A coalition of black churches is calling on MSNBC to suspend the case and conduct an investigation Rev. Al Sharpton after his nonprofit accepted $500,000 in donations from Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign.
“These types of actions place a moral stain on the integrity of the Black Church,” the National Black Church Initiative wrote on Tuesday, urging MSNBC to investigate the Harris campaign payment.
The coalition says it represents 150,000 churches and 27.7 million members nationwide and “is deeply concerned that one of our leaders appears to be selling our vote to Kamala Harris’ campaign.”
MSNBC said it was “unaware” that Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign paid $500,000 to the Rev. Al Sharpton’s nonprofit National Action Network. (MSNBC screenshot)
KAMALA HARRIS INTERVIEWERS RECEIVE MAJOR CAMPAIGN DONATIONS TO THEIR GROUPS PRIOR TO SIT DOWNS
“We will support Rev. Sharpton’s suspension until the investigation is complete,” the coalition continued in a statement Facebook post first reported by The Washington Free Beacon. “In all the talk about the threat to our democracy, someone forgot to articulate that a free, open, objective and transparent press is an essential part of the building blocks to maintain the integrity of our democracy.”
The Washington clear beacon announced the news that the Harris campaign had made two $250,000 donations to Sharpton’s National Action Network. The donations, made on October 5 and 1, came ahead of a friendly interview with Sharpton on October 20.
MSNBC before told the Free Beacon it was “unaware of the donations” to Sharpton’s nonprofit, but did not say whether the host had been disciplined. The network is suspended Joe Scarborough and Keith Olbermann in 2010 due to political donations.
Sharpton did not address the issue.
The Harris campaign made two donations totaling $500,000 to the Rev. Al Sharpton’s nonprofit National Action Network prior to a friendly interview with the MSNBC host. (Johnny Nunez/WireImage)
“Rev. Sharpton is loved and admired by many in our coalition, but that does not alter the fact that he faces significant moral and journalistic ethical concerns regarding this payment or donation to the National Action Network ,” Rev. Anthony Evans, president of the National Black Church Initiative, said in the group’s statement. “We will continue to pray for him.”
A spokesperson for MSNBC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Society of Professional Journalists also criticized Sharpton and MSNBC for the apparent conflict of interest, telling the Free Beacon that it “creates distrust among their audiences and casts a black eye on both their network and the profession.”
“These types of entanglements damage the credibility of the journalist, the news organization and journalism in general, and credibility is difficult to restore,” the media ethics group said in the report. his statement. “While Sharpton may not consider himself a journalist, many viewers do.”
Sharpton wasn’t the only media figure to do this accept payments prior to or after an interview with the Democratic presidential candidate in the weeks before Election Day.
Oprah Winfrey raises Vice President Kamala Harris’ hand as she arrives on stage during a campaign rally on Nov. 4, 2024. Harris’ campaign paid Winfrey’s Harpo Productions a total of $1 million following Winfrey’s town hall with the presidential hopeful. (Photo by Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images)
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According to the Harris campaign, Nu Vision paid Media $350,000 in September FEC registrations first reported by The New York Times. Roland Martin, CEO of Nu Vision Media, a supporter of Harris, interviewed her on his streaming program in October.
Maarten, one former CNN contributortold the Times the money was for advertising.
Oprah Winfrey’s Harpo Productions received two $500,000 payments from the campaign on October 15, a month after Winfrey’s town hall with Harris. Harpo Productions told Variety that the payment was for production costs.
