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Megyn Kelly reportedly fired by NBC after blackface comment backlash hits home

Today show host Megyn Kelly has reportedly been fired by NBC following severe backlash over her controversial remarks about blackface during a segment earlier this week. According to the Daily Mail, executives at the network confirmed that Kelly is done and "is not ever coming back."

The Daily Mail claimed Kelly hired a lawyer that specializes in gender-bias contract cases. It also reported that Kelly will be paid out her entire contract of $69 million unless the network can prove she has violated a clause in her contract. The network had earlier announced Kelly's broadcast of the 'Today' show on Thursday and Friday will be replaced with pre-taped episodes after the host faced heavy criticism over her controversial remarks about racist Halloween costumes, particularly blackface.

An NBC spokesperson, while talking to PEOPLE, confirmed the news and said: "Given the circumstances, Megyn Kelly Today will be on tape the rest of the week." The news outlet initially cited a source as saying Kelly's departure from the show is expected by the end of the season in December.

Kelly issued an apology to her colleagues on Tuesday after she received backlash for defending racist Halloween gags. The journalist reportedly made the controversial remarks during a roundtable discussion on 'Megyn Kelly Today' about inappropriate Halloween costumes.

Kelly, in an internal note, said: "One of the wonderful things about my job is that I get the chance to express and hear a lot of opinions. Today is one of those days where listening carefully to other points of view, including from friends and colleagues, is leading me to rethink my own views." Kelly, later during the discussion also brought up The Real Housewives of New York's Luann de Lesseps who was criticized last year for dressing up as Diana Ross.

"There was a controversy on The Real Housewives of New York with Luann, and she dressed as Diana Ross, and she made her skin look darker than it really is and people said that that was racist," Kelly said. "And I don't know, I felt like who doesn't love Diana Ross? She wants to look like Diana Ross for one day. I don't know how, like, that got racist on Halloween."

Kelly, during the segment, had said when she was growing up, it was okay for white people to dress up as black characters. She also spoke out against last year's controversy over a reality star who had portrayed Ross.

"But what is racist?" Kelly asked. "Because you do get in trouble if you are a white person who puts on blackface on Halloween, or a black person who puts on whiteface for Halloween. Back when I was a kid that was OK, as long as you were dressing up as, like, a character."

Netflix on Wednesday also confirmed that some of the cast members and executive producers from 'House of Cards' canceled their appearance scheduled on Kelly's show on Thursday.

Kelly's comments not only sparked a backlash from social media but also from her own colleagues at NBC. Craig Melvin condemned Kelly's remarks on-air and called her comments "indefensible” as well as “ignorant and racist,” while Al Roker said that she "owes a bigger apology to folks of color around the country."

Woman Who Accused Chris Matthews Of Sexual Harassment Got NBC Severance

"In 1999 this matter was thoroughly reviewed and dealt with. At that time Matthews received a formal reprimand," an MSNBC spokesperson told NBC News.

NBC paid severance to a female staffer in 1999 who accused MSNBC personality Chris Matthews of sexual harassment, NBC News reported Sunday.

The Daily Caller, citing two unnamed sources, first reported the situation of the female staffer, who an assistant producer on his show, Hardball with Chris Matthews, which at that time was on CNBC.

"In 1999 this matter was thoroughly reviewed and dealt with. At that time Matthews received a formal reprimand," an MSNBC spokesperson told NBC News.

Matthews was accused of making inappropriate jokes and comments about the female staffer in front of others, NBC News reported.

The Daily Caller reported the payment was $40,000, but the MSNBC spokesperson would not confirm the amount to NBC News, citing a confidentiality agreement.

This news comes just weeks after NBC News fired Today host Matt Lauer after he was accused of sexual assault and sexual harassment.

Matthews did not return a request for comment, according to NBC News.

Pregnant NBC News Anchor Natalie Pasquarella Went into Labour on Live TV

She gave new meaning to the term live birth.

An NBC News 4 New York anchor welcomed a baby boy after her water broke during a live news broadcast on Tuesday night.

Natalie Pasquarella, 35, joined her co-hosts during the 11 p.m. news when she let out a quick giggle and waited for the newscast to end before telling anyone her water broke, NBC News 4 reported.

Pasquarella was responding to a question about Twitter’s new extended character limit before she laughed and the scene ultimately changed to the weather report.

“That little laugh that was the moment Natalie’s water broke,” a co-anchor said while replaying the evening’s broadcast.

“Live on this set, live on this air. As a true professional, Natalie calmly finished the newscast and then she went to the hospital.”

© Provided by Business Insider Inc natalie nbc news anchor babyPasquarella welcomed a baby boy on Wednesday — nearly 13 hours after News 4 New York’s executive producer and fellow people at 30 Rockefeller Plaza helped her make her way to the hospital.

