Within hours of RNC Chairman Reince Priebus calling for aboycott of MSNBC appearances by RNC staffers over a network tweet that used a Cheerios commercial featuring a bi-racial family to taunt Republicans as racist,network president Phil Griffin ceded to Preibus’s call for a public apologywith a statement read on the air by “The Cycle” co-host Ari Meiber.
“I personally apologize to Mr. Priebus,” the statement said. “Andto everyone offended.” Griffin added, “We have dismissed the personresponsible for the tweet.”
Here is the full letter:
The tweet last night was outrageous and unacceptable. We immediately acknowledged that is was offensive and wrong, apologized and deleted it. We have dismissed the person responsible for the tweet.
I personally apologize to Mr. Priebus and to everyone offended.
At MSNBC, we believe in passionate, strong debate about the issues and we invite voices from all sides to participate. That will never change.
Phil Griffin
The offending tweet is just the latest in a series of unprofessional, divisive, and indefensible acts committed by MSNBC staffers and anchors both on the air and off.
According to various Twitter reports, Priebus has accepted the apology.
In a poll released today, MSNBC and NBC News ranked at the very bottom of poll of media outlets trusted by Americans. Just 3% of trust MSNBC and NBC News, compared to 35% for Fox News.
Follow John Nolte on Twitter @NolteNC