Would Keith Olbermann's bosses let him criticize Erin Burnett on "Countdown"?

[brentspeak]

I really want KO to highlight CNBC's Erin Burnett's comment from last Friday's "Hardball", when she said the following:

http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/08/12/cnbcs-erin-burnett-we-need-chinas-toxic-food-and-lead-coated-toys-to-keep-economy-strong/

“A lot of people like to say, uh, scaremonger about China, right? A lot of politicians, and I know you talk about that issue all the time. I think people should be careful what they wish for on China. Ya know, if China were to revalue it’s currency or China is to start making say, toys that don’t have lead in them or food that isn’t poisonous, their costs of production are going to go up and that means prices at Wal-Mart here in the United States are going to go up too. So, I would say China is our greatest friend right now, they’re keeping prices low and they’re keeping the prices for mortgages low, too.”

Burnett's Park Ave. investor-whoring comments are making the blog rounds, but that's not enough as far as I'm concerned: Burnett and her ilk need to be exposed in front of a national television audience -- many times over. So I emailed "Countdown With Keith Olbermann" ([e-mail]) with the quote and a youtube link.

But Olbermann and Burnett both work for the same network -- NBC -- and I'm not sure if CNBC personnel are allowed targets on "Countdown".

[ellenfl]

1. not to mention she was on msnbc when she said it. you can only ask. eom

[jgraz]

2. I don't think Keith would do it

He said during the Imus controversy that he doesn't think it's proper to criticize his coworkers. Otherwise, he'd have made Chris Matthews Worst Person in the World for asking to see Burnett's tits on the air.

Edit: Though someone should call her on it. Her comments were obscene.

[Berry Cool]

7. I don't think so, either.

Keith has as much as admitted that he holds his fire when it comes to his fellow NBC'ers in order to let the management be the management and do the job the management should do, rather than making the mistake he made in his earlier career, which was to essentially sound off to the management about anything on the job that pissed him off. It's taken him a long time to get to that point, and I don't think he wants to lose the progress he's made in that direction.

That doesn't mean he doesn't make his concerns known to them privately. For all we know, he's talked to someone at MSNBC about how appalling Burnett's remarks were and even to Tweety about how sexist it was of him to ask her to lean into the camera. It just means he's not going to make either of them WPITW anytime soon.

[ColonelTom]

3. I'm not sure she's wrong, except...

... that China is our economy's "greatest friend" in the same way that your neighborhood dope dealer is. China is enabling our own addiction to cheap, plentiful goods and easily acquired credit. And withdrawal will be a b*tch.

[brentspeak]

4. Somehow, I don't think Burnett was simply making a morbid observation

She was shilling for the current system -- unapologetically so.

[KaptBunnyPants]

5. That was either very dark satire, or she is insane.

I just can't imagine anyone saying "yeah, the food is poisonous, but look at how cheap it is!" and meaning it.

[Disturbed]

6. If she meant that China should keep sending that shit to the US

she is insane.

[ellenfl]

8. jon stewart had the clip on his show last night. eom

[RedStateShame]

9. I can think of an NBC employee who might make a comment about it, though.

Jim Cramer. The more ballistic he gets, the better his ratings get, regardless of the target.