MSNBC’s Thomas Roberts has been tapped to take over the network’s 1-3 p.m. block, replacing soon-to-be-canceled shows “The Reid Report” and “Ronan Farrow Daily” as the struggling cable news network looks to rebrand itself as a more serious news outlet.
But Roberts’ own broadcast history casts doubt on his readiness to lead the famously left-of-center news network in a more rigorous direction.
Roberts currently hosts the half-hour “Way Too Early” at 5:30 in the morning. The decision to quadruple his on-air time and move him to the afternoon comes as MSNBC faces its lowest ratings in nearly a decade, and executives suggest the channel is moving away from commentary and toward straight news reporting. The Daily Beast reports that MSNBC’s Chris Hayes will also likely to lose his 8 p.m. spot to Rachel Maddow and that Al Sharpton’s 6 p.m. weekday show may be moved to the weekends.
The two failed hosts, Ronan Farrow and Joy-Ann Reid, lasted less than a year: Both debuted their respective shows on Feb. 24, 2014. Both will remain with the network, Farrow moving to an “investigative” unit, while Reid becomes a national correspondent. Roberts will take over Reid and Farrow’s spots until further notice.
“Everybody in the food chain from top to bottom understands that the Olbermann era is over,” an MSNBC source told to the Daily Beast, referring to the former network host Keith Olbermann, who was noted for his outspoken dislike for President George W. Bush.
But if MSNBC is focusing on hard-hitting and objective news, the choice to give Roberts a two-hour midday block seems an odd one. Roberts has in the past engaged in behavior that one would expect more from an entertainer and partisan commentator than from a serious newsman.
For example:
10. An unanswerable question:
When Rep. Marsh Blackburn, R-Tenn., appeared on MSNBC in 2013 to discuss the partial government shutdown over funding for the Affordable Care Act, Roberts suggested Republican lawmakers hate the U.S.
“Congresswoman, let me ask you though, when it comes to Obamacare, do you hate Obamacare more than you love your country?” he asked.
Blackburn called Roberts’ line of questioning “incredibly inappropriate.”
“You don’t think it’s incredibly inappropriate to shut down our government and take all the hostages of Americans that you’ve taken?” the MSNBC host shot back.
The congresswoman again objected to Roberts’ line of question, to which he responded: “No, no, no. It’s not inappropriate because you’ve taken the government hostage through a shutdown and all the American people, you’re walking them to a cliff.”
Roberts then interrupted Blackburn as she attempted to respond so that he could interview Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
Roberts never came back to get Blackburn’s response.
9. Obama is the gay president
Roberts, who is himself gay, suggested in 2013 that President Obama would likely have a hard time defending the rights of gays and lesbians living abroad in oppressive countries because many already consider Obama to be America’s “first gay president.”
Referring specifically to Obama’s shaky and oftentimes contentious relationship with Russian president Vladimir Putin, who is notorious for cracking down on gays, Roberts said: “It’s Russia’s support for Syria, relationship in Iran, the current crisis in Ukraine, and also the protection of asylum granted to NSA leaker Edward Snowden.”
“How do you think the president can balance the delicate foreign policy issues but take a decisive stand on human rights, because so many people consider President Obama to be the first gay president?” he asked.
8. Assorted slurs
In 2013 Roberts expressed dismay and anger about LGBT rights in the United States and challenged MSNBC on air to do more to implement an “I am other” agenda. But his ardor for the topic led him to rattle off a series of slurs, imputing these beliefs to hypothetical others.
“Being an other, whether it’s LGBT, because you’re then suspected of being a pedophile and a rabid disease carrier. And if you are a woman, well, you certainly don’t have a right to your own body and your own reproductive health because if you do, then you’re just a slut who wants to sleep around and use abortion as birth control,” he said.
“And then if you’re Hispanic, well you’re just a taker, you’re not a maker, and you want to come here and have anchor babies and you just want to lay off the land,” he added.
He continued: “The social contract that we have currently negotiated that is so wrong and how this is happening in a country where we have this huge group of people, that it’s supposed to be a melting pot, but we treat each other with such disdain it’s not even funny.”
7. Tweets are proof of GOP racism
In 2013, Roberts wondered whether anti-gay slurs included in tweets from the children of Republican lawmakers, including Sen. Jeff Flake’s, R-Ariz., son, Tanner, means that the entire Republican Party suffers from widespread “homophobia.”
“We have got Jeff Flake’s, 15-year-old son in Arizona, Tanner Flake, who has been tweeting homophobic and some really nasty things. Jeff Flake has come out to apologize for his son because of what he said there,” Roberts said.
“But, then we’ve got Joe Heck’s son tweeting, he is a 16-year-old, Joe Heck is a Republican in Nevada … It seems as if young kids on the right anyway — and all around for that matter — you know, they’re going to do silly things … but are we seeing, Cheryl, an entrenched homophobia on the right, that they’re not willing to recognize there’s a sea change in this country?” he asked.
“The Supreme Court is considering DOMA and Prop 8, should have that decision end of the month. Are they just unwilling to look at how this country is changing?”
6. Michele Bachmann wants to extinguish gays
Roberts in 2011 suggested Tea Party favorite Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., would like to “extinguish” all gays.
