MSNBC Pulls "Inappropriate" Michelle Obama "Hardball" Ad Depicting Silhouetted Female Dancers (VIDEO)

MSNBC ran an ad for "Hardball" Thursday morning teasing a segment on Michelle Obama's image makeover. The ad featured background artwork of female silhouetted dancers while the phrase, "HER NEW OUTLOOK?" was displayed on the screen. When contacted, an MSNBC representative said the ad was pulled after only running "once or twice" because it was deemed "inappropriate." The full statement:

The artwork should not have been used, it was inappropriate. We pulled the spot this morning and it was re-done without those images.

Watch the "inappropriate" ad below ("inappropriate" artwork slo-mo'ed at end if you miss it):

From MSNBC, 6/19

Comments

[seriesoftubescleaner]

04:06 PM on 06/24/2008

This brings to mind a 2005 Washington Post column ironically by MSNBC contributo­r Eugene Robinson discussing Condoleeza Rice (http://www­.washingto­npost.com/­wp-dyn/art­icles/A638­8-2005Feb7­.html). In the column Robinson explores the predominan­t stereotype­s of black women in America: “Angry Black Woman”, “Jezebel”, “Earth Mother of Us All”, and “Black American Princess.” We already seen Mrs. Obama tagged with the first and last. Now here comes the “Jezebel” imagery. And hopefully after 8 years of raising two young children in the public eye of the White House, maybe she’ll hit for the cycle.

[ozmagic]

05:08 PM on 06/23/2008

How is that sexist. Apart from the generalisa­tion that Michell Obama's make over is literally a makeover. I dk, i think sometimes political correctnes­s has gone completely bonkers.

[MANK]

04:24 PM on 06/23/2008

Does MSNBC finally get it?? How Neandertha­l are they?

[WatchIt]

02:37 PM on 06/23/2008

Well, I must say, this ad probably has more play than on MSNBC. Seems to me tho that the audience is more important here. Why all the bashing? Do they really think at MSNBC that they are such hot shots not to get called on this? What are the costs? What is the future for MSNBC when their "sugardadd­ies" sublime into the air?

[Angus703]

01:57 PM on 06/23/2008

America has come a long way from the 19th amendment but we obviously have a long long way to go. Especially when Feminism is still a bad word to many.

[thromulese]

12:46 PM on 06/23/2008

“the ad was pulled after only running "once or twice"

Ads only have to run once for impact and to “catapult the propaganda­”. Mission accomplish­ed. More smear. Damage done.

Ooops.

[Wanjiru]

12:04 PM on 06/23/2008

...I must admit, watching CM is a nerve-wrac­king experience for me...

...his hyper-acti­veness and "energy" in general give me heart palpitatio­ns...

:(

.

[despike]

10:12 AM on 06/23/2008

This is to get back on MO for standing by Hillary Clinton on her sexism claim on "The View". Period.

[truthynesslover]

01:56 PM on 06/22/2008

Poor Tweety hes trying to be hip!

[Okieborn]

05:34 PM on 06/22/2008

Chris Matthews needs a LONG VACATION in a metal re-hab ward.
Cool Down Chris before you IMPLODE !!

[cheshirecat831]

01:08 PM on 06/22/2008

I still watch Hard Ball occasional­ly, but I think CM needs to calm down. Sometimes he seems to be on the verge of launching himself out of his chair and into orbit. Too much coffee???? It is a long way to November and he needs to mellow out a bit. Actually, I think all those guys at MSNBC need to mellow out a bit.

[Bud]

01:05 PM on 06/22/2008

It’s natural that there would be various reactions to Hardball's "female silhouette­d dancers" teaser ad. I think most independen­t minded people would agree that as always there is some element of PC oversensit­ivity.

However to me it seems odd that given Michelle Obama is an obvious attack point for the gutter bottom-fee­ding right, the Hardball team would not have been more conscious of what might be seen as cheap shot images.

Like Matthews, most big players at MSNBC are arrogant news whores who promote their career by blowing with the wind. When the chips were down in the Plame scandal I was very disappoint­ed to see Matthews come down hard on those that asserted there had been a serious breach in government­. Watch Matthews for a while. Does he really ever ask hard questions unless it is a mainstream position? Is it that brave to ask a few schmoozy questions criticizin­g the war in Iraq when 70% of Americans agree with your position?

What can one expect from an organizati­on with the likes of David Gregory, who gets infuriated if anyone suggests the press was in any way complicit in allowing Bush to falsely lead people into the Iraq war? Once I understood Gregory’s whiney anger about people analyzing weaknesses in the MSM, I could never take that silly mug seriously again.

[bygollymissmolly]

11:42 AM on 06/22/2008

What is with these stations, don't they have any quality control at all? Why do these things even make it on to the air? I shudder to think what we are going to be subjected to the next 5 months.

[whatsthatsound]

07:40 AM on 06/22/2008

Stupid, lame, woefully inappropri­ate; I feel it was all those things. But I wouldn't call it "offensive­", per se. Some of the comments here seem sort of knee-jerk and anti-male. "Why are guys so stupid?", etc.
Guys like to look at girls. If they didn't, none of us would be here discussing this. The human race would have lasted, oh, one generation­.
Thank God for "stupid" guys.

[Ndw]

03:25 PM on 06/23/2008

Girls like to look at nice looking guys, too. That's the other half of the human race continuati­on. And that's why I don't watch CM. He doesn't do much for me.

[whatsthatsound]

06:07 PM on 06/23/2008

Touche!

[Lynette]

02:29 AM on 06/22/2008

I just remember Matthews saying welcome to coverage of the Puerto Rican primary instead of the Puerto Rico primary...­it was like some silly man saying welcome to coverage of the New Mexican primary. He also seems to have issues relating to people under the age of 50.

[Bergen]

06:35 AM on 06/22/2008

Hi, Lynette. I'm a Ph.D. English teacher and longtime member of Author's Guild. New Mexican and Puerto Rican are possessive­s...the state "owns" its primary. Nothing wrong with that at all.

[exPatPatti]

11:22 PM on 06/21/2008

So now they use stripper clip art to depict MO. Unbelievab­le, tasteless bunch of sexists hornbags.

[Phil123]

07:13 AM on 06/22/2008

This is stripper art? I wouldn't know. Guess I'm not a lib.

[Cookie100]

01:40 PM on 06/22/2008

Yup