Why hasn’t Fox News defended Megyn Kelly from Donald Trump’s attacks as strongly as it did Juan Williams against NPR? That was the excellent question from TV critic David Zurawik, of The Baltimore Sun.
On Reliable Sources yesterday, host Brian Stelter brought up Trump’s recent round of Twitter attacks on Kelly and noted that the “fierce statement” from Fox “almost deems Trump unfit to be president” and “essentially called Donald Trump an abuser.”
Stelter then asked Zurawik if Fox isn’t in “a tough position” because the other prime time hosts, Bill O’Reilly and Sean Hannity “are very friendly to Donald Trump.”
ZURAWIK: Brian, absolutely. This is late coming by FOX. Back in August when he went after her just as hard and attacked her on Twitter, I defended her more than FOX did for God’s sakes, you know? FOX did nothing.
Bill—I went on Bill O’Reilly show and said, why don’t you defend her the way you defended Juan Williams after NPR fired him?
They let her out there. I tell you what I think it was—for all suppose to be so smart and such a great leader, I think Roger Ailes tried to cut it both ways. He had to put out a statement saying “we support Megyn for the questions she asked at the debate” because she’s the future of the channel and she’s the biggest star in cable TV.
But he didn’t do it with any kind of vigor or any kind of attitude, and they didn’t say you don’t talk to one of our—you don’t do this to one of our anchors, and he could go on O’Reilly in the hour before her and say bad stuff about her and O’Reilly wouldn’t shoot him down. It was outrageous.
STELTER: You say FOX did nothing. FOX would say they did some things.
ZURAWIK: Yes, they did.
STELTER: But this statement is the strongest statement I have seen yet.
ZURAWIK: But, Brian—
STELTER: Let me show you briefly what Kelly said to “More” magazine because it touches on O’Reilly. O’Reilly—she said to “More” magazine, “I do wish that O’Reilly had defended me more in his interview. I would have defended him more.”
I thought that was a very notable quote from Kelly.
The silence from her colleagues remains deafening.
Watch the discussion below, from the March 20 Reliable Sources.
