The moral high ground must be getting a bit crowded over at MSNBC, as they’ve decided it’s time to part ways with none other than Joy Reid, their resident commentator who never shied away from letting everyone know just how much she couldn’t stand anybody who dared to disagree with her. Truly, her departure marks a milestone in media history or at least TV drama, complete with one last dance on air before she signs off, as MSNBC presumably braces itself for an imminent Twitter storm of operatic proportions.
Of course, it wasn’t just her fiery personality and penchant for racial commentary that decided her fate. Her talent for what can only be described as award-worthy spin was also a factor. Remember her glowing review of Kamala Harris’s flawless campaign? If having a celebrity fan club was the gold standard, then surely Ms. Harris’s campaign was indeed the crowning achievement in political mastercraft. Who needs policies when you’ve got Taylor Swift on your side? Priorities, people!
Ah, but let’s not kid ourselves. The network’s decision to distance itself from Reid may also be their feeble attempt to reel in the rhetoric that’s brewed for eight years strong—a rhetoric that painted any opposition as the dark side in a galactic battle for democracy. Choosing to depict the GOP as the harbingers of doom became quite the pastime. Never mind reality; a good political drama thrives on fable.
And then there’s the little matter of Joy’s past blogging adventures, which, much like a boomerang, have returned with the grace of an elephant in a teacup. After some questionable statements were unearthed from her online closet, Joy went on a somewhat creative defense. In a plot twist fitting of an espionage thriller, she hinted at an unseen cabal manipulating her old posts. Shockingly, no “cyber-security experts” have managed to confirm her tale, but surely that’s just because the truth is stranger than fiction, right?
Still, despite the media shake-up, Joy found time to instruct the nation on the mysterious concept of “inflation,” clearly a term only economists and journalists understood. It seems only through the cunning work of Republicans have everyday Americans been taught to associate rising prices with, you know, financial hardship. And so, another chapter closes in the ever-amusing world of television news, where yesterday’s talking heads become today’s cautionary tales. As networks scramble to rearrange their lineups, we can only watch with popcorn in hand, knowing that in this theater, there’s always another act waiting to unfold.
