(Head shot via Fortune)

MSNBC’s Chris Matthews promised his viewers to be “as transparent with you as possible” if his wife runs for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. 

Matthews’ promise was made in the March 5 broadcast of his show Hardball, according to Huffington Post.

The transparency would be disclosing his relationship whenever his wife, her campaign or the election comes up on his show, and disclosing financial relationships.

An anonymous MSNBC source told The Daily Beast: “As this process moves forward, if Kathleen decides to run for office, MSNBC and the Hardball Team would take all appropriate measures to ensure that coverage is transparent and fair, which would include fully disclosing Chris’s relationship to Kathleen if her candidacy is mentioned either by him or a guest.”

The MSNBC source pointed out: “Chris doesn’t cover individual congressional races too regularly, which is worth noting.”

His wife, Kathleen Matthews, is considering running for Congress in Maryland. 

Matthews said he would disclose his relationship to his wife in any coverage “as part of our commitment here at MSNBC to be transparent and fair in our coverage,” he added.

Kathleen Matthews is currently Marriott International’s chief communications and public affairs officer. She used to work in journalism as a news anchor for Washington, D.C. ABC-affiliate WJLA but quit in 2006, the Baltimore Sun reported.

The day before Chris Matthews’ announcement on his show about his wife, Politico broke the news that Kathleen Matthews was considering running for the position.

Chris Matthews added to the Daily Beast: “I think people know who I am. I talk about Kathleen on the show all the time, and she’s been on a good number of times…I think viewers should have a heads-up from me about what I know—so they’re going to get it.”

See his comments below.

iMediaEthics has written to MSNBC for comment.