OPINION

Was Andrew Breitbart Being Punk'd by Martin Bashir?

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In promotion of his excellent book, "Righteous Indignation," Andrew Breitbart appeared on MSNBC with host Martin Bashir. At one point in the interview, I was sure Ashton Kutcher was going to jump on the set to reveal that the pathetic questions being asked were all in jest. I was half expecting Media Matters' Eric Boehlert to jump out with him. But alas, the bizarre interview was no joke.

It didn't take long for Bashir to go straight to the gutter and insinuate Breitbart had something to do with a ridiculous picture of President Obama that an Orange County Republican Party official allegedly e- mailed to her colleagues.

Breitbart responded with genuine surprise. He obviously knew nothing about the photo or the person who allegedly distributed it.

See the interview here.

Is this the best MSNBC can do to fill air time? The natural reaction is to call for Bashir’s firing. But perhaps not. He’s evidence of how dreadful Media Matters and MSNBC can be on any given night.