Megyn Kelly's Next Interview Is a Doozy

Megyn Kelly's first interview for her new Sunday show on NBC News was none other than Vladimir Putin. But the guest coming up on her June 18 show may be generating even more attention: conspiracy theorist Alex Jones of Infowars. Given that Jones has suggested, among other things, that the Sandy Hook massacre was a hoax and that 9/11 was an "inside job," the choice is generating a ton of criticism already. Coverage:

• Teaser: NBC has released a teaser of the interview, in which Kelly challenges Jones on Sandy Hook in particular and accuses him of a "dodge" in his response. See it here.
• Typical sentiment: A post at AV Club voices a common sentiment among those criticizing the choice. "She may be calling him out for his claims that the Sandy Hook shooting was a hoax, but she’s still giving him an opportunity to defend that repugnant argument," writes Sam Barsanti.
• Kelly's defense: She notes that President Trump has praised Jones and wants to give him White House press credentials. "Many don't know him; our job is 2 shine a light," she tweets.

• Mother's response: “By making this choice, you grieve our hearts and the memory of our child,” tweets Nelba Marquez-Greene, whose daughter, Ana Grace, was killed in the school shooting. “You have a powerful platform. I encourage you to ‘shine light’ on affirming the losses suffered here- NOT on a person who mocks those losses…. Evil doesn’t need another platform.”
• Much more: HuffPost rounds up the many critical tweets surfacing about the interview. One in particular catching attention: "My nephew survived Sandy Hook. I am not tolerating this. Will never watch @megynkelly or @NBCNews again if they choose to air this."
• Jones' reaction: On Friday, Jones posted a video in which he goes after Kelly personally in the wake of their interview, notes Mediaite. "Not feminine. Cold. Robotic. Dead," Jones said. "I felt zero attraction to Megyn Kelly. That’s not an insult to Megyn Kelly. I talked to a lot of other folks that know her. They say, ‘No. It’s the same.’ Because you’re dealing with…sociopath? A psychopath? I don’t know.”
• 'Performance artist': In his recent child custody case, Jones told the court that he is merely a "performance artist." He lost the case.
• Morning show: Kelly launches a morning show on NBC in the fall, and she just landed a big-name producer, reports Page Six.

(More Megyn Kelly stories.)