One of Sean Hannity’s favorite African Americans, Michael Meyers, visited the Hannity show last night where he announced, “The NAACP has become a hate group in America.” That was bad enough. But what viewers may not have known is that Hannity had every reason to expect his guest to say such a thing – all the while feigning neutrality - if not sympathy - toward the group, himself. Even worse, Meyers was presented as the purported balance to conservative African American David Webb.

The segment was supposed to be a debate about President Obama’s decision not to speak at the NAACP’s convention. Hannity’s interest in the organization just happened to coincide with an opportunity to use it against President Obama – while posing as a friend to African Americans. “Why is the President choosing not to appear in front of a community that overwhelmingly supported him back in 2008?” Hannity asked condemningly.

By the way, before he spoke condemningly of President Obama for not addressing the NAACP, Hannity spoke condemningly of Michelle Obama for having spoken to them.

What Hannity also didn’t tell his viewers is that Meyers has a long history of antipathy and inflammatory comments about the NAACP and President Obama. So Hannity could hardly have been surprised when Meyers said that African Americans have become “racialized” and “will vote for Barack Obama because Barack Obama is black.” The suggestion was that it was out of racism instead of, say, pride or identification.

Rather than challenge the sentiment, Hannity went on to hammily denounce liberal policies as the so-called culprit for high unemployment in the black community.

That’s when Meyers launched into his attack on the NAACP. “Why is Romney going to the NAACP convention?” he asked.

“Why not?” Hannity, the newly-minted NAACP-supporter, asked. “Why shouldn’t he speak?”

"The NAACP has become a hate group in America. They hate anybody who disagrees with them. Therefore, conservatives and Republicans who don’t agree with their agenda – they hate them," Meyers said.

“You really believe 'hate?'” Hannity asked, his voice full of incredulity.

As Brave New Films’ 2007 video, Fox Attacks: Black America, demonstrates very nicely below, the outsourcing of attacks on African Americans is a long-time Fox News tactic. (Disclosure: I contributed examples to that video). No matter how much he protested, it's hard to believe Hannity had anything else in mind.