Former RNC chair Reince Priebus criticizes NBC for 'huge failure' on Ronna McDaniel debacle
Former RNC chair Reince Priebus called out NBC News on Sunday for its "huge failure" in the hiring and firing of Ronna McDaniel.
McDaniel stepped down as head of the RNC on March 8, only to become the center of a media world controversy after she joined NBC News as a contributor, only to have her contract terminated by the company amid backlash from employees.
Priebus, who is an ABC contributor, said that NBC flubbed the hiring of McDaniel on "This Week."
"The case on Ronna that I find to be obvious for someone like me who’s a contributor here, I've been at other places — I’ve never been hired without the management bringing me in, meeting with people, doing interviews where I wasn’t on a signed contract, finding out whether I could get off the talking points or not," Priebus said.
"The root of the problem is that the management never brought [McDaniel] in before the contract was signed so that all of this stuff could get worked out, and that was a huge failure in my opinion," he continued.
Former Democratic National Committee (DNC) chair Donna Brazile said that she didn't have a response to McDaniel's firing.
"I didn’t understand the hiring," Brazile said. "So I have none. But I’ve enjoyed every year of my life being on shows like this and cable television."
"Good luck to her," she added.
Fox News Digital reached out to NBC News for comment but has yet to receive a response.
NBC NEWS OFFICIALLY DROPS RONNA MCDANIEL FOLLOWING ON-AIR BACKLASH FROM STAFF
Exactly one week after proudly announcing the hiring of McDaniel, the former chairwoman of the Republican National Committee, as a paid analyst, NBC is still reeling after an unprecedented tongue-lashing from its own stars, media critics and even prominent Democrats.
McDaniel is seeking all $600,000 from her lucrative contract. Republicans and conservatives observing the fiasco were left with even less trust in NBC News and the media writ large than ever.
A former high-ranking MSNBC executive previously told Fox News Digital, "There’s now an obvious line drawn between NBC/MSNBC anchors and correspondents, and the executives who oversee them. The talent doesn’t trust the execs and the execs don’t trust the talent."
Fox News' David Rutz and Brian Flood contributed to this report.