Keith Olbermann shouldn’t have been taken to task for donating to Democrats because he’s not a journalist—he’s a commentator, argues Meghan McCain in the Daily Beast. But the kerfuffle spotlights a key issue as the lines between entertainment, journalism, and commentary blur: News outlets need to decide which category they fall into, and be clear about it.
Fox News and MSNBC both have their biases, and Glenn Beck and Bill O’Reilly know they’re commentators. Olbermann’s problem? “He considered himself a journalist,” McCain writes. The fact is he’s “essentially all opinion and should not be on the brink of losing his show because he gave money to candidates that support the rhetoric that he spews nightly.”
(More Keith Olbermann stories.)