MSNBC's Joy Reid faces backlash for accusing the media of covering the war in Ukraine with more compassion because the victims are 'white and largely Christian'
- During a Monday airing of The ReidOut, host Joy Reid argued that Americans only care about the war because Ukrainians are 'white and largely Christian'
- 'If this was happening anywhere else, would we see the same outpouring of compassion?' Reid, 53, asked her viewers
- 'We should also care this much for refugees and those facing occupation and war in the Middle East and Asia and Africa, too,' Reid said
- Conservative news personalities, including Megyn Kelly, 51, were quick to lambaste Reid for the remarks
MSNBC host Joy Reid has faced backlash for on-air comments this week criticizing the media's coverage of the conflict in Ukraine, a topic she says is being elevated above wars involving 'brown and black' people around the world.
During a Monday airing of The ReidOut, the progressive talking head argued that Americans only care about the war, which entered its 15th day Thursday, because Ukrainians are 'white and largely Christian.'
'If this was happening anywhere else, would we see the same outpouring of compassion?' Reid, 53, asked her viewers, as she herself reported on the crisis.
'We don’t need to ask ourselves if the international response would be the same if Russia unleashed their horror on a country that wasn't white and largely Christian, because Russia has already done it,' Reid said, referencing Russia's deployment of troops to Syria in 2015 amid the country's still-ongoing civil war.
'We should also care this much for refugees and those facing occupation and war in the Middle East and Asia and Africa, too,' Reid continued, after conceding that Russia's invasion of the Eastern European nation was a pressing matter.
'But we haven't witnessed the same type of solidarity for the Yemenis as we do for the Ukrainians,' the African-American anchor added. 'We don’t see historic sanctions or global campaigns, corporations like Airbnb and Netflix taking a stand.'
Reid declared: 'The coverage of Ukraine has revealed a pretty radical disparity in how human Ukrainians look and feel to Western media compared to their browner and blacker counterparts.'
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![During a Monday airing of The ReidOut, host Joy Reid argued that Americans only care about the war because Ukrainians are 'white and largely Christian'](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2022/03/10/17/55197733-10599009-image-m-26_1646932630996.jpg)
During a Monday airing of The ReidOut, host Joy Reid argued that Americans only care about the war because Ukrainians are 'white and largely Christian'
As she spoke, Reid played a montage of clips showing reporters from various outlets expressing shock at the events occurring in war-torn Ukraine, calling attention to the coverage the conflict has garnered from Western new stations since it began 15 days ago.
'This is a teachable moment for us in the media,' Reid said to close out her monologue, before commending herself for airing the observation.
'We aren't afraid to call out our own industry. There is a lot of soul-searching that we need to do in Western media about why some wars and lives seem to matter more than others.'
Reid's comments may come as a surprise to some of her viewers, as her show has largely mirrored its competitors when covering Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, while ignoring the war in Yemen and other international conflicts.
A search of transcripts in a TV script database called TV Eyes shows that prior to Monday, Reid had not mentioned the war in Yemen since at least September of 2021, Mediaite reported.
Conservative commentators this week were quick to lambaste Reid's remarks.
'All she likes to do is go out there and stir up racial hatred,' journalist Megyn Kelly said of Reid's comments, during a televised interview with Sky News Australia Wednesday.
'Her point, of course, is stupid and unsupported.'
!['All she likes to do is go out there and stir up racial hatred,' journalist Megyn Kelly said of Reid's comments, during a televised interview with Sky News Australia Wednesday](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2022/03/10/18/55197729-10599009-image-a-27_1646938665746.jpg)
'All she likes to do is go out there and stir up racial hatred,' journalist Megyn Kelly said of Reid's comments, during a televised interview with Sky News Australia Wednesday
Kelly, 51, continued: 'I was on Fox News when the Syrian crisis happened,' addressing Reid's comparison between Western coverage of the two conflicts.
'We led with that story all the way over here in America – night, after night, after night,' Kelly said. 'She was just too, apparently, moronic to pay attention.'
Of Reid's racially charged segment, the former Fox news firebrand said: 'The fact that NBC and MSNBC will allow this, is an absolute disgrace.'
Current Fox commentators were also quick to slam Reid and Comcast-owned NBC for the brazen bulletin, with 'Fox & Friends First' hosts Carley Shimkus and Todd Piro and contributor Joe Concha questioning Reid's and NBC's motives behind the tirade.
'How dangerous and counter productive are notions like that right now?' Piro, 43, asked Concha during a Wednesday morning airing of the news program, after viewing snippets of Reid's comments.
'And yet, Todd,' former Hill journalist Concha said, NBC brass allows this kind of divisive, so-called “content” on its air on a nightly basis.'
