During Wednesday night’s third Republican presidential debate on NBC, businessman and all-around rabble-rouser Vivek Ramaswamy suggested the debate should have been moderated by the likes of Tucker Carlson, Joe Rogan and Elon Musk.

None of them, not even Carlson, can be considered a journalist.

On Thursday, the Republican National Committee announced details for a fourth debate. And it’s not out of line to ask if one of the featured moderators can still be considered a journalist, if she ever really was one at all.

These days, Megyn Kelly, the former Fox News host who was later bounced out of NBC following comments about blackface, makes a nice living saying a bunch of politically loaded and out-there stuff on her SiriusXM show. (If you want to know what Kelly talks about, just go here to see the New York Post’s weird obsession with writing about her.)

This is someone who once said on her show: “(Expletive) you, Dr. Fauci.” Another time, she blasted American soccer star Megan Rapinoe and called the U.S. women soccer team “losers.” Mediaite’s Sarah Rumpf wrote earlier this year: “When Did Megyn Kelly Become a Conspiracy Theorist?”

Kelly has a right to say whatever she wants on her show. After all, it’s her show. But now the RNC has decided she’s the right person to help moderate a debate, which will be held on Dec. 8. It will air on the upstart NewsNation cable news network. NewsNation anchor Elizabeth Vargas, most definitely a journalist, and The Washington Free Beacon’s Eliana Johnson also will moderate.

But there’s more to questioning Kelly being a moderator than her politically biased and often trolling remarks on her show. As recently as Wednesday night’s debate, Kelly openly gives her thoughts about the candidates.

Wednesday night alone, she tweeted:

• “Nothing changed. Trump won.”
• “I realize Tim Scott has basically no chance here but he is such a sweet guy and you just wind up liking him.”
• “We’ve gone from I attack everyone Vivek to I’m a sweet likeable guy Vivek to I am gonna smoke everyone Vivek and we’ve gone from Get a load of my great one-liners Christie (Donald Duck) to I am the sober judicious one”

To be clear, it was the RNC that selected Kelly, which is too bad for NewsNation. The up-and-coming, somewhat centrist network is looking to elbow its way onto the cable news landscape and this is a great showcase to do so. Vargas is a pro’s pro, and likely will do NewsNation proud. But NewsNation might want to hold its breath if Kelly is looking to use the debate as a noise-maker.

The argument for Kelly as moderator is that her opinions seem to line up with Republicans, meaning she likely will ask questions that right-leaning viewers will want to hear, and she does have extensive debate experience. When she was at Fox, Kelly was a part of five debates, including the infamous 2015 Republican debate when then candidate Donald Trump made gross remarks about her the next day.

It just seems as if the RNC had plenty of worthy choices out there, so why go with Kelly?

Well, at least Ramaswamy is probably happy.

By Tom Jones, senior media writer

G/O Media shuts down Jezebel

G/O Media is suspending operations at its women-focused site Jezebel and laying off its editorial staff, CEO Jim Spanfeller announced Thursday morning.

Including the Jezebel staff, G/O Media is terminating 23 editorial positions across the company as it restructures to “more nimbly pursue audience development opportunities,” Spanfeller wrote in a memo to staff. G/O Media also owns Gizmodo, AV Club, Deadspin, The Root and several other brands. Spanfeller added that in the long term, the company will add new positions.

“Our editorial leadership has never been shy with staff about where we see room for improvement: we must be faster, sharper, and fresher in order to compete. Plain and simple,” Spanfeller wrote. “Look for more resources for breaking news, which will be informed on a site-by-site basis. We’ll be more rigorous about output and which categories we cover. Audience first from here on out.”

The news comes less than a month after Axios reported that G/O Media was looking to sell Jezebel. Despite talking to more than two dozen potential buyers, the company was unable to sell the site, Spanfeller wrote in his email.

“Unfortunately, our business model and the audiences we serve across the network did not align with Jezebel’s,” he wrote.

