(BrightPress.org) – Ronna McDaniel, former Republican National Committee chair, was recently hired by NBC as a political analyst. NBC News and MSNBC anchors immediately spoke up in protest and openly criticized the network’s decision to hire her. Only days later, McDaniel was quickly axed from her position due to the intense backlash.
Rachel Maddow of MSNBC opened her show on Monday by speaking out against McDaniel’s new position, calling her employment “inexplicable” and encouraging NBC executives to reconsider, saying that it shows strength to acknowledge and correct mistakes.
Earlier Monday morning, “Morning Joe” opened with Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski criticizing McDaniel calling her “an anti-democracy election denier.” The anchor also implored NBC leadership to reconsider McDaniels employment.
Nicolle Wallace spoke out against NBC for “granting McDaniel a platform.” In her opinion, it opens the door for an “election denier” to spread false information as an employee of NBC News on “sacred airways.”
Several others rebelled on air, including Joy Reid, Jen Psaki, Lawrence O’Donnell, and Chuck Todd.
NBC executives hired McDaniel because they believed her history with Donald Trump and her Republican Party involvement would offer viewers the chance to understand the perspective of conservative voters.
McDaniel recently stepped down as RNC chair after being urged to leave her post by Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee. Immediately following the 2020 election, McDaniel echoed Trump’s accusations about ballots and election machines in Michigan, her home state. She participated in pressuring Wayne County officials not to certify election results. She did not, however, endorse Trump’s belief that machines were hacked by foreign powers.
Hiring politicians as commentators and analysts for news outlets is not a new trend. Michael Steel, also a former RNC chair, hosts a weekend news show on MSNBC. Jen Psaki, former press secretary for President Joe Biden was hired as a contributor by MSNBC in May 2022. CBS hired Reince Priebus and Mick Mulvaney, former Trump administration officials, as analysts. Alyssa Farah Griffin, White House communications director for Trump, was hired by CNN as a political commentator.
McDaniel has refused to comment on the upheaval caused by her brief stint at NBC, nor on her swift firing. NBCUniversal News Group chair Cesar Conde apologized to employees and said he accepted “full responsibility” for the hiring.
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