Former Fox News personality Bill O’Reilly heavily criticized NBC’s on-air talent after several hosts took exception to the hiring of former RNC chairwoman Ronna McDaniel.
McDaniel, as often happens among Republican figures after being separated from their positions, secured a collaboration contract with a network that they have criticized for years as biased.
But some NBC hosts took offense that their own network would take an opposing view.
Former Meet the press moderator Chuck Todd was perhaps the one who said most openly: “There’s a reason many NBC News journalists are uncomfortable with this.”
MSNBC morning host Joe Scarborough not only opposed hiring McDaniel, but spat in the face of the network’s top executives by declaring on air that he would refuse to have her as a guest.
“We were not asked for our opinion on the hiring but, if we had, we would have strongly opposed it for several reasons,” Scarborough said. “We hope NBC reconsiders its decision. Needless to say, she will not be a guest on ‘Morning Joe’ in her capacity as a paid contributor.
Joe Scarborough and Mika criticize NBC for hiring Ronna McDaniel. pic.twitter.com/t6874Bo85Y
— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) March 25, 2024
RELATED: Chuck Todd apologizes for misleading video after Trump calls for his firing, blames CBS
Bill O’Reilly: ‘NBC is an ideological enterprise’
Bill O’Reilly criticized hosts for throwing on-air tantrums about their network’s hiring practices, calling NBC an “ideological enterprise.”
“If that doesn’t prove my point, nothing will,” he said of Todd and other comments about talent. “NBC is an ideological enterprise. It effectively entrenched conservative views. And their workforce is completely satisfied with it.
O’Reilly notes that his old network often features talent with opposing viewpoints. He points to analysts like Juan Williams and Jessica Tarlov.
Panels on shows like The five they almost always feature a left-wing collaborator. Other networks, however, will often never give a voice to the right. Or, if they do, it will be a Republican in name only like Adam Kinzinger or Liz Cheney.
McDaniel, for all his many flaws, offered vocal support to President Trump throughout his term. And here lies the problem.
“Smothering opposing viewpoints is un-American and counterproductive,” O’Reilly said. “MSNBC has a dwindling audience and could use a robust on-air debate.”
RELATED: President Trump calls for Chuck Todd to be fired
Todd had to apologize for the deceptively edited video
Bill O’Reilly also targets Chuck Todd for replacement Meet the press. He states that Todd was obviously moved by Todd’s “low grades and exaggeratedly mocking opinions contrary to his own.”
As for distorted facts, Todd also has no moral basis on this matter. In 2020, ahead of the presidential election, he was forced to apologize on air after his show admitted to deceptively editing a video of remarks made by then-Attorney General William Barr.
Today on Meet The Press, @chucktodd took the context wildly from the response given by AG Bill Barr about his decision to turn the case over to General Michael Flynn.
I cut Todd’s segment together along with Barr’s full response. Look how blatantly dishonest this is. pic.twitter.com/tODOEwL48V
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) May 10, 2020
Todd apologized only after President Trump called for him to be fired.
As for Scarborough, he also has a long history of untruths on his show. Just recently The Political Insider noted his feigned anger at Trump for using the word “bloodbath.” This, despite having used it himself countless times.
He also claimed on his platform that Republicans trying to open businesses and schools during the pandemic were attempting to “euthanize” the elderly.
MSNBC and NBC are some of the biggest purveyors of lies and half-truths. The fact that their on-air talent is so lacking in self-awareness is remarkable.
