Following a firestorm over his recent comments about Sarah Palin, the MSNBC host Martin Bashir resigned on Wednesday, citing what he called his “ill-judged comments.”
Martin Bashir on Wednesday resigned as a host on MSNBC.
Bashir had been listed as being on vacation while the network faced heated criticism for not taking disciplinary action against him.
The decision was prompted by a comment Mr. Bashir directed last month against Ms. Palin, the former Republican vice-presidential nominee, in which he criticized her for statements comparing American debt to slavery, saying she deserved the same kind of humiliating and degrading treatment that some slaves faced–that someone should defecate in her mouth.
Mr. Bashir later issued an apology on the air for the commentary. He then left for what was called a vacation.
In a statement the network released on Wednesday, Mr. Bashir said he had asked permission to take additional time around Thanksgiving. That led, he said, to “further reflection” and a meeting with Phil Griffin, the president of MSNBC. Following that meeting, Mr. Bashir said, “I have tendered my resignation.”
He added that he hoped the network would be allowed to “focus on the issues that matter without the distraction of myself, or my ill-judged comments.”
Mr. Griffin issued a statement saying: “I understand his decision and I thank him for three great years with MSNBC. Martin is a good man and respected colleague — we wish him only the best.”
Mr. Bashir, who first established a career in television in Britain, joined MSNBC from ABC News in 2010. He had been suspended once while at ABC for making comments considered crude and sexist at a dinner for Asian-American journalists.
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