NBC News has canceled its plan to have former Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel an on-air contributor to its political coverage.
“After hearing the legitimate concerns of many of you, I have decided that Ronna McDaniel will no longer be a contributor to NBC News,” Cesar Conde, president of NBCUniversal News Group, said Tuesday in a memo to employees.
The decision to reverse course comes after a stunning rebuke of the plan by the division's on-air talent. On Monday, nearly every opinion host on NBC's progressive news channel MSNBC criticized McDaniel's appointment over her defense of former President Trump's false claims of fraud in the 2020 election.
“The fact that McDaniel is on the payroll at NBC News — that's inexplicable to me,” Rachel Maddow said on her MSNBC show. “You're not going to appoint a wise man, you're not going to appoint a made man, like a mobster, to work in the district attorney's office.”
The onslaught of internal criticism against McDaniel came immediately after the announcement on Friday that she would appear on political coverage across NBC News platforms, including MSNBC. (In a memo to staff, Carrie Budoff-Brown, NBC News' senior vice president of political affairs, said at the time: “It could not be a more important moment to have a voice like Rona's on the team.”)
The conflict represents a major embarrassment for Condi, Brown and other top NBC News Group executives who agreed to a $300,000 deal to sign McDaniel — tempered somewhat by their willingness to walk away from the agreement less than a week after it was announced.
In his note, Conde was remorseful and acknowledged his role in the hiring and the division it caused in the organization.
“I want to personally apologize to those members of our team who felt we let them down,” Conde wrote. “Although this was a collective recommendation by some members of our leadership team, I agreed with it and take full responsibility for it.
“No organization, especially a newsroom, can succeed unless it is cohesive and aligned. Over the past few days, it has become clear that this appointment undermines that goal.”
McDaniel appeared on Sunday's edition of NBC's “Meet the Press,” where moderator Kristen Welker pressed her on her positions regarding Trump's continued belief that the 2020 election was stolen from him due to voter fraud.
McDaniel publicly acknowledged for the first time that President Biden won the election “fair and square.” It also ran afoul of Trump's plan to pardon the January 6 rioters who were convicted and imprisoned.
But her credibility was called into question Sunday by former “Meet the Press” moderator Chuck Todd in a panel discussion after Welker's interview.
“She is now a paid contributor to NBC News,” Todd told Welker. “I have no idea whether the answer she gave you was that she didn't want to blow up her contract. She wants us to believe she was speaking on behalf of the Republican National Committee when the Republican National Committee was paying for her.”
Todd's comments opened the floodgates for MSNBC personalities, who bombarded McDaniel all day on their shows, imploring their bosses at NBC News to reconsider the hiring. Television news veterans said they had never seen such a public attack by talent against a management decision.
The turmoil surrounding McDaniel's appointment and quick departure demonstrates the challenge television news media face in presenting partisan views in a politically polarized environment. Much of the belief system of the Trump wing of the Republican Party consists of misinformation about the 2020 election.
For outlets outside the conservative media sphere, finding talking heads who support Trump but don't deny the election has become a major challenge. “It's very difficult,” said one agent who deals with news talent.
McDaniel's appointment was particularly problematic for staff at NBC News, where she was involved in Trump's attempts to overturn the election results.
MSNBC host Joy Reid called McDaniel “the master peddler of the Big Lie,” referring to Trump's election lies. She cited how McDaniel appeared on Trump's phone calls with Michigan Republican Party officials, urging them not to certify the state's 2020 election results.
NBC News will continue to look for a range of political voices to cover the election, Conde's memo said.
“Our initial decision was made because of our deep commitment to bringing a diverse range of perspectives and experiences to our audience, especially during these important times,” Conde said. He added: “We remain 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 representing different parts of the political spectrum.”
