*MSNBC host Rev. Al Sharpton faces scrutiny over his “pay-to-play” arrangement involving his National Action Network (NAN) and Kamala Harris’ 2020 presidential campaign.
Reports reveal that the Harris campaign made two $250,000 donations to NAN shortly before her sit-down interview with Sharpton on October 20, 2020. Neither Sharpton nor MSNBC disclosed the donations or the potential conflict of interest to viewers, raising ethical concerns within the network.
“MSNBC was unaware of the donations made to the National Action Network,” an MSNBC spokesperson told the Washington Free Beacon, which first broke the story.
Sharpton’s association with Harris’ political campaign has reportedly sparked unease among his colleagues at MSNBC. It remains unclear if the network will take action against the political activist for failing to disclose the donations.
“No one’s surprised that anybody at MSNBC was rooting for Harris,” one anonymous MSNBC employee told Fox News. “This feels like another level of nonsense. Like, you’re kidding me, right? This is weird.”
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He continued, “Harris could have given Al Sharpton an interview, and it would have gone the same way. But what are you paying for?… There’s no way that this can’t seem weird.”
The Harris campaign also made two $500,000 payments to Oprah Winfrey’s Harpo Productions on Oct. 15 for a town hall meeting. The full price of the event was closer to $2.5 million, Harris insiders told the New York Times. The campaign also made a $350,000 payment to Roland Martin’s Nu Vision Media company on September 9, according to FEC filings. According to the former CNN contributor, the payment was for advertising.
“It should have been a hell of a lot more,” Martin told the Times. “More should have been spent on Black-owned media.”
Meanwhile, Harris sat down with Sharpton for an interview last month on MSNBC’s “PoliticsNation,” which occurred the same day as her 60th birthday, Yahoo reported.
“Today is your birthday, and we all reflect on our birthdays, what our life would mean. You called me on my birthday. Thanks again. What do you want, 50 years from now, history to say about Kamala Harris?” Sharpton asked.
“I hope that, and I really do work that … my life will have proven to have been a life that is about fighting for the people. Fighting for the dignity of people,” Harris said.
“Some little girl or little boy is gonna be talking about you like you talked about Ms. Shirley Chisholm,” Sharpton added, comparing the vice president to the first Black woman elected to Congress. Chisholm also ran for president in 1972.
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