Simply incredible. In 24 hours over 200,000 people have signed our Progressive Change Campaign Committee (PCCC) petition to MSNBC demanding they put Keith Olbermann back up on the air.
If you haven't heard the news, MSNBC suspended Keith without pay for gasp, donating to three Democratic candidates this cycle. As @TheShannonFiles tweeted:
I think they picked a bad time to fuck with the Progressive movement. We're a little pissed off.
Go to www.SaveOlbermann.com and join over 200k bold progressives.
The press and industry rags have been all over it. The petitions has been covered by the AP, Broadcasting and Cable, NYT, NYT a second time, the WSJ and so many more.
Go sign and then pass the link to your friends. We are making a difference.
NYT:
Others said that thinking was outdated, and many prominent liberals and conservatives immediately called on MSNBC to reinstate Mr. Olbermann, who is normally outspoken but who had no comment on his suspension on Friday.
About 100,000 people signed a petition circulated by a progressive group. “Free Keith Olbermann!” wrote David Weigel, a Slate columnist and a contributor to MSNBC, who called cable news an “ever-evolving petri dish of political/journalistic ethics.”
In suspending Mr. Olbermann, MSNBC, a favorite of liberals, appeared to be trying to differentiate itself from the Fox News Channel, a favorite of conservatives, which does not discourage employees from making personal donations to candidates or political causes. Fox’s parent company, the News Corporation, came under fire from Mr. Olbermann and others in recent months for donating $1.25 million to Republicans. One of the top hosts on Fox, Sean Hannity, contributed thousands of dollars to two Republican Congressional candidates this year.
The Wall Street Journal really needs to update its post:
Has someone really created a petition to save Olbermann’s job?
Yes, the Progressive Change Campaign Committee is hosting an “emergency petition to MSNBC” on their website to save the host’s job. The Huffington Post reports it’s up to 55,000 signers.
Who else wants Olbermann to keep his job?
Why, none other than the Weekly Standard’s Bill Kristol, who writes: “He’s not a reporter. It’s an opinion show. If Olbermann wants to put his money where his mouth is, more power to him.”
Help us keep the momentum going and keep the story rolling through the weekend. Sign and then post the link on Facebook.
We've set a new goal of 250,000 signers. Can you help get us there? Click to Tweet:
URGENT: 200,000 of us tell @MSNBC: Put Keith Olbermann back on the air. Help us reach 250,000? http://bit.ly/... RT!
(full disclosure: I'm proud to work for the PCCC as the Senior Online Campaigns Director)