A newly surfaced video shows MSNBC anchor Chris Matthews joking about finding his “Bill Cosby pill” before interviewing 2016 presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.
The January 5, 2016 video was uncovered by New York Magazine’s The Cut and shows the “Hardball” host cracking jokes on set to staffers before Clinton arrives for an interview.
“Can I have some of the queen’s waters? Precious waters?” Matthews laughed, before adding, “Where’s that Bill Cosby pill I brought with me?”
Bill Cosby is accused of drugging and raping multiple women.
Matthews smiles and laughs at his own joke for several seconds. Tina Urbanski, who was just promoted to co-executive producer of the show, looks on in disbelief. Her mouth hangs open and she appears horrified by the comment.
“This was a terrible comment I made in poor taste during the height of the Bill Cosby headlines,” Matthews told the Cut. “I realize that’s no excuse. I deeply regret it and I’m sorry.”
The Daily Caller reported earlier this month that former staffers and guests have accused Matthews of running an abusive and sexist work environment.
According to two former NBC producers, Matthews constantly made demeaning and sexist remarks about the clothing and appearance of female guests, including rating their looks on a numerical scale. The former producers also described themselves as victims of battered wife syndrome because of Matthews’ consistent verbal abuse of staffers. (RELATED: Sources: Chris Matthews Runs An Abusive Work Environment)
TheDC also recently spoke to a former NBC executive who described our reporting as “100 percent accurate” and said that HR has been completely unhelpful in fielding complaints about Matthews’ behavior.
MSNBC told The Daily Caller in December that NBC made a separation-related payment to an assistant producer after she complained about sexual harassment by Chris Matthews. Two sources, a former NBC producer and former NBC executive, later claimed to TheDC that the woman was pushed out of the network “overnight.” (RELATED: NBC Made Payment To Staffer After Sexual Harassment Claim Against Chris Matthews)
MSNBC did not initially respond to TheDC’s request for comment.
