Will MSNBC Fire Al Sharpton? It Looks That Way

There appears to be no end in sight to the recent shake-up at MSNBC, with reports making rounds that Rev. Al Sharpton’s “Politics Nation” is likely to be the next show to get the ax.

The shake-up is said to have been kicked off with the six-month suspension of the highly-popular “NBC Nightly News” anchor, Brian Williams. MSNBC followed up with the announcement last Thursday that it has canceled afternoon shows with Joy Reid and Ronan Harrows— a move that did not come as much of a surprise to those familiar with the shows’ low ratings.

The Daily Beast reports that “Politics Nation with Al Sharpton,” which has been on air since 2011, could be affected as well. The program has performed relatively well since its inception, with its audience consisting of about 35 percent of Black viewers. The popularity of Sharpton’s show cannot be divorced from its somewhat controversial approach of addressing issues affecting the oppressed.

As of late, the show seems to have lost much of its popularity and Sharpton has become the regular butt of jokes.

Sources are saying that the show could be moved from its weeknight slot to only weekends. The envisaged change in the time slot of Sharpton’s show may be a result of MSNBC’s apparent shift from left-focused programming, which the network thinks is no longer as popular or lucrative as it used to be.

“Going left was a brilliant strategy while it lasted, and made hundreds of millions of dollars for Comcast, but now it doesn’t work anymore,” an MSNBC source said. “The goal is to move away from left-wing TV.”

MSNBC President Phil Griffin aims at placing more emphasis on news-centric programming rather than providing a platform with high emphasis on left-wing views and opinions. This, he hopes, will help address the problem of falling viewership figures.

Sharpton has yet to comment on the rumored change in time slot for his show.

It also appears the shake-up will not end with Sharpton. Sources are saying popular hosts such as Chris Hayes, Ed Schultz and Lawrence O’Donnell may also be affected by the ongoing restructuring.

One person who sources say looks safe in the face of the ongoing shake-up is Rachel Maddow. Her show, which currently airs at 9 p.m., will reportedly be moved to Hayes’ 8 p.m. slot while a replacement would be sought to fill the 9 p.m. slot.

http://yourblackworld.net/2015/02/25/will-msnbc-fire-al-sharpton-it-looks-that-way/

Al Sharpton’s Shakedown Revenue Model is Bad for Black People

Over the weekend, the New York Post published an article detailing Rev. Al Sharpton’s shakedown revenue model:

Sharpton targeted American Honda in 2003 for not hiring enough African-Americans in management positions.

“We support those that support us,” Sharpton wrote to the company. “We cannot be silent while African-Americans spend hard-earned dollars with a company that does not hire, promote or do business with us in a statistically significant manner.”

Two months later, car company leaders met with Sharpton, and Honda began to sponsor NAN’s events. The protests stopped.

….

Sharpton landed a gig as a $25,000-a-year adviser to Pepsi after he threatened a consumer boycott of the soda company in 1998, saying its ads did not portray African-Americans. He held the position until 2007.

Pay close attention. This isn’t just about Rev. Al Sharpton taking kickbacks. Kickbacks are one thing, but nowhere in this story does it indicate that Sharpton actually forced these companies to change their diversity practices. Neither does it imply that Sharpton ever engaged in actions that aided black people who’ve been discriminated against by these companies.

Although Sharpton blustered about only supporting companies that “support us”, he allegedly ended his fight for justice after Honda’s checks started rolling in.

This sort of pay to play shakedown doesn’t do anything to end discrimination in the workplace. As a matter of fact, it exacerbates workplace racism, since Sharpton’s involvement gives the company cover, making it appear as though they are seriously committed to diversity, but where’s the proof of that? What were Honda’s diversity numbers prior to Sharpton’s involvement versus after the protests? Have blacks within the company benefited from Sharpton’s intervention? Access to that data could give us a clue as to what Sharpton achieved, but I doubt it’ll ever be made available to the public.

This is what happens when a community replaces substantive action with symbolic protest moments. Protests can be the first step in a push for systemic change, but the end game is legislative (or judicial) since that’s the only way to force the hand of company executives, since they have absolutely no economic incentive to implement nondiscriminatory and anti-nepotism hiring practices.

For the most part, however, we don’t engage in movement politics anymore, preferring instead the politics of spectacle, where one man leads a protest, and success is achieved after a company admits its mistake and writes a check to that one man. It is callous, subversive, and intentional…and Al Sharpton’s at the heart of it.

As long as Black America’s favorite street preacher is at the forefront of race issues in this country, distracting us away from real change and preferring instead a Vaudevillian display of performative politics, the Black Community will remain immersed in rhetoric, while the Latino and LGBT communities move even further ahead with their goals since they have real advocates with legislative agendas in mind.

When President Obama chose Sharpton as his go-to guy in the black community, we all should’ve recoiled at the disrespect of that choice. We didn’t. It’s not too late to right that wrong.

http://breakingbrown.com/2015/01/al-sharptons-shakedown-revenue-model-is-bad-for-black-people/