Just NBC the Faux-pology

Bottom-feeding leftwing pundit Martin Bashir apologizes for his scat-prøn fetish, in an effort to keep his job:

Last Friday on this broadcast, I made some comments which were deeply offensive, and directed at Governor Sarah Palin. I wanted to take this opportunity to say sorry to Mrs. Palin, and also to offer an unreserved apology to her friends and family, her supporters, our viewers, and anyone who may have heard what I said. My words were wholly unacceptable. They were neither accurate nor fair. They were unworthy of anyone who would claim to have an interest in politics, and they have brought shame upon my friends and colleagues at this network, none of whom were responsible for the things that I said. And at a place where we try every day to elevate political discourse, and to focus on issues that matter to all of us.

From tone-setting former anchor Keith Olbermann declaring everyone to his right to be a Nazi to Bashir’s cri de scat cry for help last week, when exactly has MSNBC ever “elevated political discourse?”

Every pundit has written or said things that he wishes he could take back. But network television isn’t a one-man band. After Bashir first thought up his disgusting analogy late last week, at a minimum, presumably it was then approved by his producer, and then entered into the show’s teleprompter by a production assistant. If Bashir couldn’t say to himself, “this is too much, even for me,” or if his producer couldn’t tell him, “dude, we can not let this go out over the air,” or if the staffer manning the teleprompter couldn’t flag it for the producer, these are all signs that the network has serious issues. But then, as they noted at Twitchy on Saturday, from commentator Touré Neblett riffing on “gerrymandered” senators, to Alec Baldwin and Bashir’s stereo meltdowns, this is a network, that like the rest of the left*, was not having much fun last week — and it showed.

Even more than usual at this tension-filled bad toothache of a network.

Back when he was a writer on the first seasons of NBC’s Saturday Night Live, Michael O’Donoghue was fond of quoting drug-addled William Burroughs’ maxim that “nothing is true – everything is permitted,” which has long been a motto of the postmodern nihilist left in general. MSNBC lives out both halves of Burroughs’ equation on a daily basis, with the expected disastrous results. Or as one writer noted yesterday at Mediaite, itself a Website launched by a former general manager at the beleaguered perpetually low-rated cable channel, “A Year of Poor Decisions Show Why It’s Time for a Change of Leadership at MSNBC.”

Or better yet, a change of worldview.

* And the fun continues: “‘Part of the GOP propaganda machine’: Lefties bash MSNBC over Martin Bashir’s Palin apology.”

(Mock NBC “Lean Forward” ad at top of post inspired by this increasingly ironic January 2011 essay at the Huffington Post by NBC’s newest anchor — who may or may not be back on the air following his suspension last week.)

Update: “MSNBC’s Todd, Sharpton Imply Bashir Should Be Fired,” Ben Shapiro notes at his Truth Revolt Website, linking to a clip earlier today on Todd’s MSNBC show. When your anti-GOP rhetoric is too much even for Al Sharpton, it might be time for a serious reality check.