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A former MSNBC host claims she was told she needed to have the network president vet her commentary if it included any criticism of Hillary Clinton before she ran for president in 2016. Krystal Ball, a former Democratic Party congressional candidate from Virginia, was a co-host of “The Cycle” from 2012 until 2015 for the left-leaning cable news channel owned by Comcast. Ball, 41, recalled her MSNBC monolgue in 2014 when she urged then-Sen. Clinton (D-NY) to not seek the Democratic Party nomination for president. “I did this whole thing that was like, ‘She sold out to Wall Street. People...

While speaking on a panel, Zucker claimed CNN researched into the story of Hunter Biden’s laptop but admitted the network did not spend enough time vetting the authenticated story. CNN finally admitted 532 days Hunter’s “laptop from hell” was authentic after the initial story broke on October 24, 2020 — notably calling it “Russian disinformation” and “made up” at the time.

MSNBC's "The Rachel Maddow Show" appears desperate to get back in the good graces of The New York Times, constantly touting its headlines and praising its reporters on the heels of her far-left show being shunned by the paper. Maddow -- and occasional fill-in hosts -- have mentioned the New York Times at least a whopping 41 times on her show since May 30, when Vanity Fair reported that the paper wanted its reporters to stay far away from far-left and far-right programs. That included Maddow's, because it was too liberal, even for the paper that is often considered left-leaning...

Former MSNBC host Ed Schultz opened up in a recent interview about why he believes he was fired in 2015. Schultz, who’s now anchor of a show on RT, told National Review‘s Jamie Weinstein that he believes it was because he supported Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), which was problematic, he charged, because the network was “in the tank for Hillary Clinton.”He described how MSNBC chief Phil Griffin was a "watchdog" who closely managed which stories were covered, and relayed one incident where his story about Sanders’s launch of his campaign was bumped in favor of other news. Sanders gave his official campaign...

When President Obama was reelected in 2012, MSNBC was “leaning forward” and smiling wide as Obama 2.0 propelled it to record ratings and a firm grasp on the No. 2 spot in cable news. Over two years later, the network has fallen backwards. January ratings revealed double-digit declines compared with January, 2014 in all ratings measurements. During the day, MSNBC was down 20 percent in viewers and 37 percent in the advertising-coveted 25-54 demo. In primetime, it fell 23 percent in viewers and 39 percent in demo.

Okay, I can understand that MSNBC President Phil Griffin would feel terribly embarrassed by a dopey Cinco De Mayo studio stunt in which a pale yanqui dressed in a sombrero staggered across the set while taking swigs of tequila (video after the jump). However what is really bizarre about Griffin's contrition is that it also takes the form of declaring that he now gets nervous while walking by Mexican restaurants and becomes upset at the mere sight of a sombrero. I kid you not. And if you doubt me, Griffin is quoted about his new obsessions in the Huffington Post....

MSNBC has screwed things up so badly with their viewers that the network now has its lowest ratings since October 2007. According to TVNewser: Compared to the same month last year, MSNBC was down -12% in total viewers and -19% in A25-54 viewers in total day. In primetime, the network was down -10% and -26%, respectively. “Morning Joe” slipped to third among the cable news morning shows in April, delivering its lowest-rated month in total viewers since December 2009. All three of MSNBC’s primetime shows were down across the board compared to April 2013: “All In with Chris Hayes” was...

The Rev. Al Sharpton may claim he wore a wire for the feds because he had been threatened by the mob — but a new report says he turned rat to save himself after a federal drug sting. The FBI “flipped” the bombastic reverend after agents confronted him with a surveillance video showing him discussing cocaine with an ­undercover agent, The Smoking Gun Web site said Wednesday. During that March 1983 conversation, Sharpton wore a cowboy-like hat that was garish by even the rabble-rousing preacher’s 1980s standards. He later showed up at a Manhattan apartment for another meeting that June...

he notion that MSNBC is now the most controversial gaffe-a-minute cable news network has been ratified by the Associated Press. AP media reporter David Bauder wrote a story headlined “Loose lips give ammunition to MSNBC foes.” “Since MSNBC is in the political ring, its opponents are always on the lookout for things to attack,” Bauder wrote. “Lately, NBC's left-leaning cable news sister has offered plenty of ammunition.” The firing of a staff member over an obnoxious tweet that the “rightwing” would hate a Cheerios ad with a biracial family comes after Alec Baldwin and Martin Bashir were let go. Now...

What were you expecting? We refer here to that dustup last week over an official MSNBC pre-Super Bowl tweet about a Cheerios commercial that featured a bi-racial family. The tweet read: Maybe the rightwing will hate it, but everyone else will go awww: the adorable new #Cheerios ad w/ biracial family, RNC Chairman Reince Priebus picked up the phone and protested directly to MSNBC president Phil Griffin. Griffin apologized, the tweet was deleted and the employee fired. Nothing to see here, folks, move on. Not so fast. Again, what were you expecting? What else could possibly make some MSNBC employee...