G/O Media spokesperson Mark Neschis wrote in an email that Jezebel did not generate enough advertiser support to keep the site operational. G/O Media still plans to keep the site up (without any new content) and remains open to finding a buyer, Neschis said.

Jezebel was founded in 2007 and quickly grew in prominence in the early 2010s, along with other feminist and women-focused sites like xoJane, The Hairpin, Refinery29, Bustle and The Frisky. Many of those outlets have struggled to adapt to the changing digital media landscape, with several shutting down completely.

Since the overturning of Roe v. Wade, Jezebel has made abortion and reproductive justice a cornerstone of its coverage — which Spanfeller acknowledged in his email. The site’s coverage of Election Day and the Republican primary debate highlighted recent abortion rights victories.

Spanfeller also revealed in his email that G/O Media editorial director Merrill Brown had left the company. In addition to Brown, the company has lost seven editors-in-chief across its brands — including Jezebel — since January, according to unions representing some of G/O Media’s journalists.

The union representing Jezebel’s staff wrote in a statement Thursday that it was “devastated though hardly surprised” by G/O Media’s decision.

“The closure of Jezebel also underscores fundamental flaws in the ad-supported media model where concerns about ‘brand safety’ limit monetizing content about the biggest, most important stories of the day — stories that create huge traffic because people read and share them,” the union wrote. “A well-run company would have moved away from an advertising model, but instead they are shuttering the brand entirely because of their strategic and commercial ineptitude.”

The media industry has seen a record number of layoffs this year. Spanfeller wrote in his email that high interest rates and global crises have caused advertisers to be more cautious in their spending. Vice also announced layoffs Thursday morning, saying it would be “winding down” Vice News shows that had not been renewed. CNN reported that “less than 100” staff would be laid off.

As news of Jezebel’s closure spread on Twitter, formerly known as X, current and former journalists of the publication denounced the decision, with some noting that abortion rights will be one of the main stories going into the 2024 election year.

“It was a place where women could unabashedly write about culture, politics, and everything with voice, humor, and the whole range of human emotions,” posted Lyz Lenz, a journalist who credited Jezebel for launching her career. “The fact that it was killed by inept men is truly a metaphor.”

By Angela Fu, media business reporter

Journalism ethics led to break-ups in ‘The Morning Show’ finale

From left, cast members Hasan Minhaj, Nestor Carbonell, Karen Pittman, Desean Terry, Reese Witherspoon, Mimi Leder, Julianna Margulies and Michael Ellenberg arrive at the photo call for “The Morning Show” on Wednesday, Sept. 8, 2021, at the Four Seasons Hotel in Los Angeles. (Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)

Beware: Spoilers for the final episodes of season three of “The Morning Show” ahead!

The season three finale of “The Morning Show” dropped on Apple TV Wednesday, wrapping up a series of storylines inspired by the real world: business model chaos surrounding streaming, news anchors covering up damning stories about their brothers, and morally bankrupt billionaires buying free speech platforms.

For journalism lovers, this show serves up plenty of delicious monologues about the value of a free press and the sacred duty of reporters. It’s fun to see Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon and other iconic actors viciously defend the profession in every episode. (It’s also true that almost every character commits serious ethical transgressions. The hypocrisy is real!)

As the season ended, it was interesting to see the role of journalism ethics in three main break-ups.

Laura Peterson and Bradley Jackson: When Laura (Julianna Margulies) discovers Bradley (Witherspoon) deleted evidence about her brother attacking a police officer on Jan. 6 and then launched her promotion to evening news anchor on this disingenuous reporting, she finally has the fortitude to break it off with Bradley for good. Disgusted, Laura spits out the line, “You (expletive) broke every rule. How do you sit in that chair every night? It is obscene!”

