Ad man Donny Deutsch was co-hosting with Tamron Hall on MSNBC's afternoon show Friday, I caught the final few minutes, as I awaited Chris Matthews and Hardball. I know that Deutsch is an important name in the advertising business, and he's a favorite of Matthews--he recently introduced Deutsch as "a genius at communication:" -- but can someone advise Deutsch that he needs to know what's happening in politics before taking that co-anchor's chair?
In reporting the news story that Obama's half-sister, Maya Soetoro-Ng -- she and Obama share a mother but have different fathers; the President's father is from Africa and his sister's father is from Indonesia -- is moving to Washington, Deutch commented on Soetoro-Ng's beauty. He then asked co-host Hall why Ng is so much lighter-skinned than her brother. Hall, ever gracious, patient, and smart, clued him in to their different paternal parentage, and Deutsch did look deeply embarrassed.
Deutsch is substituting for David Shuster this week. I'm uncomfortable with the hyper-partisan Shuster -- I'd prefer that he try harder to keep his strong views to himself -- but at least he reads the newspaper and knows his stuff.
As the Donny/Tamron duo signed off, he thanked her for being such a good "hostess."