Free Republic

In an appearance on Monday’s “The ED Show” on MSNBC, Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY) discussed the decision by officers of the New York Police Department to turn the backs on New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio at the funerals of the two slain officers, Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu, in recent weeks.

How bad was 2014 for MSNBC? So bad, the left-wing cable news network lost the 2014 ratings war to CNN. Yes, that CNN. According to Deadline, MSNBC is hemorrhaging viewers, especially in the all-important news demo (viewers aged 25-54): ... For the 13th consecutive year, Fox News annihilated its left-wing counterparts at CNN and MSNBC. In total viewers, Fox beat MSNBC and CNN combined.

Once again, for the 13th year in a row, Fox News dominated the cable news industry in 2014. Lisa de Moraes of Deadline Hollywood writes: As 2014 draws to a close, FNC celebrates its 13th consecutive year as the most-watched cable news network, though it too had its disappointments. In total day, FNC is down 4% in total viewers (1.05 million) and same percent in news demo viewers, though it finished laps ahead of its competition in both metrics. FNC rings out the year ranked No. 4 among ad-supported basic cable networks in overall primetime audience, behind only ESPN,...

Resist we much? We just can’t. Al Sharpton is the funniest man on MSNBC, and by default the funniest man in cable news. On a network populated with no small share of buffoons, Sharpton’s ultra-pro-Obama boosterism and alarmingly frequent mispronunciation of names, places, and objects has made PoliticsNation a must-watch for anyone who needs a good, hearty laugh.

NBC Nightly News offered two stories on Christmas in their December 25 newscast, including a show-ender about “what Christmas means to me.” Substitute anchor Tamron Hall offered this introduction: “Finally, on this special night, a question: What does Christmas mean to you? Maybe it’s the presents, the lights, the music, or getting together with family. We put the question to people around the country and discovered once against that Christmas means something a little different to everyone.” Somehow, this perfectly pleasant three-minute segment included lot of talk about family time and presents, and even someone saying “Happy Hanukkah,” but included...

Although he announced his plans earlier this month, we were hoping against HOPE that he would change his mind. So it is with a heavy heart that I must report that the rumors are true - we are losing chef Sammie Kass; he’s moving to New York. To be with his new wife, Ms.NBC news hostess, Alex Wagner. She’s a former political activist and music-magazine editor, so she’s probably got a great future at Ms.NBC. The foxy couple, in an unposed photo for Vogue Here’s how Vogue described the power couple:  “She’s a rising television-news star. He’s the consummate White...

Washingtonian magazine has just published a juicy tell-all dishing up multiple savory courses that lay open the behind-the-scenes politicking leading to the change of hosts for one of broadcast TV’s most prestigious shows about politics, “Meet the Press.”

**SNIP** After mentioning the Sony emails and telling his listeners who Elba is, Limbaugh said, “Here’s the thing, though… James Bond is a fictional character, obviously. James Bond was invented, created by Ian Fleming… and James Bond is… white and Scottish. Period. That is who James Bond is.” “But now Sony is suggesting that the next James Bond should be Idris Elba, a black Briton rather than a white from Scotland,” continued Limbaugh. “But that’s NOT who James Bond is, and I know it’s racist to probably even point this out… We had 50 years of white Bonds because Bond...

The MSNBC crew offers trigger warnings for the word Redskins, badly predicts election outcomes, poorly analyzes literature and overall has a really great year.

I was somewhat encouraged this week when New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio called for a pause in the protests and quiet on the streets until after the funerals of the two slain NYPD officers. It seemed a prudent move, giving everyone a chance to pause and reflect, to allow tensions to ease a bit and just maybe allow everyone to retire with their families for Christmas. The horrific tragedy of the police officers’ assassinations might have a chance to settle in and bring everyone to a more sober realization of the need to bring the social temperatures down...

Interested in boycotting MSNBC? Here is a list of the network’s sponsors. Alcatel press@alcatel-lucent.com Anheuser-Busch http://contactus.anheuser-busch.com/Email/email.aspx?Si… Ann Taylor http://www.anntaylorstorescorp.com/contact/index.asp (call or fax) Avon http://shop.avon.com/shop/assist_email_us.asp Banco Nacional de Mexico https://portal.banamex.com.mx/esp/atencion_queremos_esc… Cambridge Technology Partners marketing@ctp-consulting.com Catalyst http://www.catalyst.org/page/50/contact-us Champion International http://support.crosspath.com/support/?sess=101.106.99.1… Chase Manhattan https://www.chase.com/index.jsp?pg_name=ccpmapp/shared/… Choice-Point http://www.lexisnexis.com/risk/contact / Chubb Corporation http://www.chubb.com/marketing/chubb2340.html Coca-Cola http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com/contactus / Community Health Systems http://www.chs.net/company_overview/contact_us.html Dell Computer http://support.dell.com/support/topics/global.aspx/supp… Delphi Automotive http://delphi.com/contact/other / Fiat http://www.fiat.com/cgi-bin/pbrand.dll/FIAT_COM/contact… Home Depot http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Cont… Honeywell http://www51.honeywell.com/honeywell/contact-support/co… Illinois Tool Works Illinois Tool Works International Speedy http://www.speedyintl.com/contact_us.php Internet Security Systems http://www.securitystoreusa.com/help.asp Invemed http://www.manta.com/c/mm2gr8n/invemed-associates-llc Morgan Chase & Co. http://www.jpmorganchase.com/corporate/About-JPMC/media… Kellogg media.hotline@kellogg.com Kimberly-Clark http://www.kimberly-clark.com/ask/kimberly-clark/countr… Knight-Ridder http://www.mcclatchy.com/2006/06/12/380/contact-us.html Microtune http://www.microtune.com/company/contact_us.shtml Morgan Gauranty Trust http://www.jpmorganchase.com/corporate/About-JPMC/media…...

