The MSNBC president, who has come under fire from black activists in recent weeks for firing anchor Tiffany Cross, visited the set of ABC’s “The View” and made a personal plea to co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Sunny Leone.
Rashida Jones, head of the left-leaning Comcast-owned cable news group, was spotted accompanying her star anchor Nicole Wallace for an interview on ABC’s daytime talk show on Nov. 7. according to the report, air.
Sources This was reported by Variety news site Jones personally addressed Goldberg and Hostin and offered his side of the story as to why he let Cross go.
According to Variety , Jones went into Goldberg’s dressing room as she applied makeup to him before airtime and asked View staffers to leave so the two could talk separately.
Variety reported that Jones also pulled Hostin aside for a hallway chat, during which the MSNBC boss explained that Cross had been let go because of his problematic “tone.” Several View employees reportedly witnessed the interaction.
Jones also wanted The View co-hosts to not mention Cross’ firing during their “Hot Topics” segment, where they discuss the hottest news of the day, according to Variety.
An insider told Variety that “The View” co-hosts originally planned to discuss the shooting during that broadcast, but the topic was dropped from the segment in favor of other stories. However, an insider denied that Jones’ presence on set was the reason.
The Post has reached out to The View for comment. MSNBC declined to respond to requests for comment.
A source familiar with the situation told The Post that Jones visited the set of “The View” with no intention of ratting out Goldberg and Hostin to support his stance against Cross’ firing.
According to The Post, another insider disputed Variety’s report, noting that Jones visited the set to support Wallace, the host of MSNBC’s top-rated political show “Deadline: The White House.”
Wallace, a former “View” panelist who was fired from the show after one season in 2015, was invited to ABC’s gabfest to promote a new mental health series on NBC’s Peacock digital platform.
A source told The Post that Jones was friends with ABC News President Kimberly Godwin. The source added that it’s not uncommon for Jones to visit the studios of rival networks — which raised eyebrows, according to Variety.
Last month, Jones and MSNBC were heavily criticized for their decision to cancel “The Cross Connection” after Cross refused to renew her contract.
Dozens of prominent black leaders publicly condemned the decision and wrote to Jones in protest.
After The Post first learned of her ouster, Cross began calling other journalists, media executives and industry officials to lash out at her former boss and “go under fire.” reported that he promised to “get out” and “tear down”. ” MSNBC.
MSNBC executives and network president Jones did not receive the alleged phone calls until after Cross was fired, sources told The Post.
It’s unclear how Cross learned of his layoff, but insiders speculated that his agent received the news while trying to negotiate a new contract with his client.
A source close to the situation told The Post that Jones and other top brass at MSNBC repeatedly warned Cross about the heated comments he made on air.
Cross sparked outrage when he called Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas “the fair hair in my Coke can” — a reference to one of the sexual assault allegations leveled against Thomas by Anita Hill during her 1991 Senate confirmation hearings.
In a podcast interview, Cross called Florida the “dk of the country” that needed to be “castrated.”
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