The Hazards of Live TV: #24,891
Chris Matthews had a very odd moment on Hardball on Friday when Erin Burnett was giving a market update…
August 12, 2007
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creppy old dude behavior.. while i agree erin is really hot, matthews is a bit too old (and married) to say so, especially on live television.
Comment by Chris (My Two Sense) — August 12, 2007 @ 8:23 pm
That was strange. The poor girl is trying to do her job, on a very serious topic, and he interrupts with that? Could you imagine the uproar had it been a Fox anchor who did so? (Sorry to drag Fox into this, but I’m sure the world would be outraged if ANYONE at Fox had acted in such a manner.) But we seem to expect this type of behavior from Matthews.
Comment by Missy — August 12, 2007 @ 8:48 pm
I agree with you Missy…his behaviour is disgusting. The sad thing is that this lewd, crude behaviour isn’t too shocking coming from Chris M. — then again, this general show of disrespect isn’t too surprising coming from MSNBC anyways. I bet Erin was so damn confused, especially considering she’s never broadcast live from the Nasdaq before (she probably thought she botched the live shot or something). Ugh.
Comment by Anonymous — August 12, 2007 @ 8:55 pm
Geeze…I agree with Missy and Anonymous. That was bizarre.
Comment by Objective Analyst — August 12, 2007 @ 8:59 pm
It was beyond bizarre. And sexist. And disgusting. And about a half different other terms I could think of. Why hasn’t this gotten more attention? Didn’t they fire Imus for equally disgusting behavior?
Comment by Alison — August 12, 2007 @ 9:07 pm
This did happed ,don’t you remember Glen Beck having some fun with a Girl on air ? It was just this year and all the flack he took.
Comment by mike — August 12, 2007 @ 9:28 pm
heres the video of beck asking a guest if he can take naked pictures of her : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_H4q-jNgVU
Comment by Chris (My Two Sense) — August 12, 2007 @ 9:51 pm
oops! Flak
Comment by mike — August 12, 2007 @ 10:17 pm
“Didn’t they fire Imus for equally disgusting behavior?”
Where have you been? Or is that for emphasis?
Comment by elmonica — August 12, 2007 @ 10:48 pm
Didn’t they fire Imus for equally disgusting behavior?
NO - Imus called a group of women a disgusting, racist, sexist thing - and had a pattern of doing so. And Chris didn’t offer to pull out his camera and take nude shots of her. You all sound so silly when you bring out such cheesy rhetoric. And it’s the same boring blah blah over and over.
Yes, FOX is great. MSNBC sucks. We get it.
Comment by Don — August 12, 2007 @ 11:12 pm
“remember Glen Beck having some fun with a Girl on air ? It was just this year and all the flack he took”
Yea lets see how Chrissy is treated by the rest of the MSM on this..will KO give him a WPITW award,will Dan Abrams have it on his “Beat the Press” segment,will Tucker or Scarborough be allowed to mention it on their shows?
I going to say no..because Crissy dose weird and creepy things like this on his show all the time and is never taking to the wood shed for it…but I guess if no one watches your show then nobody can complain about it either. :)
Comment by mlong — August 12, 2007 @ 11:36 pm
No Don, Fox and MSNBC are not generalized, as you suggest, by most of us on this site. But what Matthews did WAS worse:
1. Imus’s comments would never have been heard by the Rutgers team had not the media picked up on them. Do you really think black 20ish woman watch or listen to Don Imus? NO!! But Matthews directed his comments, on live TV, to Erin Burnett, and she was visibly bounced off course.
2. The comments Imus made were of a general (albeit insulting) nature, but Matthews directed his squarely at one individual, Ms. Burnett. His comment to her was of a personal nature, and she was clearly taken aback.
3. As mlong suggests, MSNBC is constantly going after its competition (and even network news) for faux pases they make. Yet Matthews mis-step here is clearly demeaning in nature. Do you really think the world would let Bill O’Reilly get away with something like this?
