Megyn Kelly is out at NBC after she gave an ill-advised defense of blackface Halloween costumes, saying it had been an acceptable practice back in her day. But she’s not the worst offender at the network. Lester Holt once dressed up in whiteface for the very same show from which Kelly was fired!
Kelly apologized on the air for the comments, but that proved to be pointless. Holt has faced zero backlash or consequences.
Here’s host Lester Holt’s Halloween costume from 2017:
As Mediaite noted:
“That hilariously disturbing pic of Lester Holt dressed as British pop singer and YouTube sensation Susan Boyle is not just him in a wig and dress but with his face painted white… The occasion was Halloween, and there are photos because it was for the Today Show on NBC. The same show from which Megyn Kelly was fired.”
While I doubt any readers are offended by the photograph (and I certainly am not), the point is to highlight the double standard. Kelly simply voiced an opinion about wearing Halloween costumes of a different race – while Holster took actions in dressing up as someone of a different race (and gender). And he wasn’t the only one. NBC’s Hoda Kotb – who is Egyptian – dressed up in whiteface to portray Blake Shelton:
And again, there’s nothing wrong with that. She’s just dressing up as and portraying someone she’s a fan of (and with his approval), but it does prove a double standard at the network.
Personally, I think NBC was just looking for any excuse to fire Kelly.
Kelly began on NBC with a Sunday show called “Sunday Night with Megyn Kelly,” which lasted only eight episodes before being canceled. She was expected to have at least ten episodes before the season of that show wrapped up. She’s continued to drag ratings as a morning host. A source told Page Six that, “Not only are ratings plummeting since Megyn Kelly joined the ‘Today’ franchise, but the numbers show Kelly’s lead-in has also affected Kathie Lee [Gifford] and Hoda Kotb’s show, which follows straight afterwards. They’ve taken a huge hit with Megyn as their lead-in, Kelly’s hour of ‘Today’ is down 32 percent compared to a year ago. And ‘Kathie Lee & Hoda’ is down 26 percent.”
When Kelly is dragging down the entire network, why wouldn’t they take any excuse to fire her?
