DeSantis Boycotts NBC Over Andrea Mitchell's 'Blatant Lie'

Florida governor's office says he won't work with NBC, affiliates until Andrea Mitchell apologizes
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 23, 2023 7:53 AM CST
DeSantis Team Accuses MSNBC Host of 'Blatant Lie'
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is seen Feb. 15 at Palm Beach Atlantic University in West Palm Beach, Florida.   (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Ron DeSantis is fielding multiple apologies these days, but he's not buying at least one of them. The Florida governor has taken a lot of heat over his opposition to content in the College Board's new AP African-American course—and his threats to quash it, and all AP classes, in his state—and last week on MSNBC, host Andrea Mitchell had a conversation with Vice President Kamala Harris about it. One question Mitchell asked, per Fox News: "What does Gov. Ron DeSantis not know about Black history and the Black experience when he says that slavery and the aftermath of slavery should not be taught to Florida schoolchildren?"

That query has riled DeSantis, who has said in the past that he feels "it's important" the subject of slavery is taught. His press secretary, Bryan Griffin, responded Tuesday to an apparent request from MSNBC or NBC for DeSantis to appear on one of its networks, noting in a statement, "There will be no consideration of anything related to NBC Universal or its affiliates until and at least Andrea Mitchell corrects the blatant lie she made about the governor, and NBC and its affiliates display a consistent track record of truthful reporting." On her Wednesday show, Mitchell did address the issue, conceding she'd been "imprecise" in her words.

She then added: "Gov. DeSantis is not opposed to teaching the fact of slavery in schools, but he has opposed the teaching of an African-American studies curriculum, as well as the use of some authors and source materials that historians and teachers say makes it all but impossible for students to understand the broader historic and political context behind slavery and its aftermath in the years since." DeSantis' team rebuffed Mitchell's remarks. "Saying one was 'imprecise,' when what they said was a blatant lie, is not an apology," deputy press secretary Jeremy Redfern wrote in his own tweet. Griffin tells Fox: "It's a typical nonapology response that doubles down on her lie." (More Ron DeSantis stories.)

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