MSNBC host, dogged by conflict-of-interest concerns, uses network perch to threaten companies
Al Sharpton used his MSNBC show this weekend to tout his upcoming boycott of companies that have ditched DEI policies as a “shake up” of America, promoting an initiative that raises questions about whether the liberal network and its parent company Comcast are on board with the activist’s controversial tactics.
Sharpton last week announced he would select two companies within 90 days to target through boycotts organized by his nonprofit National Action Network (NAN). Sharpton said companies that have scrapped DEI—a list that includes McDonald’s, Walmart, and Meta—have sent minorities “to the back of the bus.” Sharpton discussed the boycott on other MSNBC shows through the week and picked up the topic again on his show PoliticsNation.
“We as a community need to start boycotting companies,” said Sharpton. “I will update you on what I’ve been doing as head of NAN to help build a movement that represents not only resistance to Trump but the persistence of democratic values.”
This week on #PoliticsNation, we unpacked Donald Trump’s first week back in office and his destructive agenda, from dismantling DEI programs to conditional disaster relief. pic.twitter.com/8FyedOTrr5
— Reverend Al Sharpton (@TheRevAl) January 27, 2025
In giving Sharpton a platform to talk about the boycott, MSNBC and Comcast could be seen as endorsing Sharpton’s threats against other major corporations. That could put the media conglomerate in a delicate spot as Comcast plans to spin off MSNBC as a separate publicly traded company. It also raises questions about whether Sharpton will consult with Comcast and MSNBC before deciding which two companies to target.
It’s not the first time that Sharpton’s activist gig has raised conflict of interest concerns for his media employer.
Kamala Harris’s campaign donated $500,000 to NAN in October, days before Sharpton interviewed the Democratic candidate on his show, the Washington Free Beacon reported.
A media ethics group called the arrangement a “black eye” that “harms the credibility of the journalist, the news organization, and journalism overall.” President Donald Trump recently said the arrangement was “totally against the law.”
On his show, Sharpton denied concerns that he is trying to “shake down” the companies selected for boycotts. “Now the right wing is going to say, ‘They’re going to boycott, and it’s a shake down.’ No, it’s a shake up,” said Sharpton. “We’re going to shake up America. We’re going to be strategic, methodical.”
This week on #PoliticsNation, we closed out underlining the fight to protect affirmative action, voting rights, and DEI. On Monday, I lead hundreds at Metropolitan AME Church, and this weekend, we took action with National Action Network members at Costco to support companies… pic.twitter.com/noZ4MQmevA
— Reverend Al Sharpton (@TheRevAl) January 27, 2025
It’s a complaint that has long dogged Sharpton, who founded NAN in 1991, the same year he helped stoke the anti-Semitic Crown Heights riots in Brooklyn.
Media executive Byron Allen, one of the country’s richest black businessmen, alleged in a 2015 lawsuit that Sharpton “has a business model and track record of obtaining payments from corporate entities in exchange for his support.” Allen accused MSNBC’s parent company, Comcast, of paying $3.8 million to Sharpton’s charity in exchange for endorsing “sham diversity agreements.”
Hedge fund executive Bill Ackman, whose firm has been protested by Sharpton, described Sharpton’s tactics in a recent interview with Megyn Kelly: “The off-ramp … with Al Sharpton is if you make the right donation to the right place, the protesters go away.”
Comcast and MSNBC did not respond to requests for comment.
This article was originally published at freebeacon.com