His remarks came during a conversation with GOProud executive director Jimmy Lasalvia as the two discussed an invite that the conservative group extended to Bachmann for a meeting.
“Well, that is something that affects everybody across this country. It doesn’t have to be — it doesn’t have to be with the LGBT community, it talks about all Americans. But I do want to talk about what GOProud is doing in reaching out an invitation to Michele Bachmann to take a meeting. Where does that stand right now? Has the Bachmann camp gotten back to you? Will they meet with you?” Roberts asked.
“Well, at this point we are having a dialogue with them. And when there’s something to report, I’ll let you know. You know, we’re reaching out to all of the presidential candidates because, frankly, gay Americans are living in the Obama economy too, and it’s important that we beat him next November and replace this failed president. So we’re reaching out —” Lasalvia started.
“But you will replace him with a person that would extinguish you. You’re replacing him with a person that doesn’t believe that that you have a right in this country to get married, that believes you don’t even have a right in this country to be gay because she co-owns a clinic that will convert you,” Roberts said.
5. Deafening praise for Vice President Joe Biden
During the 2012 presidential election between Obama and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, Roberts was deeply unhappy to hear one of his guests compare Vice President Joe Biden to real estate mogul Donald Trump.
It started when former Rick Santorum spokesman Hogan Gidley said in reference to questions about how Romney can be comfortable being seen in public with a less-than-serious character like Trump: “One of your anchors said how can Mitt Romney stand next to a guy who can embarrass him at any moment. Barack Obama can be embarrassed at any moment by a guy he made vice president.”
A visibly annoyed Roberts responded: “Are you really going to compare Joe Biden, one of this country’s most dignified and greatest political leaders that can cross the bridge, getting to both sides of the aisle and compare him to a Donald Trump? Do you really want to say that?”
4. Cinco de Mayo dustup
Roberts had to apologize in 2014 after his program aired a Cinco de Mayo segment that featured a maraca-shaking, sombrero-wearing, tequila-swilling MSNBC staffer, the segment drawing criticism for its supposed racial insensitivity.
The president of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, Hugo Balta, was not at all pleased with the segment and released a statement, saying: “This is simply the worst example I have seen of a discriminatory stereotypical portrayal of any community by any media. The fact that this was done by a news organization is abominable. This wasn’t a chance occurrence. This was a planned segment where many journalists agreed on the content and execution which concluded on what was seen nationwide.”
“It feeds to the ignorant misconceptions of a rich and proud people who unfortunately are too often portrayed as caricatures to be scoffed at. NAHJ denounces the actions taken by MSNBC’s ‘Way Too Early’ team for their capricious actions, lack of judgment, insensitivity and attack at the Mexican community. NAHJ demands that the employees involved in the planning and production of this segment be disciplined and made to publicly apologize for their actions,” the statement said.
Roberts responded quickly on Twitter, explaining that the segment was, in fact, “ill-advised.”
“On Monday, Cinco De Mayo, ‘Way Too Early’ made sarcastic references to the way some Americans celebrate the holiday,” Roberts said. “It was not our intention to be disrespectful and we sincerely apologize for the ill-advised references.”
3. A moment with Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C.
In November 2014, Roberts said during an interview with Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., that the African-American senator’s party affiliation suggests he may not be really serious about helping the poor in minority communities.
“You say you’re concerned about kids that are growing up in the wrong zip code and, like yourself, had a tough start on the way out. But if we look at agencies that are following some of your voting records, they have concern. And the NAACP has given you an ‘F’ on their annual scorecard,” Roberts said.
“Let’s just ask ourselves, if we look back over the history when Congress was controlled by the Democrats for 40 consecutive years, if we look at the result of that control, what has happened in black America? We saw greater poverty,” the South Carolina senator replied. “[I]f I have an ‘F’ on the NAACP’s scorecard, it’s because I believe that progress has to be made and the government is not the answer for progress. I was a kid growing up in poverty. I had a mentor who was a Chick-fil-A operator … who taught me that the brilliance of the American economy happens through business ownership and entrepreneurial spirit.”
2. The word “package” is funny
In 2014, during a segment on FedEx’s announcement that it would start charging customers based on the size of shipped parcels, Roberts nearly lost his cool when a guest started talking about package sizes.
“The key here is it’s not just about how much your package weighs,” Robert’s guest said. “It’s about the size of your package. It’s the size they’ll be measuring.”
The possible double-entendre proved too tempting for Roberts as the guest continued by saying, “Basically, it’s how big the package is. … Just be aware of the size of your package going forward.”
“I feel like you’re trying to entrap me into saying something foolish,” Roberts joked.
“No sir!” his guest responded. “It’s all about the size of the package!”
“From your mouth to God’s ear,” Roberts said.
1. Morgan Freeman is confused
Roberts in 2014 seemingly fell apart while interviewing Hollywood icon Morgan Freeman, explaining at one point that he was entranced by the actor’s “melodic tones.”
“What will happen down the road, if we keep doing what we’re doing?” Freeman asked Roberts, referring to the ocean and manmade pollution.
Roberts paused before answering: “I don’t know. I’m so distracted by your melodic tones, I can’t think.”
“Thomas, what are you doing?” a confused-looking Freeman asked.
MSNBC has not yet picked a replacement to take over Roberts’ 5:30 a.m. slot.