Phil Griffin, head of the MSNBC cable television channel, told Marisa Guthrie of the Hollywood Reporter that he accepts responsibility for recent embarrassments that led Alec Baldwin and Martin Bashir to leave the network and Melissa Harris-Perry to offer a tearful on-air apology. "These were judgment calls made by some of our people. We handled them. We were transparent. That is our philosophy: Be factual, and step up when you make a mistake,” Griffin asserted. “We took responsibility for them and took action. They were unfortunate,” but “I don't think it hurt us in any way.” While known as a...

MSNBC, the left-leaning cable-news network, has settled on one solution to its recent problems. It now has an executive reviewing scripts before they go on the air. The role, which has fallen to Rich Stockwell, a former executive producer of The Ed Show and Countdown with Keith Olbermann who now oversees special projects at the network, was created as several of the network’s hosts have, to the embarrassment of network brass, conducted a master class in political incorrectness. In recent months, Alec Baldwin, Martin Bashir, and, most recently, Melissa Harris-Perry have awkwardly crashed into the trinity of sexual orientation, gender,...

You can fire 10 Martin Bashirs and it won't start to repair damage done to NBC News Martin Bashir, the embattled MSNBC show host who on Nov. 15 urged a crude and graphic form of punishment for Sarah Palin, resigned from the channel Wednesday. MSNBC could afford to do nothing less than force Bashir out in the wake of his hateful speech. Phil Griffin, the president of MSNBC, tried stonewalling the mounting criticism even after Bashir delivered an on-air apology, but the words and actions were too gross and hateful to allow Bashir to return. SNIP Under Griffin's leadership, MNSBC...

Over the last several months, it has become pretty clear that when it comes to ratings, MSNBC struggles during breaking news events, while CNN and Fox both receive boosts. In an interview with the New York Times this morning, MSNBC chief Phil Griffin essentially conceded the “breaking news” mantle to the other networks, telling viewers that his network is not focused on that sort of coverage. In what seems like a stunning admission, Griffin said: “We’re not the place for that,” he said of breaking news. “Our brand is not that.” Instead, he explained, MSNBC’s bread and butter is progressive...

“Just get buzz…” That’s what a former MSNBC anchor recently told me is the primary objective of network President Phil Griffin. Create some noise, get some free press—good or bad—doesn’t matter. It’s all about drawing people to a place they otherwise wouldn’t visit. In the words of James Earl Jones, “Oh…people will come, Ray. People will most definitely come. “ When it came to getting buzz, no one did it better for MSNBC than Keith Olbermann. Sure, half the country held him in the same contempt normally reserved for a Bernie Madoff or Casey Anthony. But he got his name...

In a fresh New Republic story, reporter Rebecca Dana profiles Phil Griffin, the boss of a surging MSNBC. It’s a sympathetic look at the network exec, complete with a detailed rundown of how he and others happened upon the programming identity that has captivated liberal Americans across the land. One aspect of the piece that Griffin himself must adore is its disavowal of equivalence between MSNBC and cable top dog Fox News. Here’s how Dana makes the case that these outlets are distinct: Still, MSNBC isn’t an instrument of the Democratic Party in the way that Fox is of

.........[SNIP]........... And now? What of Sleep Train? The Los Angeles Times tells us that Sleep Train, thanks to furious Rush Ralliers, has come crawling back to Rush begging -- begging -- to come back on the program. And Rush said: no. Specifically, a spokesman for Rush said in response to the begging-to return Sleep Train: Unfortunately, your public comments were not well received by our audience, and did not accurately portray either Rush Limbaugh's character or the intent of his remarks. Thus, we regret to inform you that Rush will be unable to endorse Sleep Train in the future. Taken...

NBC News 'Punk Faggot' Scandal Erupts By JEFFREY LORD on 3.16.12 Phil Griffin, Brian Williams, Al Sharpton, and Comcast: Nightly News anchor and "Reverend Al." The cast. Phil Griffin, the president of MSNBC, NBC's cable sibling. Brian Williams, anchor of The NBC Nightly News. Brian Roberts, the Chairman and CEO of Comcast, owners of NBC Universal. The Reverend Al Sharpton, host of MSNBC's Politics Nation. And Quicken Loans, one of the original seven national sponsors of The Rush Limbaugh Show that pretentiously dropped Rush's show. That would be the same MSNBC host Reverend Al Sharpton -- hired by MSNBC president...

MSNBC says Keith Olbermann will be back on the air Tuesday, ending his suspension for violating NBC's rules against making political donations after two shows. MSNBC's chief executive Phil Griffin said late Sunday that after several days of deliberation, he had determined that two days off the air was "an appropriate punishment for his violation of our policy." The left-leaning cable network's most popular personality acknowledged donating $2,400 apiece to the campaigns of Kentucky Senate candidate Jack Conway and Arizona Reps. Raul Grijalva and Gabrielle Giffords. NBC News prohibits its employees from making political donations unless an exception is granted...

Although he sort of admitted it earlier, MSNBC President Phil Griffin seems to have problems stating the obvious: that his network has made a concious decision to feature primarily leftwing hosts (Joe Scarborough being the sole exception in the lineup). Griffin makes yet another stab, in an interview with Rory O'Connor of the Huffington post, at explaining why MSNBC went hard left and the resulting explanation is so painfully tortuous as to be comical: "The answer is complicated...but simple at same time," Griffin responds. "The network has evolved a lot in the past few years. We went from doing a...