In the face of blowback over the news that former Republican National Committee chairwoman Ronna McDaniel would serve as an NBC News political analyst, the media giant has done an about-face.
“After listening to the legitimate concerns of many of you, I have decided that Ronna McDaniel will not be an NBC News contributor,” NBCUniversal News Group chairman Cesar Conde noted in a message to staff Tuesday, according to NBC News. “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.”
Conde claimed in the email that the organization remains dedicated to offering viewers a range of different views.
“Our initial decision was made because of our deep commitment to presenting our audiences with a widely diverse set of viewpoints and experiences,” he wrote, according to a screenshot of the note posted on X by NPR’s David Folkenflik. “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.”
NBC News chief political analyst Chuck Todd, a former “Meet the Press” moderator, had slammed his superiors during a Sunday appearance on “Meet the Press” after current show moderator Kristen Welker interviewed McDaniel.
“I think our bosses owe you an apology for putting you in this situation,” Todd declared.
He claimed that McDaniel “has credibility issues.”
“And look, there’s a reason why there’s a lot of journalists at NBC News uncomfortable with this because many of our professional dealings with the RNC over the last six years have been met with gaslighting” and assassination of character, Todd said.
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