Media Pans Megyn Kelly’s Today Show Debut

By Don Irvine.

 

Former Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly made her long-awaited morning debut on NBC on Monday, taking over the third hour of the Today show at 9 a.m. to less-than-stellar reviews from the media.

The most brutal assessment of Kelly’s performance came from Hank Stuever of the Washington Post, who likened the debut to a horror film.

The debut was like watching a network try to assemble its own ‘Bride of Frankenstein,’ using parts of Ellen DeGeneres, Kelly Ripa and whatever else it can find.

Stuever added that Kelly appeared nervous during her interviews and never missed an opportunity to talk about herself.

CNN’s Brian Lowry admitted that while it wouldn’t be fair to judge Kelly after just one show, he wonders if NBC News fully considered how best to use her talents.

It’s absurdly early, of course, to draw any conclusions about the efficacy of the Kelly experiment. Still, after tepid marks for her prime time newsmagazine and now her addition to ‘Today,’ it’s worth considering that NBC News brass leapt at the opportunity to snag a high-profile news star without having fully thought through how best to deploy her.

Los Angeles Times TV critic Robert Lloyd was kinder to Kelly, saying she needed to be a little less guarded and that she would learn how to do the job given time.

Hair needs to be let down, but Kelly’s first hour gave no indication that this is a job she can’t learn. It always takes time, and time alone will tell. As to the separate question of whether she will draw viewers and so satisfy her bosses, not even the bosses know.

Kelly said that she’s “kind of done with politics for now,” as she begins her Couric-ization to the lighter side of the news.

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