MSNBC host Ari Melber had to apologize on-air after a “Now w/ Alex Wagner” guest insinuated that country music was all about going out and killing Muslims. (RELATED: MSNBC Falls To New Ratings Low)
The topic of conversation was Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz’ recent comments that he began listening to country music after the 9/11 attacks because he was not happy with how rock musicians reacted. “Nothing says ‘let’s go kill some Muslims’ like country music, fresh from Lynchburg, Virginia,” said guest Jamilah Lemieux. “I mean, really? That’s absurd.”
The other panelists could be heard laughing at Lemieux’ remarks. “Well, I mean, there’s plenty of country music that doesn’t have that message, right?” cautioned Melber. (VIDEO: MSNBC Host Attacks Her Own Network On The Air)
Twenty minutes later, Melber returned from a commercial break to read a statement apologizing for the remark.
“We have a programming note,” he said. “A few minutes ago on this show, a guest made a comment about country music. That comment was not appropriate, and we want to be clear this network does not condone it.”