Black Leaders Slam MSNBC for Firing Tiffany Cross | WATCH

November 9, 2022

*As we reported previously, MSBNC weekend host Tiffany Cross has been dropped by the network for her controversial comments.

Cross was canned after calling out white supremacy and slamming Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis during her appearance on “Hell of Week With Charlemagne” on Comedy Central.

“Cross was asked which state Democrats could afford to lose in the upcoming mid-term elections,” Mark Joyella wrote Friday for Forbes via journal-isms. Referring to the shape of the state, Cross said, ” ‘Florida literally looks like the d—k of the country, so let’s get rid of Florida,’ ‘Let’s castrate Florida.’

MSNBC severed ties with Cross, who hosted the weekend program “Cross Connection,” after she caught heat over some of her remarks that upset fragile, racist white people. She will be replaced by rotating guest anchors until a replacement is named, Fox News Digital reports.

“More than 40 Black leaders have sent a letter to MSNBC President Rashida Jones in protest of the cancellation of ‘The Cross Connection With Tiffany Cross’ and have demanded a meeting to ‘discuss a path forward that is restorative to the reputation and dignity of’ the cable news host,” Philip Lewis reported Monday for HuffPost.

“By firing #TiffanyCross two wks after she was targeted by Tucker Carlson, @MSNBC has further empowered a dangerous man who has a huge platform, emboldening him to target others,” tweeted Sherrilyn Ifill, former president and director-general of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund. “Many of us have had our turn as Tucker’s target of the night & endured the response of his minions.”

Ifill added, “For a rival network to give the appearance of acquiescing to his demands and firing one of their highest rated anchors is a boost [I’m thinking] he never dreamed was possible. It has encouraged his use of his platform to target & silence.”

Attorney Benjamin Crump tweeted, “MSNBC needs to explain why they decided to part ways with The Cross Connection’s host Tiffany Cross — an extremely smart and insightful Black woman. Tiffany has been a beacon of diversity at MSNBC and the Black community deserves to know why one of their voices has been let go!”

We reported previously via Variety, citing MSNBC sources, that Cross’ relationship with MSNBC had “becoming frayed” as executives grew “concerned about the anchor’s willingness to address statements made by cable-news hosts on other networks and indulging in commentary executives felt did not meet the standards of MSNBC or NBC News,” reports Forbes.

TheGrio’s Michael Harriot penned a column titled, “Firing Tiffany Cross shows what MSNBC thinks about its Black viewers.”

In her own statement following her firing, Cross said she was “disheartened to learn of MSNBC’s decision,” to part ways with her, which she said came at “a crucial time—four days before the midterm elections. From the beginning, we were intentional about centering communities of color, elevating issues and voices often ignored by the mainstream media, and disrupting the echo chambers. As a result, viewers consistently made The Cross Connection MSNBC’s highest-rated weekend show.”