Yesterday on his radio show, Ed Schultz attacked conservative radio host Laura Ingraham, stating:

President Obama is going to be visiting Joplin, Missouri, on Sunday, but you know what they're talking about, like this right-wing slut, what's her name? Laura Ingraham? Yeah, she's a talk slut. You see, she was, back in the day, praising President Reagan when he was drinking a beer overseas. But now that Obama's doing it, they're working him over.

Schultz addressed the ensuing controversy on his radio show today, telling listeners, “I just want to make sure that if there are any ladies out there who were offended that I used that term, I do apologize. I didn't mean to offend you.”

This evening, MSNBC released the following statement:

MSNBC management met with Ed Schultz this afternoon and accepted his offer to take one week of unpaid leave for the remarks he made yesterday on his radio program. Ed will address these remarks on his show tonight, and immediately following begin his leave. Remarks of this nature are unacceptable and will not be tolerated.

At Media Matters, we've long fought against sexism in the media. Along with conservative hosts like Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh, we've also criticized Newsweek and David Shuster.

Ed Schultz is an important voice in the progressive community, and no host has done more to stand up for working Americans. However, being progressive means recognizing that Ingraham -- no matter how much we disagree with her views -- deserves to have her commentary evaluated on its merits and should not be attacked with sexist language.