![Current Fox commentators were also quick to slam Reid and Comcast-owned NBC for the brazen bulletin, with 'Fox & Friends First' hosts Carley Shimkus and Todd Piro and contributor Joe Concha questioning Reid's and NBC's motives behind the tirade](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2022/03/10/18/55197745-10599009-image-a-28_1646938690289.jpg)
Current Fox commentators were also quick to slam Reid and Comcast-owned NBC for the brazen bulletin, with 'Fox & Friends First' hosts Carley Shimkus and Todd Piro and contributor Joe Concha questioning Reid's and NBC's motives behind the tirade
Concha, 52, went on to list other instances of Reid using her platform to air her own beliefs.
'This is the same person, by the way, who called Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas “Uncle Tom” on the air,' Concha said, referring to an instance in November 2020 when Reid referred to Thomas as 'Uncle Clarence,' after claiming that the African American jurist was in the pocket of then President Trump during the highly contested 2020 election.
Concha continued: 'The same person who said Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is is rooting for Covid deaths of children in his state.
'The same person who said that white supremacists elected Glenn Youngkin and Winsome Sears, who I last checked is black, in Virginia – a state that Joe Biden won by double digits,' Concha went on, referring to the winning gubernatorial bids of the Republican Governor and Lieutenant Governor of the southeastern state earlier this year.
![During the Wednesday segment Concha questioned how NBC brass allowed Reid's 'divisive, so-called ¿content¿ on its air on a nightly basis.'](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2022/03/10/18/55197749-10599009-image-a-29_1646938693814.jpg)
During the Wednesday segment Concha questioned how NBC brass allowed Reid's 'divisive, so-called “content” on its air on a nightly basis.'
'I can go on, but we have finite time here,' Concha said, after listing Reid's prior on-air offenses.
'It’s no surprise that while women and children and innocent people across Ukraine are being systematically targeted and murdered by an insidious Vladimir Putin and his forces, Joy Reid makes it about the media being racist -which I guess includes NBC News, since they have been covering the war pretty heavily, just like everybody else,' the journalist continued.
'I guess that makes them racist.'
Concha then asked aloud how the owner of Reid's network, Comcast, allows such content on their air waves, citing the fact that Reid's show 'is a distant third in a three-horse race in cable news,' noting that she 'gets about one-third the audience of Jesse Waters on this network.'
'But nothing’s going to happen to her, because that would take a few ounces of courage to sell someone who has, or tell somebody who has no interest in informing people, that, maybe, cut this out.' Concha said.
'That this is irresponsible and reckless – but it’s not going to happen, and she’s going to continue to be promoted and fail upwards in the process.'
'It’s also just wrong,' Shimkus, 35, said in response to Concha's comments.
'This is a story about 44 million innocent people being attacked by a man, a person, with nuclear weapons, living in a sovereign nation.
'It has nothing to do with race,' the anchor said. 'Divisive comments [are] unhelpful.'
African-American civil rights attorney and frequent Fox contributor Leo Terrell also weighed in on the controversy Tuesday, in the form of a tweet, prior to an appearance on Hannity Tonight where he discussed the lack of fallout Reid has faced for her comments.
'Why does #MSNBC allow #JoyReid air-time. Is the race card protecting her??' Terrell, 67, wrote.
Onlookers on social media also weighed in on Reid's provocative comments.
'Ukraine gets invaded by Russia, and you make it about how another population is the injured party. Nice. If you can't see why this is different, I would say other journalists are more well qualified than you. If you can't see Russia reclaiming soviet era territory by force,' one social media user said of the host.
Another added: 'I stopped watching your show because you find racism in every story, which feels more like your personal expression than reporting what's happening. Ukraine is about tenacious people courageously fighting for democracy.'
![The war in Ukraine entered its 15th day Wednesday. The UN has recorded at least 752 civilian casualties so far across the country since the invasion began, with 227 killed and 525 injured, including dozens of children](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2022/03/10/18/55198169-10599009-image-a-30_1646938762999.jpg)
The war in Ukraine entered its 15th day Wednesday. The UN has recorded at least 752 civilian casualties so far across the country since the invasion began, with 227 killed and 525 injured, including dozens of children
Meanwhile, as Ukraine’s war intensifies and spreads into multiple cities, casualties in the conflict are mounting.
The UN has recorded at least 752 civilian casualties so far across the country since the invasion began, with 227 killed and 525 injured, including dozens of children.
Those figures, which were calculated as of Monday, have likely grown as the conflict has escalated in more cities and towns across the war-torn nation.
On Wednesday, US officials estimated between 5,000 and 6,000 Russian troops have been killed so far in the conflict.
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