Where’s the Outrage?

Keith Olbermann does an excellent job apologizing for David Shuster in particular but the network in general. The Nation’s Katrina vanden Heuvel points out what we already know. Chris Matthews has a terrible track record for opening his mouth and saying something inappropriate about Hillary Clinton. Bill Moyers Journal did a segment on the misogynistic things that have written, printed and published about Hillary Clinton. Big Tent Democrat is taking John Marshall of TPM media to the woodshed for …. I’m not quite sure for what. Marshall didn’t acknowledge MSNBC’s long history of stupidity? I don’t know. I think that Josh covered the story.

In case, you didn’t know, David Shuster was talking with Bill Press. Shuster [was] discussing Chelsea Clinton calling superdelegates on her mother’s behalf, urging them to support the Clinton campaign. Shuster initially asked Clinton supporter Bill Press if the efforts were “unseemly.” When Press pushed back, Shuster asked, “Doesn’t it seem like Chelsea’s sort of being pimped out in some weird sort of way?” (from TCR)

As Jane Hampster noted, I’ll bring up the latest contretemps — comments made by David Shuster to the effect that Chelsea Clinton was being “pimped out” by the campaign. It may surprise everyone but I actually wasn’t bothered by them. The phrase is ubiquitous, I use it all the time and although it is a loaded term my initial impression was that in the wake of all the truly awful sexist stuff that’s come down the pipeline from MSNBC over the course of this campaign, much of which I have personally railed about, this just didn’t fall into that category.

I agree. I don’t think that the phrase “pimped out” has the same connotation that it did 10 or 15 years ago. Don’t get me wrong. I don’t think that David Shuster should be using ebonics on the air. I think that he should stick to reporting. I think that he is a good reporter who did a great job on the Scooter Libby trial. I think that he should have be reprimanded and NOT suspended. The person who needs to be suspended is Chris Matthews. He has a long history of saying stupid sexist derogatory stuff about Hillary Clinton. I think that you can make a case that Matthews has said so many things that he should be fired.

Katrina said it best - Misogynistic language aimed at the first women Presidential candidate’s daughter? Pretty low stuff. Hillary Clinton is now reconsidering whether she will participate in an MSNBC debate scheduled for February 26th. I think she should participate. And when she does, it’s her moment to speak out, in anger and in sorrow, at those snarky sexist men at MSNBC, and others in our media (think of the right wing ranters like Limbaugh and Savage) who traffic in misogynist and demeaning commentary on women and their children.

Tags: Domestic Issues, Election 2008, Media //