MSNBC’s ‘Morning Joe’ cut parts of Hillary focus group, but wait till you hear why

MSNBC’s ‘Morning Joe’ cut parts of Hillary focus group, but wait till you hear why

There’s a not-so-fine line between reporting the news and creating the news. And MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” crossed the line yesterday. The show’s producers, which include host Joe Scarborough, admitted to cutting portions of video of a New Hampshire focus group on presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. The candid reason? The comments made were “too negative.

The focus group, sponsored by Bloomberg Politics and moderated by managing editor Mark Halperin, asked Democrats from the Granite State to evaluate the Democratic frontrunner. Some of the opinions were that Clinton speaks with an “edge,” tends to be “condescending,” is a bit of a “bitch,” and has qualities that will “put off a lot of male voters.”

One focus group attendee, Shannon, commented that Clinton, who has been campaigning on the wedge issue of women’s equality said, “I don’t feel unequal.”

Halperin noted that after one of the voters raised the issue of Clinton’s “personality,” others seized the moment, circling the topic like sharks.

Said Scarborough:

We actually cut a good bit in there out that was even more negative of Hillary because we thought it was actually too negative and didn’t like some of the connotations there.

I suppose Scarborough deserves credit for his candor. He could have said they caught parts of the round table due to time constraints. But if the goal of the show is to enlighten prospective voters nationwide, and not to endorse any one candidate or party, then why edit the footage at all?

Here is the uncut version:

Howard Portnoy

Howard Portnoy

Howard Portnoy has written for The Blaze, HotAir, NewsBusters, Weasel Zippers, Conservative Firing Line, RedCounty, and New York’s Daily News. He has one published novel, Hot Rain, (G. P. Putnam’s Sons), and has been a guest on Radio Vice Online with Jim Vicevich, The Alana Burke Show, Smart Life with Dr. Gina, and The George Espenlaub Show.

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