Did Newt Gingrich Get Bumped From Fox & Friends After His Blowup With Megyn Kelly?
This morning at 5:52 a.m. EST, the official Twitter account for Fox & Friends revealed — as it does every day — the lineup of guests scheduled to appear on the morning show. As usual, the list included several well-known appearances, as well as a splattering of authors and guests who can speak to the hot topics of the day’s news stories (mostly, those with anti-Clinton/anti-Obama slants):
Unmistakably, on that list there is former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, a frequent guest of the morning show, who just so happened to work himself up into a fidgety state of agitation last night on The Kelly File.
And as for his marketed appearance on Fox & Friends? Well, it never happened.
During the quickly-heated exchange Tuesday night, Gingrich completely lost it, saying to host Megyn Kelly:
“I’m sick and tired of people like you using language that’s inflammatory that’s not true!… When you use the words, you took a position. And I think it’s very unfair of you to do that, Megyn!”
Also included in the instantly-legendary blowup, Gingrich alleged, “You are fascinated with sex and you don’t care about public policy! That’s what I get out of watching you tonight!”
The meltdown became a nationally trending topic within minutes, with many using the hashtag #ImWithMegyn to voice their support for the Fox News anchor. I wondered aloud how the network would cover the story.
will be interesting to see how Fox covers the Kelly-Gingrich fiasco tomorrow. I expect CNN & MS will play it frequently, esp. @Morning_Joe
— J.D. Durkin (@jiveDurkey) October 26, 2016
While my last hypothesis proved strangely incorrect, it would appear as if Fox & Friends decided to yank the former House Speaker off of the broadcast this morning altogether.
The other guests did in fact appear throughout the morning show. Eric Trump appeared live in the 8:00 a.m. EST hour from outside the new Trump International Hotel in Washington DC, where his family will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony today. “Under budget, ahead of schedule!” he said sounding just like his father, even taking on the mannerisms of the GOP nominee himself.
Adam Klotz, a meteorologist and diehard Cubbies fan, got a ton of screen time all morning. RNC Communications Director Sean Spicer appeared as promised to discuss Trump v. the establishment and Paul Ryan. Headlines reporter Carly Shimkus discussed Obamacare premiums and a Justin Timberlake non-troversy, author Sebastian Gorka talked about WikiLeaks, and John Roberts reported live from outside the new Trump hotel in DC (“a big day for the Trump organization!” added cohost Brian Kilmeade hilariously.)
Other interviews were sprinkled throughout the 3-hour show as well; Major Jon Ross, Sue Camillari, Tim Green, and a small business owner named Jay Wells all appeared on the show. The show included not one, but two replays of Kilmeade touring the historic home of Stephen Decatur. The broadcast concluded with Paula Deen live in the Fox plaza deep frying apple pies (how American).
But alas, no Newt.
Fox News did not return our request for comment on Speaker Gingrich’s absence from the airwaves this morning. His Twitter feed’s last activity was from last night promoting the exchange with Kelly:
My exchange with @megynkelly tonight https://t.co/IZVXeiprJN
— Newt Gingrich (@newtgingrich) October 26, 2016
So it begs the question… is Newt Gingrich today a liability for the network after his behavior last night? Will the Kelly-Gingrich disaster be given any attention on Fox News airwaves today? Perhaps Kelly herself will address it tonight, but at this point The Kelly File might as well be operating in its own lane apart from much of the broadcasting standards of her colleagues.
Or, considering his cozy relationship with Sean Hannity, maybe he will make an appearance tonight in the 10:00 p.m. hour. Time will tell.
UPDATE: 11:10 a.m. EST. Newt has spoken… but not about Fox & Friends. He took to Twitter minutes ago to comment on the Kelly exchange:
For the record, @megynkelly was wrong, i don’t have anger management issues. I do have media bias issues!
— Newt Gingrich (@newtgingrich) October 26, 2016
And NBC’s Ali Vitali reported on Gingrich’s comments to reporters before heading into that hotel opening event in DC:
Here’s what Newt told reporters about that Megyn Kelly intv in a gaggle just before going into the event ballroom here: pic.twitter.com/Rrii5N6kfp
— Ali Vitali (@alivitali) October 26, 2016
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J.D. Durkin (@jiveDurkey) is an editorial producer and columnist at Mediaite.
