By Peter Sblendorio / New York Daily News
NBC canceled “Megyn Kelly Today” in the aftermath of the host’s controversial defense of wearing blackface on Halloween, according to a report.
Megyn Kelly has not been fired by the network, sources told People.
“They’re contacting the staff and reassigning everyone today. Everyone’s being told that they still have a home here, but it won’t be on Megyn’s show,” an insider told the magazine. “They haven’t made an official announcement about the show, but everyone knows what it means when they’re being moved somewhere else. The show is clearly over.”
The official Twitter and Facebook accounts for Kelly’s show, which typically share multiple posts daily, have not shared a new post since Wednesday morning.
Kelly, who joined the network last year following her tenure with Fox News, issued a pair of apologies after her blackface comments on Tuesday’s episode of “Megyn Kelly Today” drew criticism, first in an email to her colleagues, then on-air during Wednesday’s episode.
“I was wrong and I am sorry. One of the great parts of sitting in this chair each day is getting to discuss different points of view,” Kelly said on Wednesday’s episode. “Sometimes I talk and sometimes I listen and yesterday, I learned. I learned that given the history of blackface being used in awful ways by racists in this country it is not okay for that to be part of any costume, Halloween or otherwise.”
She also held a discussion about race and sensitivity with commentators Roland Martin and Amy Holmes during Wednesday’s show.
NBC opted to play a re-run of Kelly’s show on Thursday and announced she would not host her program for the remainder of the week.
Kelly, 47, in recent days also fired her agent with Creative Artists Agency, according to NBC News.
The host had been slated to air a segment about “House of Cards” featuring actor Michael Kelly and showrunners, but they backed out of appearing.
On Tuesday’s show, Kelly questioned whether wearing blackface or whiteface for a Halloween costume was racist and referenced reality star Luann de Lesseps drawing criticism after she appeared to make her skin appear darker when she dressed as Diana Ross last Halloween.
“People said that that was racist,” Kelly said on the show. “And I thought, ‘Who doesn’t love Diana Ross?’ She wants to look like Diana Ross for one day. I don’t know how, like, that got racist on Halloween. It’s not like she’s walking around (like that) in general.”
It’s been widely reported that NBC paid Kelly $69 million over three years to leave Fox — where she hosted a highly rated evening program — and join the peacock network in 2017.
NBC gave Kelly the third hour of its daily “Today” show coverage, prompting one of the hour’s popular displaced co-hosts, Tamron Hall, to leave the network.
Kelly sparked controversy almost immediately after she joined NBC when she interviewed right-wing conspiracy theorist Alex Jones on a June 2017 episode weekend newsmagazine show “Sunday with Megyn Kelly.”
“Megyn Kelly Live” premiered in September 2017.
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