Black journalists and celebrities took to social media to react after MSNBC’s decision this week to fire popular TV host Joy Reid and cancel her evening show "The ReidOut."
“You may not like what she has to say, but as long as she is speaking from a place of truth, then I think there is a place for her,” former CNN news anchor Don Lemon said on his YouTube channel. “I think there is a place for all of us. I think there is a place for people who are pro-Black, Blackity Black, unapologetically Black, (and) speaking for Black people in ways that many are afraid to do because they don’t want to lose their jobs.”
Noted civil rights lawyer Ben Crump weighed in in a post on X.
“Joy Reid’s exit from ‘The ReidOut’ is yet another Black woman losing her solo anchor spot at MSNBC,” he posted. “No one can deny her impact. She amplified Black voices, told hard truths, and shaped political discourse. Wishing her success in what’s next.”
News spread Monday that Reid, 56, had been fired and her show canceled as part of a slate of programming changes led by MSNBC president Rebecca Kutler, who assumed the role last month after former president Rashida Jones resigned.
Reid’s last show aired on Monday evening.
“The ReidOut,” broadcast on weeknights at 7 p.m., first aired in 2020, AP News reported.
During her show, Reid, an outspoken critic of President Donald Trump, discussed various political issues and their connections to race, culture and social justice through interviews with politicians and professionals.
However, according to the Economic Times, the show’s viewership dropped significantly after Trump’s election win in November.
In December, Nielsen Media Research found that MSNBC’s primetime viewership declined 53% post-election, though it recovered following Trump’s inauguration, Economic Times reported.
During a streamed call on the Win With Black Women YouTube channel on Monday, Reid defended her show, saying, “What I was doing had value,” as she wiped away tears.
Reid, who earned $1.5 million a year, said she had no regrets about covering important topics, ranging from the Black Lives Matter movement and the Israel-Hamas war to immigrant rights issues.
“I am not sorry that I stood up for those things,” she said. “I’m a church girl too, and those are the things that I was taught are of God. So...I am just proud of my show."
Reid signed off during her final broadcast on Monday.
In a statement released Tuesday, the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) expressed concern over Reid’s firing.
“While NBCUniversal leadership has assured us they are committed to elevating Black voices, we are disappointed by the removal of Joy Reid from her slot,” the statement said.
“While we congratulate Townsend, Steele and Menendez on their new roles in Reid’s former time slot, we remain concerned about industry-wide patterns in which Black talent is disproportionately affected by corporate changes.”
The statement referred to Symone Sanders Townsend, Michael Steele, and Alicia Menendez, who currently co-host “The Weekend” show but will move to Reid’s weekday slot.
In addition to “The ReidOut,” MSNBC canceled six other shows, including "The Katie Phang Show," hosted by the legal correspondent, which aired on Saturdays at noon, and Jose Diaz-Balart Report‚" the network’s weekday mid-morning program, NPR reported. But the show hosts will remain with the Network, NPR and Yahoo.com reported.
Stories by Vashti Harris
Mosaic staff writer Vashti Harris can be reached at vharris@njadvancemedia.com.
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