It looks like Megyn Kelly and NBC are actually splitting ways.
“Conversations have already started about Megyn’s exit from the network,” a source told NBC News on Thursday night.
The morning show host is reportedly set to meet with network executives on Friday.
Another source said it was “highly unlikely” the former Fox News host has a future with the network that pays her over $20 million a year.
Kelly signed her contract with NBC in January of last year and has a three-year deal, which means she could be receiving a very big payout even if she is fired.
Kelly came under fire this week for comments she made on her show on Tuesday morning that suggested blackface was not racist.
“What is racist? Because you get in trouble if you are a white person who puts on blackface for Halloween or a black person who puts on whiteface for Halloween,” she said. “When I was a kid, that was OK as long as you were dressing up like a character.”
Kelly was heavily criticized on social media; even fellow NBC employees like Al Roker publicly condemned her comments.
She opened Wednesday’s show with an apology.
“I’m Megyn Kelly and I want to begin with two words: I’m sorry,” she said. “I learned that given the history of blackface being used in awful ways by racists in this country, it is not OK for that to be part of any costume, Halloween or otherwise.”
She then hosted a panel that dove into the history of blackface and its negative impacts on society.
A new episode of “Megyn Kelly Today” did not air on Thursday.
Kelly’s departure from NBC should not be a surprise. She has long been a controversial figure who has failed to ignite ratings as her paycheck would suggest she should.
Interviews with everyone from InfoWars founder Alex Jones to actress Jane Fonda have landed Kelly in hot water; neither her morning show nor her previous straight news reporting series found much mileage.
It’s unfortunate if she does lose her job over a dumb and offhand remark for which she immediately apologized, but it’s likely NBC was looking for an excuse to part ways with a person who has earned the network some negative press for a period of time.
Are Kelly’s comments worth her getting fired — or is this an overreaction by the peacock network? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
And for more on Kelly’s comments, check out the video below:
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