MSNBC’s Chris Matthews Faces New Accusation of Inappropriate Remarks to Women
Click here to read the full article.
A freelance journalist said in a column published Friday that veteran MSNBC anchor Chris Matthews made inappropriate comments to her while she was getting ready to appear on his program – the latest account of allegedly insensitive behavior over the years by the longtime political commentator.
Writing in GQ, journalist Laura Bassett described a 2016 encounter with Matthews while sitting in a makeup chair to appear on “Hardball,” the program he has anchored for many years. She writes: “Matthews looked over at me in the makeup chair next to him and said, ‘Why haven’t I fallen in love with you yet?’ When I laughed nervously and said nothing, he followed up to the makeup artist. ‘Keep putting makeup on her, I’ll fall in love with her.'”
More from Variety
An MSNBC spokesperson was not able to offer an immediate comment.
Matthews was reprimanded after being accused in 1999 of making inappropriate comments about a female employee, and the woman received a payment as a result, MSNBC confirmed in 2017. The network found Matthews made comments that were deemed to be in poor taste, but also determined they were not meant as propositions.
In her article, Bassett cites several instances when Matthews’ behavior allegedly made female guests, co-workers or contributors uneasy on set or behind the scenes of the program.
Popular on Variety:
Best of Variety
Sign up for Variety’s Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
