NBC News is being accused of “whitewashing” following the departure of “Today” cohost Tamron Hall earlier this week and the expected addition of former FOX News host Megyn Kelly to its morning lineup.
This Sept. 26, 2016 photo released by NBC shows “Today” anchor Tamron Hall on the set in New York. Hall is leaving the network after finding out that the hosts on the 9 a.m. hour of the morning show was being replaced by Megyn Kelly. NBC said her last appearance on NBC and MSNBC was on Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2017. (Peter Kramer/NBC via AP)
Hall reportedly walked away from a multi-million-dollar deal with NBC Universal after it was announced that the “Today” show’s 9 a.m. slot—a highly popular segment which Hall co-hosted with weatherman Al Roker—was being axed to make way for a program hosted by Kelly.
“Tamron is an exceptional journalist, we valued and enjoyed her work at ‘Today’ and MSNBC and hoped that she would decide to stay,” NBC said in a statement cited by CNN. “We are disappointed that she has chosen to leave, but we wish her all the best.”
The news of Hall’s departure prompted swift backlash from online supporters and critics who already question the level of diversity in mainstream media. Hall broke ground when she became the “Today” show’s first Black female co-host.
“This news is more than disappointing, since the two most prominent Black faces on the show are losing out to accommodate a White conservative with a history of questionable rhetoric with regard to race relations in America,” Paula Rogo wrote on Essence.com. “Moreover, this sudden shift also comes as we are already seeing less brown faces at sister network MSNBC.”
The National Association of Black Journalists also decried the decision that led to Hall’s exit and is demanding a meeting with the network to discuss the matter.
“NBC has been a leader for diversity in broadcasting, but recent reports that Hall and Roker will be replaced by former Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly are being seen by industry professionals as whitewashing,” the advocacy group said in a statement.
Hall and Roker should have been rewarded, not punished, for their segment’s high ratings, added NABJ, which also questioned NBC’s choice in Megyn Kelly.
“Kelly has a well-documented history of offensive remarks regarding people of color,” NABJ stated, citing Kelly’s assessment of then-First Lady Michelle Obama’s commencement address at Tuskegee University as pandering to a “culture of victimization.”
“NABJ requests a meeting with NBC leadership on the top-rated show’s dismantling,” the group concluded. “We look forward to dialogue and resolve regarding Black journalists and their continuing roles at NBC both in front and behind the camera.”