During MSNBC’s live coverage Friday morning of Pope Francis in New York City and the sudden announcement that House Speaker John Boehner will resign October 30, liberal personality Rachel Maddow couldn’t help but speak in admiration for Boehner, describing him as a “refreshing and lovable” politician as he’s dealt with “a fractious and self-righteously combative caucus.”
Brian Williams
By Scott Whitlock | September 25, 2015 | 10:41 AM EDT
Brian Williams, now demoted to breaking news anchor for MSNBC, on Friday lamented that John Boehner had to “put up” with the Tea Party as Speaker of the House. His colleague Chris Matthews cheered, “Everybody likes John Boehner. I can tell you the media like him.” Talking to NBC political editor Mark Murray, Williams blurted, “Talk about what John Boehner has had to put up that is unique to his Speakership. I guess I'm mostly thinking of the Tea Party revolution.”
By Curtis Houck | September 23, 2015 | 8:15 PM EDT
Joining Brian Williams for his second day back anchoring MSNBC’s coverage of Pope Francis’s visit to the United States on Wednesday afternoon, Catholic and Hardball host Chris Matthews blasted Francis’s predecessor Pope Benedict XVI for being “so fragile and removed” and possessing a “weakness” and “coldness” that Francis does not have. The disgraced former NBC Nightly News anchor gushed over Matthews’s “patriotism” for the U.S. that’s “matched only by his exuberance.”
By Kyle Drennen | September 22, 2015 | 4:54 PM EDT
During live MSNBC coverage prior to the arrival of Pope Francis on Tuesday, ex-NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams returned to television and asked Meet the Press moderator Chuck Todd: “We try not to make everything political. What is the political angle in your shop of this visit by the leader of Catholics worldwide?” Todd replied: “Democratic Catholics who are elected officials, have never been more excited about this Pope coming....Republicans, it’s just the opposite. They're a little nervous. Is he going to put them in a box on climate change?
By Curtis Houck | September 21, 2015 | 6:02 PM EDT
Less than 36 hours ahead of his return to MSNBC after being dethroned as NBC Nightly News anchor for lying about stories he’s covered, The New York Post reported on Sunday night that Brian Williams is “already been causing trouble” at the ratings-deprived MSNBC. Writing for the paper’s Page Six section, Ian Mohr cited sources within the network that the disgraced Williams is “going to town at MSNBC” and “dictating personnel changes.”
By Randy Hall | September 17, 2015 | 8:13 PM EDT
As part of Phil Griffin's ongoing effort to boost the ratings of MSNBC, the cable channel's president announced on Thursday that Chuck Todd -- the 12th moderator of the Meet the Press Sunday morning series and political director for NBC News -- and Kate Snow -- a national correspondent for a number of the network's news programs – are joining the weekday afternoon slate as part of the cable channel's attempt to move from liberal commentary to hard news.
In his memo, Griffin stated: “This is an exciting time. Thanks as always for all your hard work. We’re making great strides every day.”
By Ken Shepherd | September 15, 2015 | 5:41 PM EDT
"I think what he did was wrong" but "I also want to have compassion for him, and I don't want to judge him for his mistake," former NBC Meet the Press anchor David Gregory told Yahoo! News Global Anchor Katie Couric earlier today in a live interview. Gregory declined the opportunity to say whether he thought it was right of NBC/MSNBC to bring Williams back in an on-air capacity.
By P.J. Gladnick | September 5, 2015 | 11:04 AM EDT
Good news for our own Mark Finkelstein. He will soon have more material to work with according to Mediaite which reports that MSNBC's Morning Joe will be expanding an hour. However what is most significant about the report is what, or rather who, it does not mention. Despite being chock full of information about the many changes coming to MSNBC, the name noticeable by its absence is Brian Williams despite the fact that he is supposed to be an incredibly well paid breaking anchor on that network. Is this part of a not so subtle effort on the part of NBC to tell Williams to go away so they won't be obligated to pay his $10 million per year salary?
First let us look at the Mediaite report on the big MSNBC changes sans any mention of you-know-who:
By Curtis Houck | August 12, 2015 | 2:04 AM EDT
According to CNN Money’s Tom Kludt late Tuesday night, NBC News confirmed that the disgraced former NBC Nightly News anchor’s six-month suspension has ended and will be returning sometime next month. Kludt reported that “NBC told CNNMoney on Tuesday that Williams will assume his new role as a breaking news anchor for MSNBC in mid-September, but no date has been set.”
By Rich Noyes | August 5, 2015 | 1:59 PM EDT
The 2016 presidential debate season officially begins Thursdy night. A look back at the last several GOP presidential primary battles finds that, even though these debates are supposed to be for the benefit of GOP primary voters, journalists — especially those working for liberal news outlets — will hit them with left-leaning questions aimed at fulfilling an anti-conservative media narrative.
By Geoffrey Dickens | July 14, 2015 | 10:17 AM EDT
Scott Walker’s official entry into the 2016 presidential race has already been met with questions about his sophistication and readiness to be president by the liberal media. The day of Walker’s announcement The New York Times’ Patrick Healy portrayed the GOP governor as someone who isn’t ready for the world stage: “Two words these [Walker] voters do not use about him? ‘Smart’ and ‘sophisticated.’”
By NB Staff | June 24, 2015 | 10:01 PM EDT
"Brian Williams has been transferred to MSNBC. He’ll be paid $10 million a year -- which amounts to about a million dollars per viewer." -- NewsBusted anchor Jodi Miller.