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How to Say Sorry to Sarah Palin
Politico Magazine ^ | December 6, 2013 | Playbook Readers

Posted on 12/07/2013 9:17:42 AM PST by 2ndDivisionVet

Each Friday, Politico Magazine picks the political scandal of the week, and our colleague Mike Allen asks Playbook readers to weigh in with their crisis-management expertise, both professional and otherwise.

This week’s scandal: the spectacular implosion of Martin Bashir, the MSNBC daytime host who resigned Wednesday as controversy mounted over his remarks about former vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin. Here’s what got him in trouble:

On his Nov. 15 broadcast, Bashir called Palin "a world class idiot" because she made a comparison to slavery while discussing U.S. debt to China. The host then read an excerpt from the diary of a former plantation manager who wrote of forcing one slave to "S-*-*-T" in another slave's mouth, and said "if anyone truly qualified for a dose of [such] discipline... then she would be the outstanding candidate."

Bashir initially took three days to apologize for his comments. "Last Friday, on this broadcast, I made some comments which were deeply offensive and directed at Governor Sarah Palin," he said on his Nov. 18 show. "My words were wholly unacceptable … They were neither accurate nor fair. They were unworthy of anyone who would claim to have an interest in politics, and they have brought shame upon my friends and colleagues at this network, none of whom were responsible for the things that I said.”

Could Bashir have handled this better? If you were his PR adviser, what would you have told him to say or do? What would you tell him to do now? We asked Playbook readers to give it a shot, and here’s what they came up with. We’ll announce a winner in Monday’s Playbook.

***

Gene Grabowski, executive vice president, LEVICK’s crisis practice

Martin Bashir’s response to the crisis he created centered on his apology. That apology violated some basic rules....

(Excerpt) Read more at politico.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: circlethewagons; getpalin; liberalism; martinbashir; mentaldisorder; nonapology; palin; palinbashing; pravdamedia; prsuits; publicrelations; television
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Three page article.
1 posted on 12/07/2013 9:17:42 AM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

I didn’t read the article, but I would tell him to go eat dirt until he died.


2 posted on 12/07/2013 9:19:26 AM PST by basil (2ASisters.org)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

“If you were his PR adviser, what would you have told him to say or do?”

RESIGN, immediately! and then go crawl into a hole and die.


3 posted on 12/07/2013 9:22:21 AM PST by faucetman ( Just the facts, ma'am, Just the facts)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

“..Could Bashir have handled this better?”

::::::::::

Yeah, he could have just kept his sick, twisted, liberal, DemoRat mouth shut. But their mental disorder just keeps getting in the way of sane and civil behavior.


4 posted on 12/07/2013 9:23:28 AM PST by EagleUSA
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Find another line of work, like dog-walker.


5 posted on 12/07/2013 9:24:16 AM PST by Cyber Liberty (H.L. Mencken: "The urge to save humanity is almost always a false front for the urge to rule.")
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

As apologies go, to me it was only about apology and error. However, there are some actions that are so egregious that any apology still isn’t enough to clear the slate. He deserved firing outright.

Additionally, there is also the question of this coupled with Alec Baldwin’s debacle. My guess MSNBC had no excuse to keep Bashir even though they didn’t care what he said. They couldn’t take the risk of a Baldwin out there making trouble.


6 posted on 12/07/2013 9:24:43 AM PST by Gaffer
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

I think the article sort of misses the point. It doesn’t matter what sort of apology Bashir offers to Palin. The real point is that someone as foul and stupid as Mr Bashir should never have been on national television in the first place.


7 posted on 12/07/2013 9:25:27 AM PST by JoeDetweiler
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Unfortunately for Bashir, MSNBC fired Baldwin for remarks (off camera) that were 1/10 as offensive. Bashir wasn’t getting the heat, MSNBC was.


8 posted on 12/07/2013 9:26:16 AM PST by DManA
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Eat “S-*-*-T” and then resign.


9 posted on 12/07/2013 9:26:41 AM PST by Robert DeLong (u)
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To: JoeDetweiler

Check out the guy who says not to apologize!


10 posted on 12/07/2013 9:26:51 AM PST by 2ndDivisionVet ("Of the 4 wars in my lifetime none came about because the US was too strong." Reagan)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
For example, Bashir’s apology, like Paula Deen’s series of apologies this past summer, went on for too long and focused too much on the mistake itself. Moreover, Bashir’s statement undermined his own credibility when he noted that his words were “unworthy of anyone who would claim to have an interest in politics.” He also failed to talk about his future behavior.

Missed the point completely. OF COURSE he had to focus on the mistake and his credibility HAS been compromised. He's a libtard prone to potty mouth outburts about scatalogical fantasies. What part of misogyny is this PR specialist in the dark about? Because it was "just Sarah Palin" it was okay? Sounds like someone who lives inside a bubble, not the real world.

11 posted on 12/07/2013 9:29:40 AM PST by a fool in paradise (America 2013 - STUCK ON STUPID)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

I won’t read the article, but I will say that I cannot imagine how even the most insane leftists would have gone to MSNBC because they wanted to hear what this jerk had to say.

He never opened his mouth without decreasing their ratings. Even mention of his name worked against them.


12 posted on 12/07/2013 9:31:05 AM PST by Cicero (Marcus Tullius)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
Check out the guy who says not to apologize!

I suspect these public relations persons went to college studying pre-law and poli-sci.

13 posted on 12/07/2013 9:31:23 AM PST by a fool in paradise (America 2013 - STUCK ON STUPID)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

It is a stupid stance for some “expert” to tell him how he “should have” apologized. THE NETWORK, told him exactly what to say under threat of paying him nothing if he did not. And blackballing him from further employment.


14 posted on 12/07/2013 9:33:15 AM PST by Texas Fossil
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

It seems to me, this scandal turned out pretty good.

The original perp, turned in a later apology by which in my opinion, the genuineness of apologies will henceforth be measured.

At the same time, the guy went over the line. And it turns out, he paid the price for that.

I’ll hand it to him, he climbed down pretty big. And Palin kept this pretty low key.

I would say this turned out well.


15 posted on 12/07/2013 9:33:31 AM PST by Cringing Negativism Network
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
Glad that Bashir the "basher" is gone.

Basher definition, fits perfectly:

A individual who is unfriendly and/or commits harmful acts to group of people or an individual due to prejudice and/or ignorance.

16 posted on 12/07/2013 9:35:01 AM PST by dhs12345
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To: All

I read some of the comments after the article and it’s hard to believe that so many people in this country are so utterly stupid and so full of hate.....


17 posted on 12/07/2013 9:37:16 AM PST by JW1949
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To: JoeDetweiler
The real point is that someone as foul and stupid as Mr Bashir should never have been on national television in the first place.

This is the kind of people they hire. And who will replace him?

18 posted on 12/07/2013 9:38:33 AM PST by VRW Conspirator (Obama is a proven liar, an admitted liar, an unrepentent liar.)
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To: Cyber Liberty

Marry Chris Matthews and live unhappily forever after.


19 posted on 12/07/2013 9:39:32 AM PST by billhilly (Has Pelosi read it yet?)
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To: Cyber Liberty; 2ndDivisionVet
Find another line of work, like dog crap-deposit collector
20 posted on 12/07/2013 9:42:13 AM PST by SandRat (Duty - Honor - Country! What else needs said?)
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