Alex Levy and Paul Marks: Though Bradley warned Alex (Aniston) that Paul (Jon Hamm) was up to something, Alex stuck with her billionaire space executive boyfriend as he tried to buy the UBA network. It wasn’t until Bradley resigned on live TV and disappeared that Alex started to reconsider. Alex finally becomes clear-eyed when she realizes Paul tapped Bradley’s phone and blackmailed her. She spells it out for Paul after upending the deal, “You silenced a journalist. I’m a journalist. … I can’t come back from this.”

Charlie “Chip” Black and UBA: OK, this is not really about a break-up. It’s more about a newsbreak. It’s just too good not to mention. Alex fires Chip (Mark Duplass) midway through the season, but he finally cracks in the final episode as a guest on the titular show, where he explains the impact of Paul Marks buying the network. In a profanity-laced crescendo that breaks the internet and major news, Chip pontificates on fact-checking, the journalistic process and legacy media.

“No problem with Twitter, it’s got its place. But that is narrowcasting. We need broadcasting. As corporate and compromised as it is, we need a team of competent people telling us what is actually happening in the world. This is it! This is the last free campfire in America. And if this goes out, we’re all going to be in the (expletive) dark!”

The penultimate episode in season three was heart-racing. The final episode, heartbreaking. More characters bid each other farewell — Alex to Bradley as she turns herself in to the FBI, UBA news division president Cory Ellison (Billy Crudup) to Bradley following an investigation into his wrongdoing — and as I finished watching, I felt sad about these relationships.

About journalism, though? I felt proud.

By Mel Grau, senior product specialist

Media tidbits and notable links for your weekend review

• Margaret Sullivan’s latest column in the Guardian U.S.: “The public doesn’t understand the risks of a Trump victory. That’s the media’s fault.” Sullivan writes, “The press must get across to American citizens the crucial importance of this election and the dangers of a Trump win. They don’t need to surrender their journalistic independence to do so or be ‘in the tank’ for Biden or anyone else.” She adds, “Here’s what must be hammered home: Trump cannot be re-elected if you want the United States to be a place where elections decide outcomes, where voting rights matter, and where politicians don’t baselessly prosecute their adversaries.”
• As Angela Fu noted above, Vice Media will end several of its news shows and lay off dozens of staffers in a hollowing out of its news division, CNN’s Liam Reilly reports. It’s unclear how who or how many will be laid off, but “certain roles” from the cut shows will be affected and a person familiar with the matter told Reilly that “less than 100” staffers would be laid off. Vice filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy earlier this year and was then sold to several investment groups for $350 million.
• Chartbeat, the analytics company, along with Tubular Labs released a report that delves into the types of holiday content news audiences like to consume online. Among the findings: Audiences find those thankless holiday travel and weather stories to be invaluable, and men make up the majority of holiday gift guide viewers on social platforms.
• CJR’s Mary Retta with “Rebrand: Ebony strives to become a one-stop shop.”
• Fast Company’s Chantel Tattoli with the exclusive: “Online news pioneer ‘Salon’ is sold for an undisclosed sum.”
• The Atlantic’s Barton Gellman with “Peter Theil is taking a break from democracy.”
• The Times of Israel’s Stuart Winer with “Israel demands clarification from global media over photographers during Hamas assault.”
• Poynter’s Tony Elkins with “We’re not ready for a major shift in visual journalism.”
• Superb work from Washington Post sports columnist Candace Buckner: “He’s a college basketball player — and a law student on a mission.”

More resources for journalists

• Celebrate the free press and democracy in style at Poynter’s Bowtie Ball on Nov. 18 at the JW Marriott in Tampa, Florida. Get tickets.
• Poynter ACES Introductory Certificate in Editing (Online) — Enroll now.
• How to Improve Your Coverage of LGBTQ+ Communities (Webinar) — Start anytime.
• Got a story you’d like to write for Poynter? Email pitch@poynter.org with your idea, approximate timeline and word count.

Have feedback or a tip? Email Poynter senior media writer Tom Jones at tjones@poynter.org.

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