MRC Press Release - HOUSE MAJORITY LEADER HOYER LATEST DEMOCRAT TO ADMIT TO SEEKING RETURN OF THE FAIRNESS DOCTRINE
Alexandria, VA - Succumbing to increasing
pressure from both within and outside the network, MSNBC over
the weekend announced they were yanking the anchor team of Keith
Olbermann and Chris Matthews as "news anchors" of their coverage
of the 2008 Presidential race.
Last week there were multiple protests by irate viewers,
including on-air hecklers waving signs mocking MSNBC's overt
bias. And at a panel discussion in Denver two weeks ago, NBC's
Tom Brokaw acknowledged that Olbermann and Matthews had "gone
too far" at times. Their reputations, and that of NBC News, were
suffering sustained and increasing damage the longer MSNBC
continued to put forward Olbermann and Matthews as credible news
anchors.
Olbermann and Matthews have both become renowned for their
wanton liberalism, and Olbermann of late has taken to
excoriating conservative colleagues on the air. MSNBC's
intentional push to the left has done nothing to help their
ratings rankings, as they remain in distant third place amongst
the cable news channels.
MRC President L. Brent Bozell, III.
"Arch-liberal MSNBC has finally pulled the plug on the horrendous anchor tandem of Olbermann and Matthews. It's a good move, but it's about time. I wonder what it was that finally made them see the light?
"Was it the protesters on their airwaves and in locales around the country that finally showed them they'd gone too far around the left bend? Was it the over-inflated Olbermann's on-the-air beratings of his less liberal colleagues? Or was it the fact that MSNBC remains entrenched in dead last among the cable news networks?
"Whatever it is, the thrill up MSNBC's leg is gone. And now, finally, so are the woeful Olbermann and Matthews, if only from their anchor desks. Mothership NBC is hoping its credibility didn't head out along with them. Olbermann and Matthews's blatantly biased coverage will not be missed."
To schedule an interview with MRC President Brent Bozell or another MRC spokesperson, please contact Tim Scheiderer (x. 126) or Colleen O'Boyle (x. 122) at (703) 683-5004.