And where is NOW, Gloria Steinham (is she still alive) or the other women’s activist groups?
P.S. to mlong: I think you asked recently about when Bush would be blamed for the bridge collapse. It was almost instantaneously, according to Larry Elder: http://www.townhall.com/columnists/LarryElder/2007/08/10/whom_to_blame_for_the_bridges_collapse_why,_bush,_of_course!
Comment by Missy — August 12, 2007 @ 11:50 pm
Chris Matthews is odd with his big mouth. I don’t understand MSNBC keeping him.
Comment by sassy — August 13, 2007 @ 12:05 am
That *is* creepy. I’ve been trying to think of an explanation for Matthews’ doing this but I really can’t come up with anything. It reminds me of the man who knocks something off a desk and then asks a woman to pick it up for him so he can check out her rear. Was Matthews even listening to a word she was saying? Erin seemed to keep her cool with the odd request and comment.
I agree with Missy about how this would have been perceived if it had occured on another network. Can you imagine if Larry King had tossed it to Paula Zahn by saying, “Coming up, that knockout Paula Zahn?”
Comment by Caroline — August 13, 2007 @ 12:31 am
My first thought on seeing the clip was that she had just made the point that owning a home is not a right, that you have to be able to make the loan payments…I thought he didn’t like that comment so wanted to humiliate her by treating her as a no-nothing pretty face. He’s the one who should be humiliated.
Comment by Else — August 13, 2007 @ 7:29 am
How many of you are just anti Chris Matthews/MSNBC? Because I thought it was funny and he seemed to just be joking with her in a round about way. And I’m not even a Matthews fan. For the record, I’m an Erin Burnett fan and it didn’t appear to be out of line.
Comment by Terance — August 13, 2007 @ 7:43 am
His low ratings should have gotten him fired by now anyway.I felt bad for the woman. He made her look like a fool when she was just doing her job. Dan Abrams will sweep this under the rug.
Comment by Tiffany — August 13, 2007 @ 8:23 am
Of course it was out of line. Matthews has always been that way, however. Crude. Olbermann also makes off-color comments occasionally. That’s why the Imus firing had so many of us turning our heads. MSNBC has always been the place to hear things WE would be fired for saying.
Comment by erljr — August 13, 2007 @ 8:34 am
Don #10, No Imus was doing satire, he is a “shock jock” he was parodying Hip Hop lingo, he said Nappy Headed H*, Print-which you can buy and find on t-shirts and hats (that is how offensive, that turned out to be) Chris Matthews, was being condescending to the opposite sex. Chris Matthews is a “commentator” People it is all about Context and who you Are. Chris Matthews used the F word on Imus in the Morning, the FCC didn’t do anything to him? Go Figure.
Comment by Ree — August 13, 2007 @ 9:06 am
Erljr, my idea of Chrissy crossing the line would be something like this, “Erin, can you stand up and spin around.” See the difference in that and what he actually said?
Comment by Terance — August 13, 2007 @ 9:14 am
MSNBC’s problem with Imus was that he told the truth about it’s “stars”, including Matthews and Olbermann whom he described at various times as being egotistical, crazy, jealous and insecure, etc. He also told it like it was/is about the people running MSNBC/NBC-Universal. I guess the lesson to be learned from this is that you can say or do anything, no matter how repulsive or insulting to women (and both Olbermann and Matthews have a history of that) just so long as you don’t insult your fellow on-air talent or the management types. I believe the technical term for that would be being hypocritical and MSNBC is that in droves.
Comment by Alison — August 13, 2007 @ 9:22 am
So what did that juvenile stunt do for the program? Nothing except to confirm how Matthews has been getting even weirder on his program. Maybe to prop up his low ratings? This won’t help, Chris. Just hang it up, man.
Comment by RGL — August 13, 2007 @ 9:48 am
Did anyone notice that Matthews was equally as “strange” when he had the Hott 4 Hill girl on his show? I believe he told her she was a “cutie pie”…ugh!
