MSNBC has reportedly decided against renewing the contract of progressive pundit Sam Seder after a Roman Polanski-related tweet (see below) was unearthed by controversial journalist, author, and filmmaker Mike Cernovich. Cernovich’s social media followers subsequently gave the NBC sister network a digital earful, as it were, about Seder’s tweet from 2009 alluding to child rape.
According to The Wrap, Seder’s contract as a contributor runs through February, but the channel has no plans to put him on the air between now and then. A source told The Wrap that MSNBC insiders were disgusted by the tweet.
Seder’s supporters are now taking to Twitter to vigorously maintain that he is being unfairly targeted by alt-right trolls.
Movie director Roman Polanski, 84, who won an Oscar for The Pianist (2002), fled the U.S. for Paris in the late 1970s before a court was to sentence him for allegedly drugging and raping a 13-year-old girl. You may recall that Polanski’s wife, actress Sharon Tate, was one of the victims of the Manson Family led by Charles Manson in 1969.
“It must be noted that 2009 saw a major push by members of the creative community to allow Polanski to return to America,” Mediaite recalled.
In a podcast, Sam Seder insisted that the now-deleted tweet was meant to be a form of sarcasm, The Wrap added.
“Seder said the tweet was satirical and was intended to show his disgust with liberals at the time who were attempting to apologize for Polanksi’s past behavior.”
He also claimed that he is being subjected to a smear campaign by Cernovich and other pro-Trump, pro-Roy Moore individuals in an attempt to silence him.
Sam Seder loses MSNBC gig over Roman Polanski rape joke: Report https://t.co/fQqi8QLexw
— The Washington Times (@WashTimes) December 4, 2017
In addition to the Sam Seder matter, MSNBC — as well as other TV networks — has had some other issues of late. Yesterday for example, MSNBC anchor Joy Reid, the host of AM Joy on the weekends, issued a lengthy apology about past homophobic blog posts that she wrote about Florida politician Charlie Crist, the state’s former Republican governor who is now a Democrat congressman, in which she apparently implied that he was a closeted gay man.
MSNBC recently cut ties with journalist Mark Halperin over sexual misconduct allegations and may also wind up doing the same for a New York Times political reporter. Last week, the flagship network famously fired longtime Today show host Matt Lauer for alleged sexual improprieties.
@MSNBC, just thought you might want to know what your "contributor," @SamSeder, thinks about sexual assault and rape.
Trivializing and mocking the rape of a child, in regards to the Roman Polanski child rape charge.
This is absolutely abhorrent and disgusting. pic.twitter.com/0gyOnBQOj9
— Baylor Cook (@j_baylorcook) November 28, 2017
As the Inquisitr has previously chronicled, there is a history of MSNBC on-air talent apologizing for inflammatory remarks of various kinds.
Separately and more recently, a leaked behind-the-scenes tape depicted host Lawrence O’Donnell launching an eight-minute, expletive-filled rant in which he repeatedly shouted “stop the hammering” at the crew in the studio. O’Donnell apologized, and the leaker was supposedly fired. Last year at this time, anchor Stephanie Ruhle made an on-the-air apology for incorrectly reporting that Fox News held its Christmas party at a D.C. hotel owned by then-President-elect Donald Trump.