Trying to juice ratings in an election year, a major TV network hired a pair of provocative commentators from the political establishment to inject some spiky opinion into its otherwise-staid campaign coverage.
These days, the role of the “paid contributor” — a commentator on contract, to bloviate on demand — is fully baked into the TV news ecosystem.
Or, in the case of Ronna McDaniel, as the former chairwoman of the Republican Party.
Ms. McDaniel’s tenure as a paid contributor at NBC News was less successful than those of many of her peers.
(Her two immediate predecessors as Republican leader, Michael Steele and Reince Priebus, work for MSNBC and ABC News.)
Persons:
Gore Vidal, William F, Buckley Jr, —, ”, Ronna McDaniel, McDaniel’s, Michael Steele, Reince, McDaniel, Donald J
Organizations:
ABC News, West Wing, Republican Party, NBC, MSNBC, ABC