MSNBC's Keith Olbermann's Suspended Indefinitely without Pay
"Countdown" host Keith Olbermann may have landed in hot water following a report that he made three campaign contributions before Tuesday's election, but it looks like Joe Scarborough didn't get that memo.The MSNBC "Morning Joe'" anchor and Sean Hannity have also written checks to political candidates in the past, according to federal campaign disclosures.
MSNBC suspended Olbermann indefinitely on Friday after the news broke, stating that it violated the networks standards.
However, Scarborough is guilty of the same sin. The "Morning Joe" host donated $4,200 to Oregon Republican Derrick Kitts' failed 2006 campaign for a U.S. House seat.
MSNBC did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Across the political pundit aisle at News Corp., Hannity -- conservative yin to Olbermann's liberal yang -- has been an active contributor for several election cycles.
This year, Hannity gave $5,000 to Rep. Michele Bachmann's (R-Minn.) political PAC and $4,800 to New York Republican John Gomez's unsuccessful congressional race.
In the past, Hannity also gave $4,200 to Jeanine Pirro's 2006 New York senate campaign. Under pressure from New York Republican elders, Pirro ultimately dropped out of the race to challenge incumbent Hillary Clinton.
All of those donations, took place while he was a News Corp. employee.
News Corp did not respond to requests for comment on their policy, but the company has made political donations before.
News Corp. contributed $2 million during the 2010 election cycle to organizations -- including $1 million to the Republican Governors Association -- opposed to Democratic candidates.
None of the major CNN anchors contributed to any federal political campaigns during this current cycle, but Anderson Cooper opened his wallet while in the employ of ABC.
Cooper contributed $250 to Republican H. Richter Elser' 2002 congressional campaign. Of course, he was away from the newsroom at the time, hosting the reality competition series "The Mole."
Dominic Patten contributed to this report.
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