Agents for the embattled state Government Accountability Board continued a zealous campaign finance investigation into dozens of conservative groups even after judges who preside over the board voted to shut it down, according to a previously sealed brief made public Friday. The documents, from an updated complaint filed by conservative plaintiffs in a case against the GAB, appear to support claims that the campaign finance, ethics and election law regulator is a rogue agency. They also show that the GAB considered using the state’s John Doe law to investigate key state conservatives and even national figures, including Fox News’ Sean...

Despite the Sydney, Australia hostage-taker displaying a flag reading in Arabic, ”There is no God but God and Mohammed is the prophet of God,” despite his being a self-proclaimed sheikh and despite his demand that police give him an ISIS flag, MSNBC “The Rundown” host José Diaz-Balart wondered if Iranian-born Man Haron Monis is motivated by Islam at all.

Sports on MSNBC? News Outlet Will Launch Streaming-Video Hub To Test New Shows, Hosts MSNBC is getting ready to debut a new show about sports. And one focused on books. And another that will examine celebrity and popular culture. In all, the NBCUniversal-owned cable-news network has 14 new programs ready to roll. You won’t see any of them on MSNBC. At least, not yet.

A New York City Grand Jury has refused to indict police officer Danial Pantaleo for the choking death of Eric Garner. Garner was taken down by four police officers conducting a raid against illegal cigarette sellers, of which Garner was one. Garner had a history of selling illegal cigarettes, having been arrested for it a number of times in the past. Unlike the death of Michael Brown, this death was caught on video. The video clearly shows several things. It absolutely shows Garner saying he can’t breathe. It also shows a very large man who starts out the confrontation making...

After news of the baffling decision by the New York grand jury not to indict a police officer in the killing of Eric Garner, I sent out a (slightly) hyperbolic tweet that wondered why Americans would want to entrust their free speech and health care to an institution that will kill you over failure to pay a cigarette tax. Since then, I’ve seen numerous tweets arguing that bringing up the tax is preposterous, that it’s akin to blaming jaywalking for the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. Senator Rand Paul (R., Ky.) touched on the issue in an interview...

Reasonable people can disagree on whether racism was involved in the tragic death of Eric Garner. My own suspicion is that this misfortune could have transpired just as easily with a white man resisting arrest and/or a black cop choking him. And even though lots of people don't want to hear it, reasonable can disagree on whether illegally excessive force was to blame. Personally, watching the ubiquitous video of Garner's arrest, it looks like excessive force to me. But the simple fact is that a Staten Island grand jury saw evidence that led it to conclude otherwise. People should at...

Officials and various candidates for office joined in the flood of outrage tonight following the not guilty verdict in the racially-charged trial of George Zimmerman for the killing of Florida teenager Trayvon Martin. Former Comptroller Bill Thompson, the mayoral race’s only black candidate, released and tweeted a terse, one-line statement slamming the decision, which was read tonight just before 10 p.m. “Trayvon Martin was killed because he was black,” declared Mr. Thompson. “There was no justice done today in Florida.” City Council Speaker Christine Quinn further slammed the acquittal as “a shocking insult to his family and everyone seeking justice...

Via NRO, nothing says “slow news Friday” like a lazy post devoted to half-assed speculation. On the one hand, he’s an old Democrat with friends in the Democratic establishment. He might conceivably have heard something from a friend who’s heard something from someone who’s in a position to know. On the other hand, I haven’t seen a single other liberal in media anywhere say anything about an October surprise. What’s most likely? That Bob Beckel, Fox News liberal, is somehow more tapped in to the White House than MSNBC? That lots of other lefties in media know what he’s talking...

WASHINGTON — The event was billed as one of solidarity, thousands of people unified in their demand for “justice for all” and an end to alleged police brutality against “unarmed black men.” Led by MSNBC host Al Sharpton, the march was organized and promoted by his National Action Network. The final speaker, Reverend Jamal Bryant of Empowerment Temple in Maryland, gave a speech and closing prayer laden with political anger and racial overtones.