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"I want to start with two words" Megyn Kelly says at the top of her Today & # 39; hui hour Wednesday morning. "I am sorry."
On Tuesday, Kelly found herself in the hot water after arguing with an all-white panel about whether to dress in blackface for Halloween was racist. "You have problems if you are a white person who puts a blackface on Halloween, or a black guy who plays a blank for Halloween," said Kelly. "At the time when I was a kid, it was O.K., as long as you were dressed like a character."
Kelly apologized to his colleagues on Tuesday in a memo; On Wednesday, she aired a similar message to her viewers. At the end of her televised apology, Kelly received a standing ovation from her audience – but her response only made it easier to understand why some critics had been frustrated with her appointment.
"You may have heard that yesterday, we discussed here the politically correct and Halloween costumes," Kelly told his viewers. "And this conversation has turned to whether it's ever OK for a person of one race to disguise themselves in another – a black person brightening his or her face or a white person's darkening to make a complete suit. I defended the idea by saying that as long as it was respectful and was part of a Halloween costume, it seemed to me that O.K. Well, I was wrong and I'm sorry. "
Megyn Kelly today Despite the high-profile poaching of Kelly in Fox News by the network, this week's controversy is another problem against the host, especially since Today & # 39; hui initiated Al Roker and Tamron Hall of their own Today & # 39; hui time to greet Kelly. (Kelly's salary would be more than double the amount of the old combined salaries of Roker and Hall.) Even within NBC, critics stole freely: Late at night with Seth Meyers, NBC Nightly News, and even Kelly Today & # 39; hui His colleagues have all criticized his remarks in turn. Today & # 39; hui anchor Craig Melvin called Kelly's comments "indefensible" Wednesday.
After her apology, Kelly welcomed the journalists Roland Martin and Amy Holmes, both are black, at the series, so that they can educate her audience – and her – about racism, blackface and why the historical context is important in discussions like these. The discussion only reminded viewers that before Kelly, this hour was being animated by two information professionals who would not have needed such an education.
While she continued to apologize Wednesday, Kelly said, "One of the great benefits of sitting on this chair every day is to be able to discuss different points of view. Sometimes I speak and sometimes listen. And yesterday I learned. I learned that, given the history of the blackface used in a terrible way by the racists of this country, it is do not D & # 39; AGREEMENT. to make it part of any costume, Halloween or whatever. "
During the initial panel, none of her guests responded to Kelly's remarks with much alarm. In her subsequent remarks on the panel, Kelly maintained a position of ignorance, claiming that despite the number of years of discussions about racism in Halloween costumes, she was not aware of the historical context that makes the practice of blackface so shocking.
"I've never been a PC kind of person, but I understand the value of being sensitive to our story, especially about race and ethnicity," Kelly said. past year has been so painful for many people of color.The country feels so divided, and I have no wish to add to this pain and this offense. I believe that the time has come for more understanding, more love, more sensitivity and honor. And I want to be part of this. Thank you for listening and for helping me to listen too.
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