NBC has recently brought on board former RNC chair Ronna McDaniel as a political analyst. This decision has been met with significant backlash, notably from Chuck Todd, an NBC veteran, and former host of “Meet the Press.”
Chuck Todd, who has been associated with NBC for nearly a decade, did not hesitate to voice his discomfort with the network’s decision to hire McDaniel. Arguing that McDaniel has questionable credibility, Todd accused her of gaslighting and character assassination during her tenure at the Republican National Committee (RNC).
“There’s a reason why there are 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, have been met with character assassination,” Todd said.
Todd’s comments came during a live discussion panel on the show he previously hosted.
Before Todd’s comments, McDaniel had appeared on “Meet the Press” where she was interviewed by the current host, Kristen Welker. Welker emphasized that the interview had been scheduled before McDaniel’s hiring and that she had no involvement in the hiring process.
During the interview, McDaniel stuck to her unfounded claims about fraud in the 2020 elections and her disagreements with former President Donald Trump.
Todd brought up what he described as “the elephant in the room” later in the show. He expressed his belief that the network owed an apology to its audience for hiring McDaniel.
“I think our bosses owe you an apology for putting you in this situation,” Todd said to Welker. “Because I don’t know what to believe. She is now a paid contributor by NBC News, so I have no idea whether any answer she gave to you was because she didn’t want to mess up her contract.”
News outlets hiring former administration officials or political party leaders isn’t new. However, McDaniel’s hiring drew criticism due to her controversial comments about the 2020 election.
NBC News did not respond to requests for comment on Sunday.
Despite the criticism, senior vice president of NBC’s political coverage, Carrie Budoff Brown, defended the decision. In a memo shared with the New York Times, she said,
“It couldn’t be a more important moment to have a voice like Ronna’s on the team.”