Pasquarella was a few weeks early as she posted on Instagram just four days ago that she had about a month to go.

The little boy, Jamin James Pastore, weighed in at 5 pounds and 6 ounces.

‘Celebrity Apprentice’ To Keep Donald Trump As Executive Producer During Presidency

Keeping one foot in reality (TV). Donald Trump will remain an executive producer on NBC’s hit reality series Celebrity Apprentice during his presidency.

According to Variety, the President-elect will retain his executive producer credit on the show — which will now be hosted by Arnold Schwarzenegger — when the show returns on January 2 after a two-year hiatus.

The site reports that the 70-year-old real estate mogul’s name will appear after Apprenticecreator Mark Burnett’s and before Schwarzenegger’s. (The former movie star and governor of California is also an executive producer for the series.)

The main issue with Trump’s name remaining in the credits even as he takes the White House is that it means he will also continue to make a profit off his association with the hit series, with which he's been involved since 2004. Variety reports that though it is “clear what his per-episode fee is,” it is “likely to be in the low five-figures, at minimum.”

NBC declined to comment on the news.

In July 2015, NBC famously cut ties with Trump after he made disparaging comments about Mexicans being illegal immigrants who are also criminals and rapists. “At NBC, respect and dignity for all people are cornerstones of our values,” the network said in a statement at the time. “Due to the recent derogatory statements by Donald Trump regarding immigrants, NBCUniversal is ending its business relationship with Mr. Trump.” (Trump's role as executive producer is independent of his relationship with NBC, since he will be paid through MGM, a production company, and not NBC.)

Earlier this year, Trump’s behavior on the set of The Apprentice and Celebrity Apprentice made headlines after numerous former contestants stepped forward to accuse the businessman of everything from inappropriate comments to sexual assault.

The Apprentice season 4 winner Randal Pinkett told IPRESSTV that Trump would frequently comment on women’s looks behind the scenes and would openly talk about which female contestants he wanted to sleep with.

The Associated Press interviewed more than 20 former crew members, editors and contestants for the NBC reality show and found many that described Trump’s behavior as inappropriate.

Season 5 Apprentice alum Summer Zervos came forward in a press conference to allege that Trump had once thrust his genitals at her during a business meeting. Trump flatly denied her claims and those of other accusers.

On Wednesday, December 7, the New York Times announced that Trump is considering keeping a stake in his real estate business even though he is formally handing over operational duties to his two adult sons.

Another Episode Of Tears From 'This Is Us' : Big Moments From Mandy Moore's Show to Make You Ugly Cry

Another week, another bucket full of tears. This Is Us' Tuesday, November 29, episode proved yet again that our tear reservoirs are bottomless pits when it comes to the Pearson family and their never-ending drama.

Here are eight moments from this week's episode that made us ugly cry all over ourselves.

Randall Made a List of His Mom's Betrayals

Randall’s making a list, he’s checking it twice, and it’s very sad! The episode kicked off with a furious Randall (Sterling K. Brown) making a list of all the ways he was betrayed by mother Rebecca (Mandy Moore). He then confronted his biological father, William (Ron Cephas Jones), saying, “You acted like you didn’t remember abandoning me.” Ouch.

Little Randall Wanted to Know His Biological Parents

The episode then jumped back in time to the '80s, where we saw a young Randall desperately asking other African-American people in his town if they could also roll their tongues — a genetic trait. Explaining to his parents, the desperate kiddo said, “If I can find people who can roll their tongues, they could be my birth parents.” When Rebecca pretended that she had no idea who his biological parents were, it made us want to scream!

Olivia Brought Her Ex-Boyfriend to Kevin's Family Cabin

Randall, Kevin (Justin Hartley) and Kate (Chrissy Metz) then decided to escape the Thanksgiving chaos and head to their family cabin for one last trip before it's sold. This heartwarming moment lasted for all of 10 seconds when Justin’s new flame, Olivia (Janet Montgomery), arrived with two friends in tow — one of them being her ex-boyfriend. We agreed with Kate when she scoffed and said to Olivia, "Who are you right now?"

Randall Took Magic Mushrooms and Talked to His Dead Dad

The best part of the episode had to be when Randall accidentally drank Olivia's ex-boyfriend Ash's magic-mushroom-filled smoothie. The usually uptight Randall spent his shroom trip talking to a hallucination of his father, Jack (Milo Ventimiglia). This beautiful sequence of events led to a confrontation between the father and son duo. Randall said, "You never wanted me either. I was a replacement for your dead baby. That’s all I’ve ever been."

Our tear ducts exploded when Jack said, “The moment I saw you, I knew you were my boy. You weren’t a choice, Randall. You were a fact. You were never a replacement son.” Jack eventually led Randall to discover that his mom sacrificed a lot for him and only ever wanted to protect them.

