The president of MSNBC, who has come under fire from black activists in recent weeks for firing anchor Tiffany Cross, reportedly visited the set of ABC’s “The View” and personally pleaded her case to co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Sunny Hostin.
Rashida Jones, the head of the left-leaning, Comcast-owned cable news outfit, was seen on the set of the ABC television daytime talk show on Nov. 7 having accompanied her star anchor, Nicolle Wallace, who was set to be interviewed on the air, according to a report.
Sources told the news site Variety that Jones personally approached both Goldberg and Hostin separately and offered up her side of the story in explaining why she let Cross go.
According to Variety, Jones entered Goldberg’s dressing room as she had makeup applied to her just before air time and asked “View” staffers to leave so that the two could speak in private.
Variety reported that Jones also pulled Hostin aside for a chat in the hallway during which the MSNBC boss explained that Cross was let go due to her problematic “tone.” Several “View” staffers are reported to have witnessed the interaction.
Jones also wanted “The View” co-hosts to avoid mentioning the Cross dismissal on their “Hot Topics” segment where they debate the most titillating news stories of the day, according to Variety.
An insider told Variety that the “View” co-hosts had initially planned to discuss the Cross firing during that broadcast, but the topic was scrapped from the segment in favor of other stories. The insider, however, denied that Jones’ presence on set was the reason.
The Post has reached out to “The View” seeking comment. MSNBC declined to respond to inquiries.
A source familiar with the situation told The Post that Jones visited the “View” set without any intention of swaying Goldberg and Hostin to back her position on Cross’ termination.
When reached by The Post, another insider disputed Variety’s reporting, insisting that Jones visited the set to support Wallace, who is the host of MSNBC’s highly rated political show “Deadline: White House.”
Read Related Also: Lamborghini driver spared jail over crash that killed Adelaide teen
Wallace, a former “View” panelist who was fired from the show in 2015 after just one season, was invited onto the ABC gabfest in order to promote a new series on mental health that was streaming on NBC’s digital platform Peacock.
The source told The Post that Jones was friends with Kimberly Godwin, the president of ABC News. The source added that it was not unusual for Jones to visit the studios of rival networks — a move which reportedly raised eyebrows, according to Variety.
Last month, Jones and MSNBC were heavily criticized for the decision to cancel “The Cross Connection” after declining to renew Cross’ contract.
Dozens of prominent black leaders publicly slammed the decision and wrote a letter to Jones in protest.
The Post was the first to report that after learning of her ouster, Cross began frantically calling other journalists, media executives, and industry insiders to lash out at her now-former boss, vowing to “go out in a blaze” and “take down” MSNBC.
MSNBC execs and Jones, the network’s president, did not get wind of the alleged phone calls until after Cross was let go, sources told The Post.
It is unclear how Cross knew of her looming dismissal, but insiders speculated that her agent had been given the news while trying to negotiate a new contract for his client.
A source close to the situation told The Post that Jones and other higher-ups at MSNBC repeatedly warned Cross about incendiary comments she made on the air.
Cross sparked outrage when she referred to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas as “Justice Pubic Hair on My Coke Can” — a reference to one of the sexual harassment allegations made against Thomas by Anita Hill during Senate confirmation hearings in 1991.
During a podcast interview, Cross referred to the State of Florida as the “d–k of the country” that needed to be “castrated.”
