Smiley’s Book Hawking at Debate Raises Eyebrows

What if you went to a book signing and a debate broke out?

PBS and NPR host Tavis Smiley, who moderated the Democratic candidates’ forum at Howard University on Thursday, had ushers handing out free copies of his self-published book, “The Covenant in Action,” before the debate.

Referring to the whole episode as “The Tavis Show,” MSNBC’s Domenico Montanaro added on the network’s “First Read” blog that “if you didn’t know it was free by the guys giving it away, Smiley reminded you. He took the stage about 45 minutes before the debate, grabbed the mic — book in hand — and said, ‘For all those with tickets, we’re giving complimentary ‘Covenant in Action’ books. Be sure to pick up a copy.’ ”

Audience members were also invited to stick around after the debate to watch Smiley tape his Friday night talk show.

“Everything was about promoting him,” said one observer at the event.

A representative for Smiley’s broadcast and book publishing businesses did not return a phone message or e-mail seeking comment.