MSNBC short changes Colorado tragedy to push political agenda

What is more important to your TV news audience?

A breaking news story about a mass shooting at a movie theater in Colorado where 14 people have been killed and at least 50 more were injured.

or

Pushing the obvious political agenda of your station and talking about the previous day's Emmy nominations.

As CNN and FOX News shifted from their planned morning shows to seamless (and for at least an hour, commercial-free) coverage of the unfolding horrible tragedy in Aurora, CO, "Morning Joe" on MSNBC (now officially NBC News.com) decided to touch lightly on the tragedy and spend a majority of their first hour pushing the planned show they had in the can.

In the crucial 6am hour:

• CNN's "Early Start" spoke with the Aurora Police Dept's Public Information Officer, aired cell phone video clips from inside the theater, and talked with witnesses.

• FOX News channel's "Fox And Friends" dropped their typically light-hearted tone to focus all of their resources on this breaking story.

• MSNBC's Morning Joe" devoted a small mention at the opening of the hour to the tragedy, WIllie Geist added some additional updated information around 6:35 (after the Emmy nominations banter) and the story was teased again at the end of the hour.

If you think I am blowing this out of proportion, watch this clip from the first block of the 6am hour on "Morning Joe."

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