Comment by AM — August 13, 2007 @ 10:06 am
Imus’s comments would never have been heard by the Rutgers team had not the media picked up on them. Do you really think black 20ish woman watch or listen to Don Imus? NO!! But Matthews directed his comments, on live TV, to Erin Burnett, and she was visibly bounced off course.
So what are you saying Missy? That it’s ok to hurl insults and they aren’t as big a deal if the target isn’t there to hear them? Kind of a new twist on the “if a tree falls in a forrest” thing….If an insult falls in a forrest does it make a noise? Maybe you better rethink your position.
What Imus did was infinitely worse than what Matthews did. What Imus did was insultingly over the line rude and disrespectful. What Matthews did was just plain wierd…creepy wierd.
Comment by Spud — August 13, 2007 @ 10:45 am
The talent and management within MSNBC wanted Imus gone. So when he got in hot water, they let him boil and then skinned him alive. I’m not saying he didn’t deserve it but why is it that Olbermann in particular has been allowed to get away with any number of sexist statements about women both in general and specifically without much media attention whatsoever? And now Matthews (and yes, Scarborough too) are taking to insulting and oogling female co-workers on air. There seems to be two standards within the NBC-Universal family of networks: one for Imus which got him fired and one for everyone else which seems to encourage this type of behavior. There should be a zero tolerance policy for ALL insults towards women on air and the uncalled for sexist remarks made by male anchors towards their female counterparts. But my guess is that MSNBC won’t do or say anything regarding this topic just as they have seemingly ignored Olbermann’s many, many prior offensives (and those of Scarborough, Matthews, etc). It’s a Good Ole’ Boys Network and apparently women are fair game.
Comment by Alison — August 13, 2007 @ 12:24 pm
Spud, the comments made by Imus were to his audience, not directed to nor in the presence of the women. If he was in the stands at their basketball game shouting “n.h.h” at the girls while they were trying to win their title, he would have thrown them off their game (literally), as Matthews did when Erin Burnett was trying to do her job.
I’m not even an Imus fan, so I’m not defending him or his actions, but he just threw that insult out there to his audience, thinking it would get a laugh/reaction, as black comics/rappers do when they use those terms.
But since this language and these images still prevail on BET and in the rap world, we’ve come to learn that it’s who makes the statement and to whom the statement is made that really matters. Apparently the combination of Imus as perp and the Rutgers team as the wronged was a most serious violation.
Comment by Missy — August 13, 2007 @ 12:27 pm
Alison is there any topic on this board in which you won’t make an effort to somehow include Olbermann? it’s becoming a joke - i’m convinced you’re an ex-girlfriend of his as it’s not healthy to have that kind of obsession with somebody.
I can’t really where the comparison to Imus’s racist comment comes into this either? The argument that because the Rutgers girls weren’t listening makes it less offensive doesn’t wash either. This ‘incident’ is just another excuse for people on this board to heap more bile and insults on MSNBC
Comment by Mr A — August 13, 2007 @ 5:02 pm
I have no problem with his comments calling her a knockout. The get closer to the camera comment was useless.
Comment by richard ginn — August 13, 2007 @ 5:06 pm
The Nappy Headed H* Soundbite was captured by someone monitoring Imus, for they state, up to two years by Media Matters. Then the MSM was saturated with the Soundbite. Would the Rutger’s Ladys Basketball team have been listening to Imus? What do you suppose if they listen to the radio, they would be listening to- Barry Manilow? they are young women, what is on rotation everyday on the American Radio Airwaves? Imus was parodying Hip Hop lingo, in context “Schtick” for comedic purpose. Chris Matthews is a commentator is he attempting Schtick now? Imus apologized and the Rutger’s Ladys Basketball team, accepted his apology, they appear to be the only ones.
