Should David Shuster be fired?

Should MSNBC anchor, David Shuster, be fired for his remark about Chelsea Clinton?

David Shuster, the television news anchor who suggested on air the other day that the Clinton family had "pimped out'' daughter Chelsea in its campaign for Sen. Hillary Clinton's presidential nomination, has been temporarily suspended from all NBC News broadcasts.


MSNBC announced that it had temporarily suspended anchor Shuster from all NBC news broadcasts — except to offer his on-air apology for what he said about Chelsea Clinton.


Shuster had outraged the Clinton campaign by saying that the campaign had "pimped out" the Clintons' daughter when they had her place phone calls to party superdelegates on her mother's behalf. In a conference call with reporters, Clinton communications director Howard Wolfson on Friday excoriated Shuster and called the comment "beneath contempt.''


Shuster apologized on the air for his "inappropriate'' comment, and told the Associated Press that he had tried to reach Sen. Clinton to apologize personally. "All Americans should be proud of Chelsea Clinton,'' Shuster said. "And I am particularly sorry that my language diminished the respect and regard she has earned from all of us and the respect her parents deserve in how they raised her."


"NBC News takes these matters seriously, and offers our sincere regrets to the Clintons for the remarks," MSNBC spokesman Jeremy Gaines said.


Clinton and Sen. Barack Obama are scheduled to participate in an MSNBC debate on Feb. 26 from Ohio, which holds its primary March 4. The Clinton campaign has pushed hard for as many debates as possible with Obama, but Wolfson had said the Feb. 26 debate might be off as a result of MSNBC's conduct. Perhaps the suspension means the debate will go on.
Wolfson had pointed to a perceived pattern of tasteless comments by MSNBC anchors about the Clinton campaign.



Weeks ago, Hardball host Chris Matthews apologized to the former first lady after suggesting her political career had been made possible by her husband's philandering.



Video apology



The Swamp: MSNBC reporter suspended for 'pimped-out' Clinton

If he hasn't made a series of similar errors, I think he should be given another chance.

No, I don't think people should lose their livelihood over something so trivial.

Nope...............

That's how I feel, and just posted a similar comment elsewhere. That word is not in very good taste, but I think almost everyone should be allowed at least one slip up before getting the boot. I say check his past history for any other blunders that may have passed under the radar.

David Schuster is one of the smartest political reporters out there......the reason the comment may have caused such a ripple is because there is a bit of truth in it...

Just finished an e-mail to MSNBC detailing reasons why the network should bring him back after whatever suspension the network deems appropriate. David Shuster is one of NBC's brightest and best--his stupid Chelsea Clinton remark notwithstanding.

MSNBC is partly responsible for this mess because it continually blurs the line between "journalists" and "commentators." David Shuster has been an outstanding journalist, his downfall was playing a commentator (subbing for Sucker Carlson) without a license. He really is far too competent a journalist to be fired for one dumb mistake. (And this comes from a Clinton suppporter and contributor.)

The guy deserves a pass. NBC is blatantly cheering for Obama, so it was of no surprise to me. That said, I'm so distrusting of the Clinton Machine that I can't help but think their "outrage" was a bit of hyperbole just keep themselves in the headlines (just as the crying and having to loan her campaign money were likely put-ons as well).

The amazing thing is that Shuster's initial try at the comment was interrupted by his guest and it gave him a second shot at editing it. Idiot.

Fugeddaboudit. He was talking about a Clinton, after all.

No.

Say it loud and proud... David is a GREAT political reporter, one of the best!!!!!!

Bingo!

I think that's precisely what they did and using their daughter to woo candidates, not Schuster's comments, is beneath contempt.

Of course he has to apologize. Hillary has enough media presence via other outlets to deny NBC reporters access to her campaign in retaliation. NBC isn't so worried about what he said as the effect it will have on their ability to gather news from Hillary's campaign and possible presidency.

Where will the pc thought police stop?

What a steaming pile of poo.

What if he said Hill made Chels have sexual intercourse with strangers in exchange for money!? Oh wait! You think he did.

Well, those naughty pc thought police should have stopped after Shuster made his comment about Dick Cheney pimping out his lesbian daughter last time he was on an election ticket.

Oh, wait! He didn't.

No and it's reaching to find offense in that statement.

Chelsea Clinton is not a 11/12 year old girl. She's a 28 year old woman. He didn't suggest that the Clintons were pimping out their daughter for sexual favors to get SuperDelegates. He said they were pimping out Chelsea to makes calls for superdelegates. He could have said Hillary was pimping out her husband to campaign for her and tha it backfired badly before South Carolina and no one would have said anything. Heck if a woman anchor had made that observation, they wouldn't take offense.

Hillary is reaching to take offense to mold some public image that she is vulernable or righteous, just get the high ground.

She won't debate on MSNBC because of what he said. No, Hillary, you don't want to debate because a lot of the anchors have been airing your bad press (Obama's not so much). Maybe Hillary will think twice before comparing/contrasting Obama's alleged inexperience to some half-assed rationalization about Dr. King being a dreamer about civil rights and it needing a president to get it done, like President Johnson. WTF? Johnson?

Johnson dragged his feet on that bill. There was a reason Ted Kennedy parted ways with Hillary because of stupid comments like that. Dr. King pioneered and lost his life for civil rights and the Kennedy's had their hands in advancing civil rights and they hated Johnson. Johnson did no more to make civil rights happen then sign the damn thing. . Why on earth would you say something so stupid to alienate a voting population of afrianc americans and force the majority fo the Kennedy's to go from neutral to moving out to support a democrat before they had their party candiate nominated?


It was one of the dumbest psueod-intellectual statements I've heard. That she is that smart and made a stupid "compare and contrast" was a serious mistake. It made no more sense and was worse than GW Bush's "Too many OBGYN's cannot practice their love of women everywhere."

That's why Hillary pimped out her daughter Chelsea, because she hasn't had a major slip like her parents have in the media and Chelsea has been shielded somewhat. She's not 12, she's 28. You're not a victim, Hillary. Hillary probably jumped for glee that the press was going to give press coverage to someone else's poor choice of words that paint her a victim, in some stupid attempt to gloss over her piss-poor speech before S. Carolina.

It's theater, nothing more.

Ugh. if that woman had a poll telling her to adopt a child from South Africa to atone for the stupid comments she made and her husband suggesting a ceiling on voting for an african american because "Jesse Jackson won S. Carolina" she would adopt a village and parade it on TV.