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All Apologies

The MSNBC Apology Tour

May 29, 2014

MSNBC is often so very sorry.

You know the old saying: Recommending slave punishments for Republicans, praising hurricanes and mocking babies might land you in trouble.

The latest "my bad": Sort of a non-committal one by The Cycle's Touré for tweeting "the power of whiteness" benefitted Holocaust survivors in the U.S.

It's just the latest in a long-standing pattern for the liberal network: They can't stop messing up, but they're always penitent afterwards.

Sometimes, they're too late. Former host Martin Bashir gave an abject apology for his incendiary remarks about Sarah Palin last November, but he was still out of a job a few weeks later.

Ed Schultz, after calling radio host Laura Ingraham a "right-wing slut" on his radio show in 2011, briefly took himself off the air and expressed deep contrition, and he kept his position.

Former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney's campaign, and even his family, have brought about a host of infamous moments for MSNBC's lineup that led to on-air regrets.

Touré previously had to say sorry for using the "N-word" during a segment on The Cycle implying Romney used racially coded terms against President Obama in 2012. Chris Matthews was so pleased Romney lost, he expressed gratitude the night of the election for Superstorm Sandy coming in and potentially giving Obama's numbers a boost. He sorrowfully denounced his "terrible" remarks the following evening. 

Few could forget weekend host Melissa Harris-Perry tearfully apologizing for a particularly embarrassing segment late last year, when her panelists made fun of a photo showing Romney's adopted black grandson with his white family members.

Yes, the network's acute racial sensitivity can backfire. Way Too Early host Thomas Roberts issued an "I'm sorry" on behalf of MSNBC for playing to stereotypes against Mexicans during a Cinco de Mayo segment earlier this month.

Even MSNBC's president, Phil Griffin, had to issue a formal apology read out by Al Sharpton for a tweet from the official network account stating "maybe the right wing will hate" a Cheerios ad featuring a bi-racial family.

We'll wait with bated breath for the next mistake and the inevitable contrition afterwards.