To: Phil Griffin, President, MSNBC

MSNBC Suspend Chris Matthews or Give Bernie Equal Time

MSNBC should suspend Chris Matthews, host of Hardball, because of his constant shilling for Hillary Clinton. In every episode of Hardball, in every "exclusive" interview with Clinton, he gives her endless time to make her case, repeats her talking points, gives her softball questions, denigrates Bernie Sanders and his people powered movement and reinforces the narrative that she will be the Democratic nominee. Matthews should be removed from the air for the duration of the campaign or he should be required to give Bernie equal time.

Why is this important?

Bernie Sanders is the most progressive candidate this country has seen since George McGovern. Though running as a Democrat, he is taking on the establishment of both parties as being complicit in the takeover of the US economy and government by billionaires and corporations. He is even taking on the mainstream media and their corporate owners for their role in aiding and abetting this.

If the president of MSNBC wants his network to have any credibility as a practitioner of unbiased, objective journalism, he should be very concerned about a show host who has essentially become a mouthpiece for one of the candidates. Chris Matthews has clearly jumped the shark in his blind adoration for, loyalty to and incessant promotion of one of the candidates for the Democratic nomination.

Here is just the latest example of his shilling for Hillary Clinton. In this interview, he enables her fantasy narrative that her 2/10ths of one percent lead over Bernie Sanders in Iowa, a statistical tie, constitutes a win. And he can barely hide his contempt for Bernie Sanders when he spits out invective that he is not a Democrat, even though he is clearly running as a Democrat, in order to discredit Senator Sanders with the viewers.

http://www.msnbc.com/hardball/watch/clinton-on-her-chances-in-new-hampshire-614386755972

Here is a magazine columnist's take on it.
http://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/news/a41754/chris-matthews-hillary-clinton-interview/

Chris’ wife may be egging on his disgraceful behavior towards Bernie Sanders. His wife, Kathleen, is running for Congress just outside Washington, D.C. She has very publicly endorsed Hillary Clinton, has worked closely with the Clinton Foundation, is using footage in her campaign of her interviewing Hillary when she was a news reporter, is getting big bucks from Hillary donors, and her campaign is paying money to firms associated with Hillary. There is a clear conflict of interest between Kathleen’s new political career and Chris Matthews’ journalistic obligations to the public. Several women, including Sen. Sherrod Brown’s Pulitzer Prize-winning wife Connie Schultz and Arnold Schwarzenegger’s famous wife Maria Shriver, have taken leaves from their journalism jobs while their spouses ran for office. There is no reason a man should not have to do likewise.

Please sign this petition to suspend Chris Matthews for the duration of the 2016 Presidential campaign. Either that, or he needs to give Bernie Sanders equal time on his show or charge Hillary Clinton for political advertising.