This article is more than 9 years old

This article is more than 9 years old

A political journalist who said president Barack Obama was being "kind of a dick" live on air has been suspended by US cable news channel MSNBC.

Mark Halperin, a political analyst and editor-at-large for Time magazine, made the remark on MSNBC's Morning Joe programme on Thursday during a discussion about an Obama press conference the previous day.

Halperin asked the show's presenters jokingly: "Are we on the seven-second delay today? ... I want to characterise how I thought the president behaved."

The presenters appeared to encourage him to speak his mind and after apparent confusion between the studio and the show's production team in the gallery about whether a delay button was being used, Halperin said: "I thought he was kind of a dick yesterday."

This prompted a shocked reaction from the Morning Joe co-presenter Joe Scarborough, a former Republican congressman: "Oh my God ... delay that! Delay that! What are you doing? I can't believe you – I was joking!"

Halperin then expanded on his comment, saying he thought the president was "posturing" over a deal with the Republicans over spending cuts and tax rises.

Later in the show a sombre-looking Halperin apologised, after the show's presenters admitted they had goaded him into saying it but did not think he would go through with it and also apologised.

Shortly after the show Halperin was suspended by MSNBC. "Mark Halperin's comments this morning were completely inappropriate and unacceptable," the broadcaster said in a statement. "We apologise to the president, the White House and all of our viewers. We strive for a high level of discourse and comments like these have no place on our air. Therefore, Mark will be suspended indefinitely from his role as an analyst."

Halperin also issued a statement: "I completely agree with everything in MSNBC's statement about my remark. I believe that the step they are taking in response is totally appropriate.

"Again, I want to offer a heartfelt and profound apology to the president, to my MSNBC colleagues, and to the viewers. My remark was unacceptable, and I deeply regret it."

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