Comment by Ree — August 13, 2007 @ 5:14 pm
As I recall Imus was called a racist and a sexist, this is where the comparison to Chris Matthews come in. Who can make a sexist comment and who can’t? You can make racial comments positive or negative, without being a racist. Imus didn’t break any FCC rules, there is a youtube video of Chris Matthews on Imus in the Morning, using the F word. What standard is being applied here and is it being applied evenly?
Comment by Ree — August 13, 2007 @ 5:33 pm
Are people here seriously comparing “nappy-headed hos” to “you’re a knockout?” Wow. It’s a shame supidity isn’t painful. Appropriate or not (and I think it was not), Matthews’ comment bares no resemblance — in spirit or content — to Imus’. You folks on the right are still taking that whole Imus thing pretty hard, huh?
Comment by Kevin — August 13, 2007 @ 6:25 pm
It is my opinion that neither the Chris Matthews incident nor the Imus incident should have made a blip on the tv screen of life. Only thing is: Imus got fired and slammed for his comment and he’s not a serious news broadcaster, he’s a shock jock with a contract to be outragious. He also made an apology. But did that matter to the “brilliant minds” at MSNBC. Nah.
Comment by Anne B. — August 13, 2007 @ 6:26 pm
Mr. A: Contain yourself. I comment on many things on this board that never even mention Olbermann. And I have much higher personal standards than to ever date such a slimeball.
Comment by Alison — August 13, 2007 @ 6:58 pm
god, when is Chris Matthews ever going to get dumped from MSNBC
Comment by Aaron — August 13, 2007 @ 7:11 pm
This is rich tonight Dan Abrams had the nerve to comment on some weird exchange between Larry King and a Transsexual on his show during his “Beat the Press” segment while he has some pervert on his own payroll at MSNBC. :)
Comment by mlong — August 14, 2007 @ 2:46 am
Olbermann has never had a girlfriend.
Comment by Tiffany — August 14, 2007 @ 8:05 am
I love all these people who are CONVINCVED they KNOW the inside story when they critisize the internal workings and motives of MSNBC. I work at MS and can tell you that you mostly have no idea what you are talking about. YES, Fox beats us regularly, YES Matthews says some dumb things on TV sometimes, but are you telling us that O’Reilly doesn’t out and out make stuff up sometimes? or that when Sean Hanity declares that there is nothing to this global warming stuff, that they are not equally offensive to many thinking people? What, all of a sudden Hanity is a climatologist? They offend me, but you know how I handle that? I don’t watch them anymore. If you hate MS so much, I suggest you do the same. IIn my opinion the biggest problem for FOX watchers is that they like to be told how to think, and get reafirmed when all these other kool-aide drinkers just tow the party line. MS and CNN show much more varioed points of view. My favorite is when O’reilly says “we report, you deciede” but if the guest disagrees with him, he calls them names, shouts them down, and even has requested that the mike be cut off. Yeah, real fair and balanced. BTW: for the person wanting to know why Imus or Stern get in trouble but nothing happened to Matthews for saying the “F” word during Imus - keep in mind the FCC only deals with over the airwaves BROADCAST, NOT cable. WFAN was on a delay so they bleeped it, it was heard on MS but the FCC has no jurisdiction over cable.
Comment by TVBroadway — August 14, 2007 @ 3:31 pm
Calm down everyone! Chris Matthews is indeed married to a smart, beautiful anchor-turned-business-executive. And — gasp! — she’s his age! The two are well-known and well-loved in Washington and EVERYWHERE Chris goes he tells anyone and everyone he thinks his wife is a really hot babe. Google the image of “Kathleen Matthews” and see for yourself. He’s a sweet hubby and still likes to comment on other people’s appearance. Let it go.
Comment by RC — August 14, 2007 @ 4:20 pm
Am I the only one to see Dan Abrams show a CNN reporter motioning with his hand to show the tube being lowered into the Utah mine? It was Beat the Press and Dan could hardly contain his laughter (penis joke). I was mortified. NOT funny. But this is Matthews’ boss. So, there you go…
Comment by disgusted55 — August 14, 2007 @ 5:47 pm