In yet another strange twist to how the MSNBC network is covering the 2008 presidential elections, about ten minutes after 11:00 a.m. ET on Monday, an anchor briefly mentioned on-air the plagiarism controversy involving Sen. Barack Obama’s recycling of a 2006 speech by Gov. Deval Patrick. However, instead of detailing the very similar speeches, the MSNBC anchor immediately noted that Obama and Patrick have said they are close friends and regularly share lines.

The story was not explained to viewers further, and video clips comparing the similarities of the speeches were not aired. It also was not explained that even if Obama and Patrick are friends, that doesn’t mean Obama is allowed to present Patrick’s words as his own to unsuspecting audiences.

Whether MSNBC can present serious coverage of the Obama campaign has been questioned by many critics of the network to date. Some have noted that one of MSNBC’s top personalities, Mika Brzezinski, has at least two family members consulting and/or working for the Obama campaign.