MSNBC’s Ari Melber told viewers on Tuesday that NBC News had parted ways with Ronna McDaniel just five days after she was hired as a paid contributor.
The hiring of McDaniel, who stepped down as chair of the Republican National Committee, prompted an unprecedented revolt in NBC’s newsroom and on-air. Numerous hosts and guests slammed the move after it was announced.
The central gripe centered on McDaniel’s role in promoting false claims about the 2020 election being stolen from former President Donald Trump. On air, Joe Scarborough aired snippets of McDaniel’s election denialism. Chuck Todd noted that as RNC chair, she tried to ruin NBC News’ credibility. Additionally, one MSNBC guest said her hiring was “pretty bad.”
NBCUniversal News Group Chairman Cesar Conde sent a memo to employees on Tuesday informing them McDaniel was out.
“I want to turn now to an update from NBC News,” Melber said on The Beat, moments after the memo went out. “NBC News leadership has announced that former RNC chair Ronna McDaniel will not be an NBC News contributor. We have a new email and update that’s come out within this hour. So, this is sort of breaking news here within our organization on a story that has garnered significant attention and criticism. And what I’m going to do now, to be very clear, is read the entire update from NBCUniversal News Group Chairman Cesar Conde.”
Melber read the statement, which read:
There is no doubt that the last several days have been difficult for the News Group. After listening to the legitimate concerns of many of you, I have decided that Ronna McDaniel will not be an NBC News contributor.
No organization, particularly a newsroom, can succeed unless it is cohesive and aligned. Over the last few days, it has become clear that this appointment undermines that goal.
I want to personally apologize to our team members who felt we let them down. While this was a collective recommendation by some members of our leadership team, I approved it and take full responsibility for it.
Our initial decision was made because of our deep commitment to presenting our audiences with a widely diverse set of viewpoints and experiences, particularly during these consequential times. We continue to be committed to the principle that we must have diverse viewpoints on our programs, and to that end, we will redouble our efforts to seek voices that represent different parts of the political spectrum.
Take Care,
Cesar
“If you watch MSNBC, as you probably do if you’re listening to me right now or if you follow news media and politics,” Melber said, “this has been a roiling debate since that initial announcement was made on Friday. Many people have weighed in and now the news chairman says in response to the legitimate criticism, including on this channel, Ms. McDaniel will not be a contributor here. That is the news update.”
Watch above via MSNBC.
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