Of Conflicts and Keith Olbermann

Journalists and editorial commentators have become embroiled in incidents that call their impartiality in question. Juan Williams was shown the door at NPR for saying on a Fox News program that obvious Muslims on airplanes make him nervous. He responded by telling Bill O'Reilly that he was viewed disfavorably at NPR because he appeared on Fox News programs.

Now it's Keith Olbermann's turn. The host of Countdown and one of MSNBC's brightest stars was suspended indefinitely last Friday for contributing to three Democratic candidates for Congress in violation of NBC policy. As it turned out, indefinitely lasts only a few days; buoyed by hundreds of thousands of protest messages, Olbermann was reinstated as of Tuesday, November 9.

There are those who argue that the old rules of impartiality should not apply to commentators who have a partisan point of view; only transparency is necessary. I do not agree.

I first became a fan of Countdown because of Olbermann's razor-sharp humorous sarcasm, honed by his ESPN days. He was an equal-opportunity spotlighter of the foibles of all public figures, whether celebrity or political. But his Special Comments developed against the excesses of the Bush Administration, and he rocketed to cable TV stardom.

However, it became clear during the 2008 presidential campaign that Olbermann showed favoritism toward Democrats in general and then-candidate Barack Obama in particular. What I once saw as righteous indignation toward Bush-era outrages had disintegrated into mere partisanship. As a result, I now watch MSNBC less and CNN more (and Fox News not at all).

Olbermann has castigated Fox News over owner Rupert Murdoch's $1 million donations to the Republican Governors Association and the U. S. Chamber of Commerce. How can he now claim the moral high ground when he himself has contributed to political candidates he has covered on Countdown? There is no difference. And this is why journalists and commentators should not contribute to those who they cover.