How to deal with criticism the right way

Yesterday, I commented on the way Fox Newz chose to respond to a Media Matters report that revealed its lack of air time allotted to the disaster in Haiti: by launching several irredeemably pathetic cartoons whose sole punchline was that the CEO of Media Matters is gay. How telling – on Greg Gutfeld, the one behind the awful cartoons, that is.

Well, that’s an illustration on how not to respond to criticism. For a rather more apt lesson in basic PR, we turn to … Keith Olbermann, of all people. Renown for his aggressive attacks on loons and morons, to the point of near-childish name-calling, he shows how to take well-founded accusations in stride when responding to a segment from The Daily Show wherein Jon Stewart rightfully called him out on his petulance. I would’ve posted that clip earlier – but then, my seething resentment for the Comedy Central websites is well known.

A quick transcript of the relevant part:

OLBERMANN: [forbidding voice] ‘Well, you want some baseless name-calling: you are a … [deflates] Ah, you know what, you’re right. I have been a little over-the-top lately … Point taken … Sorry.’

It’s a bit on the short side, but still noteworthy.

Now, of course, when have we ever heard Limbaugh, Beck, Hannity, O’Reilly, or any others, really, just sit down, look at the camera, and say it, plain and cleanly: “I was wrong and I’m sorry”? For them, it just doesn’t happen. And that’s why those like Olbermann who, no matter how acerbic they may be, will always be better they are: they can man up and admit it when they’re plainly in the wrong.

I wish more could.

(via @todayspolitics)