Kevin Bared His Soul to Olivia — and She Ran Away

We were shocked to see Olivia rudely snuggling up to her ex while watching old videos with Kevin and the rest of the gang. Kevin immediately called her out and said, “That kiss that we had yesterday. … Those feelings were real, and I know you know that. … I’m not sure you’ve experienced anything real your entire life." He then accused his British costar and co-kisser of having an "empty human shell." Olivia stormed out with Ash, and Kevin made what may possibly be the best joke of this entire series when he said, "It was a Brexit." Tears — sometimes tears of laughter, but still tears.

Jack Did Push-Ups With Randall on His Back

Back in the '80s, we saw as Jack and Rebecca attempted to introduce strong black male role models into their adopted son's life. In a great speech, Randall’s new karate teacher, Ray, explained, “The world isn’t always a kind place, especially to men like us. … We are your community. When things get hard, we are going to be the ones that hold each other up.” Ray then asked Jack to do push-ups with little Randall on his back to prove he would always be there for his son. We wonder if that includes being there in mushroom-hallucination form — either way, we had ourselves the ugliest of ugly cries at this father-son bonding moment.

We Found Out the Reason for Rebecca's Letter to William

In a series of flashbacks throughout the episode, Rebecca visited William following Randall’s insistence at finding his biological parents. We saw a young, clean-cut William explain he’s “been clean for over five years.” William then revealed that he’s been wanting to get in touch about Randall but didn’t know where to find Rebecca.

She explained, “He’s been asking about you. He really wants to meet his father, and so that’s why I’m here.” William got so excited that he jumped out of his chair. Rebecca then became overwhelmed and rushed home to Jack, where she admitted why she can’t “try” to find Randall’s parents. She said, “What if they’re great? What if they regret abandoning him. … I cannot lose my son.” She then sent William a letter explaining why he couldn’t be in Randall’s life, saying, “This is for the best for him because he has an extraordinary father who gives him everything he needs. I hope you take comfort in knowing just how loved Randall is.” When William placed the letter inside of a manuscript called “Poems for My Son,” we completely lost it. The tears! The inconsolable heartbreak!

Randall Sort of Forgave His Mom…for Now

Back at the house and after some mushroom-fueled closure, it seemed that Randall might finally be able to forgive his mother for her betrayal. Randall coldly opened the door and said to his mom, "You kept that secret for 36 years. That must have been incredibly lonely." Rebecca instantly started sobbing and reaching for her son, who recoiled and said “Not yet. I'll see you at Christmas.” When will the drama end?!

We could probably name 3,000 more ugly cries that this episode gave Us, but there literally aren’t enough hours in the day to recount them. Like, when Toby (Chris Sullivan) told Kate to stop calling him? And when we saw the kids’ names carved into a tree?! What city does this show take place in? Oh yeah, tear city. Tear City: Population Us.

Comment on IPRESSTV: Will Randall ever completely forgive Rebecca?

This Is Us airs on NBC Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET

Billy Bush Officially Leaves ‘Today’ Show After Settlement With NBC: Read His Statement

It’s a done deal. Billy Bush has officially exited the Today show after reaching a settlement with NBC, Ipresstv can confirm. Noah Oppenheim, the executive in charge of the morning show, broke the news to staff in a memo on Monday, October 17.

“Billy Bush will be leaving the Today show’s 9 a.m. hour, effective today,” the email read. ”While he was a new member of the Today team, he was a valued colleague and longtime member of the broader NBC family. We wish him success as he goes forward.”

“I am deeply grateful for the conversations I’ve had with my daughters, and for all of the support from family, friends and colleagues,” Bush said in a statement. “I look forward to what lies ahead.”

According to TMZ, Bush reached a settlement with the network for an undisclosed amount.

As previously reported, the TV personality signed a three-year deal with the network earlier this year for a reported $3.5 million a year. His lawyer, Marshall Grossman, previously denied rumors that the host had settled for $10 million.

“There is no $10 million agreement and that amount has not been discussed,” the litigator said over the weekend on Saturday, October 15, after reports surfaced online. “Negotiations are ongoing between the parties.”

Bush was initially suspended by the network after audio of him participating in a lewd conversation with Donald Trump while riding on a Access Hollywood bus in 2005 was published online by The Washington Post. In the video, Bush can be heard laughing and engaging with the Republican presidential nominee while Trump bragged about flirting with a married women and grabbing them by their genitals.

Immediately after the tape was leaked, the TV host issued an apology. “Obviously I’m embarrassed and ashamed,” he said in a statement on October 7. “It’s no excuse, but this happened 11 years ago — I was younger, less mature and acted foolishly in playing along. I’m very sorry.”

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