Megyn Kelly strongly criticized NBC and Hoda Kotb for how they handled the three-part emotional interview with Savannah Guthrie on March 26 and 27. The interview aired after Guthrie’s mother, Nancy Guthrie, went missing on February 1 from her Tucson, Arizona, home, marking the Today host’s first long-form TV conversation since the disappearance.
The interview caught major attention because it included new details about what investigators believe happened at the house. But Kelly was not happy with the course of the sit-down.
Megyn Kelly claims Hoda Kotb ‘fell down on the job’ with Savannah Guthrie interview
On a recent episode of The Megyn Kelly Show, Kelly reacted to Hoda Kotb’s interview with Savannah Guthrie, saying she did not think Kotb was the right fit for the moment. Moreover, Kelly argued that the interview needed tougher follow-up questions.
She said, “With respect, I have to say, I think Hoda Kotb fell down on the job, and I don’t think she was the woman for the interview,” claiming that NBC made choices that pulled focus away from Guthrie.
In her opinion, they chose Kotb for the conversation, “because they use this as a promotional vehicle. The two are friends.” Additionally, Kelly pointed to production decisions, adding, “They kept her mic up for her empathetic sounds and her active listening, which was actually a major distraction and very odd in its — in the choice.”
Kelly went further, accusing Kotb of faking emotion on camera. In that, she suggested, “And I’m sorry, but Hoda kept wiping away tears that weren’t there either. This was acting on Hoda Kotb’s part, and it was a distraction and an unnecessary one.”
Kelly added, “But my real complaint about the way that Hoda handled this was there were no follow-ups. None. And therefore, it was not journalistically sound.” Besides, she argued that Kotb “did not ask very basic questions.”
Kelly clarified she was “not trying to be petty,” explaining, “I’m trying to be honest about what I saw there and what should have happened in an interview this big.”
Originally reported by Ishika Mishra on Reality Tea.
