In a story that feels ripped out of The Morning Show, news journalists Joy Reid’s departure from MSNBC.
In case you missed it, we recently learned that longtime journalist Reid, as well as her namesake The ReidOut newscast, would be cut from MSNBC’s programming, with the final episode with Reid as its host airing on Monday. It comes amid a broader shakeup to television news, with fellow veterans like Lester Holt, Chuck Todd and Jim Acosta also announcing their departure from their respective shows and networks in recent weeks.
when Joy Reid laughingly mocked “white women tears” as pathetic and offensive to her?
— Megyn Kelly (@megynkelly) February 23, 2025
Who’s crying now, Joy? Good riddance to the absolute worst person on television, and shame on NBC for letting it go on this long.
So sweeping are the changes to broadcast news that they captured the attention of Kelly, who took to social media to revel in the announcement of Reid’s departure. “ when Joy Reid laughingly mocked ‘White women tears’ as pathetic and offensive to her? Who’s crying now, Joy?” the conservative commentator wrote on X. “Good riddance to the absolute worst person on television, and shame on NBC for letting it go on this long.”
Elsewhere, Kelly doubled-down on her sentiment during an episode of her podcast, saying Reid was fired by the network “because she’s a racist, horrible news anchor with no ratings.” That’s where Lemon came in. Taking to his own YouTube show, the former CNN reporter launched a 20-minute evisceration of Kelly, whom he once worked with during their shared time at NBC’s Today show. “The worst person from television was fired from NBC and the Today show a few years ago, and that was Megyn Kelly,” Lemon said.
He delivered the message while drinking from a Today show mug, in an apparent reference to Kelly’s time there. Dredging up that history, Lemon recalled instances of what he deemed to be Kelly’s past offensive behavior, which certainly tracks given that she was fired from in 2018 after she defended white people dressing in blackface for Halloween. “NBC did something good with that,” Lemon said of Kelly’s dismissal, before launching into a swear-filled oral history of his fellow journalist (a generous word for Kelly, but alas).
In particular, Lemon called out Kelly’s past comments about Kaitlan Collins, playing a clip in which she called the CNN host a “cold-hearted b****” and asking whether that was “really necessary.” He went on to recall a time when he was “actually friendly with Megyn Kelly,” and claimed to have given her the “first opportunity to be on that network in primetime.” Later, Lemon delivered his mic-drop moment. “So let me just say to Megyn Kelly, in my 30-some years as a journalist and my 50-some years as a person of color: Go f— yourself.”
🚨 Joy Reid breaks down sobbing while addressing being fired from MSNBC:
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) February 24, 2025
"My show had value…whether it was the Black Lives Matter issues…We need to understand 1619 as the real founding of this country…Gaza…the American people have a right to object to little babies being… pic.twitter.com/Ux5Nu1lZf5
The feud has added to an already turbulent time for broadcast news, with the mass overhaul at NBC thought to be the result of the new presidential istration. Last month, Rashida Jones (Holt’s departure as the longtime anchor of NBC News Nightly.
Reid addressed her career change in a tearful clip circulated on social media. “My show had value,” she said, adding that “what I was doing had value.” Trump, a perpetual TV-watcher to the point of squaring his eyes, has yet to comment on the shakeups, but he has certainly made attacking journalists a top priority in the past.
Published: Feb 25, 2025 06:41 pm