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From the New York Times: MSNBC’s prime-time coverage of the Republican National Convention has featured a typical TV tableau: anchors at a desk perched high above the convention floor, pontificating as the starred-and-striped political pomp unfolds below.
But Rachel Maddow, Nicolle Wallace, Jen Psaki, Joy Reid and the rest of MSNBC’s A-list anchor team have not been inside the convention hall. They were not even in Milwaukee.
Instead, they were broadcasting from a studio in Midtown Manhattan, as a live feed of the convention floor was projected onto an LED screen behind them.
The arrangement — which several veteran television news producers described as unorthodox — has created something of a trompe l’oeil effect. A casual glance at the screen would suggest that MSNBC’s top anchors were covering the convention in person.
The report explains that MSNBC only sent hosts Stephanie Ruhle and Katy Tur to Milwaukee to cover the event.
The other hosts still in New York have not claimed to be at the event, but they are still giving every appearance that they are.
Is Maddow in Milwaukee? No, That’s an LED Screen on MSNBC. https://t.co/gIWooQkMvU
— Michael M. Grynbaum (@grynbaum) July 17, 2024
MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow, other top anchors not in Milwaukee for RNC, using LED screen to appear they’re on site https://t.co/PX5Cmbn0nm #FoxNews
— LeoTerrell (@TheLeoTerrell) July 18, 2024
Is Maddow in Milwaukee? No, That’s an LED Screen on MSNBC.
A production technique gave the impression that Rachel Maddow and other star anchors were reporting in Milwaukee, not from 30 Rockefeller Plaza. pic.twitter.com/UT8PcldmL7
— Michael Barker (@jmichaelbarker) July 18, 2024
