According to a report from The Washington Free Beacon, MSNBC host Al Sharpton’s non-profit National Action Network received a $500,000 contribution from the Harris campaign prior to his softball sitdown with Vice President Kamala Harris on October 20th.
Sharpton did not inform MSNBC viewers of the contributions during the segment and the network was left in the dark.
“MSNBC was unaware of the donations made to the National Action Network,” an MSNBC spox said.
“No one’s surprised that anybody at MSNBC was rooting for Harris. This feels like another level of nonsense. Like, you’re kidding me, right? This is weird,” a current MSNBC employee told Fox News Digital.
“Harris could have given Al Sharpton an interview, and it would have gone the same way,” they continued. “But what are you paying for?… There’s no way that this can’t seem weird.”
“Everybody knows who Al Sharpton is… but this feels like a bridge too far. A big bridge too far… This is not landing well,” the MSNBC staffer said.
“This has a bit of a dirty feel to it… These things happen and they don’t bounce around MSNBC all that much. Like people just don’t care,” they continued. “This one feels, I’d say, there’s a deeper disappointment. There’s a sense of like, ‘Ugh, we don’t need this. This feels kind of grifty and gross.'”
“There is a sense among the people I’ve spoken to that this feels like something wrong and that something should be done about it,” the MSNBC employee said. “I don’t know what that something is… That’s a lot of money! That’s not a small matter… It just doesn’t sit well with people.”
“I don’t care whether somebody does something to Al. I’m more interested in where does this fit into who we are,” the MSNBC insider said. “How does this s— happen? How does half a million dollars change hands?… How can you possibly think you’re holding somebody to account in an interview when they donate money to you? We’re told not to take tickets to a ballgame!”
“It’s got a real bulls— feel to it. People who like Al and respect him and understand what his value is… it ranges from disappointment to disgust. Not a whole ton of surprise, I will tell you that,” they continued. “There are some organizational rules- I understand he has different rules, but they can’t be that, that you donate money and then you get an interview. That can’t be acceptable… I think a three-year-old would see a potential conflict in this.”
More over at Fox News:
Sharpton's 'pay to play' scandal 'ricocheting around the halls' of MSNBC, insider says: 'Can't be acceptable' https://t.co/h4Q4c8jRbN
— Fox News (@FoxNews) November 27, 2024