5,000 to Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann’s political action committee and has interviewed her since. Hannity, like Olbermann, failed to disclose his donations on the air.

But to point to violations of basic journalistic values at Fox News is far too easy. As Rachel Maddow said on her MSNBC show last Friday, “We’re not a political operation. Fox is. We are a news operation. And the rules around here are part of how you know that.”

Maddow could not have worded it more succinctly. It’s rather clear that Fox News has a political agenda—to be the propaganda arm of the Republican Party. News Corp., its parent company, recently gave one million dollars to the Chamber of Commerce, a right-leaning institution, and the Republican Governors Association.

Hope was lost for Fox long ago, but MSNBC still maintains some journalistic credibility, and its rule barring journalists from donating to political campaigns is a major reason why this is the case.

Lastly, an aspect of this story that Olbermann supporters have appeared to utterly ignore is his hypocrisy. In a November 2008, post-election appearance on “The View,” Olbermann admitted that he has never voted. He calls this a “symbolic gesture” to maintain journalistic integrity.

Now, if Olbermann simply applied his reasoning for not voting to donating political money, we would be all set. Both actions serve a similar overlying purpose, and that is to elect a specific candidate. Sorry, Keith, but by your logic, you’ve lost any journalistic integrity that you previously possessed.