In the days before the November presidential primary debate, Democratic hopefuls and Sens. Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Cory Booker, and Kamala Harris wrote a public letter calling upon the Democratic National Committee to demand an independent investigation into NBC News, the host of the debate.
This comes a month after journalist Ronan Farrow exposed that the network silenced his reporting on one predator, Harvey Weinstein, to protect another, Matt Lauer.
The letter was a bold move by the candidates, but tonight’s debate offers them an opportunity to take their support one step further. On live television, the 2020 contenders could challenge the network airing their debate to allow an external investigation into its handling of sexual assault.
Rachel Maddow, MSNBC’s highest-rated star, has already taken the unprecedented step of taking her employers to task, not just once, after Farrow’s first Weinstein reporting dropped, but twice, when his new book all but proved NBC took calculated measures to quash his story and protect Lauer.
Chris Hayes also stuck his neck out to question NBC on his show. But there’s only so much staffers can do within the network. Maddow is alone in her level of job security, and as the recent ABC scandal regarding Jeffrey Epstein demonstrated, even the wokest media overlords are happy to fire anyone who threatens to expose their hypocrisy in a heartbeat. For NBC to truly listen, it will take, say, a potential future president excoriating the network to an audience of some 10 million people.
Consider the impact of Harris opening her debate with a prosecutor’s pitch to demand an external investigation to the network. It would put her on the offense against sexual assault, not a weak spot in her record, and grant her the ability to take a shot at President Trump. It’s a win-win, ethically and electorally speaking, and it would benefit every candidate, but especially the waning Californian with one last shot at reviving her campaign.
It’s been a long three years, but Hillary Clinton, a key conspirator in the silencing of Farrow’s story, is still heralded in the party as a hero. What a marked and welcome pivot it would be for the new class of candidates to reclaim the Democratic Party’s dedication to justice. Tonight could prove a formidable start.
