Is MSNBC Getting a Bum Rap?

Political commentators Chris Matthews and Keith Olbermann, famously known for their liberal biases, went so much over the top in their disgust for John McCain in the Republican party during the Republican convention last week that the beleaguered news network, embarrassed by their theatrical outrage, decided not to have them cover the returns on election night. MSNBC, having tried to burnish a reputation as a liberal alternative to Fox, was forced into a humiliating situation, having to rein in their two biggest stars in the interest of salvaging sister network NBC's longer-standing reputation for straight television journalism.

But wait a minute! Isn't the Fox News Channel guilty of having a right-wing bias just as blatant? Maybe so, but Fox anchors, being conservative, know when to restrain themselves, while liberal commentators - especially Olbermann - tend to go over the edge rather, well, liberally. And I don't know what is so terrible about Olbermann providing a counterpoint to Fox's bias in the interest of offering another side to the story.

Olbermann, Matthews, Rachel Maddow, and MSNBC conservative personalities like Pat Buchanan and Joe Scarborough are commentators, not journalists. They offer their take on the news but they don't gather and report it. Some of it may be over the top, just as many of the political talk shows on Fox and, yes, CNN, are, but as long as people realize "Countdown" and "Hardball" are political gabfests and not probing issue-oriented shows - if that's what you want, watch Jim Lehrer on PBS like I do - we'll all be better off.

This controversy comes at a critical moment in the 2008 presidential campaign while Barack Obama tries to turn his candidacy around in the wake of the Republican convention bounce and Sarah Palin enjoys widespread support for her "likability" while John McCain protects her from questions about her practices as governor of Alaska and her rigid, intolerant views on freedom of the press and environmental issues. All three cable news networks need to compartmentalize the objective reporting from the biased commentary if they are to serve the public interest and freedom of conscience.

In Fox's case, I wouldn't hold my breath.

Just remember: This blog is not a source of unbiased news. If I were interested in writing objective stories devoid of personal opinions, I'd go back to writing business articles.