It’s time for a Latina news anchor on American national television.
Brian Williams has announced he is leaving The11th Hour at the end of the year. MSNBC which prides itself in its diverse line-up of political talk shows has the perfect replacement standing on the on-deck circle waiting for her turn at bat: Alicia Menendez.
Menendez is currently the host of the weekend political news show, American Voices. Menendez is the only Latina on MSNBC’s “diverse” team of news anchors. However, the problem is that most of the diverse news anchors have been relegated to the “minor league” weekend shows or occasional substitute host and not on MSNBC’s first-string, major league weekday fare. Beginning in the wee hours of Way Too Early and Morning Joe, then later with Meet the Press, Deadline White House, through The Beat, past Rachel Maddow, followed by The Last Word and ending with The 11th Hour, these programs are hosted by white males and females, with the exception of the wonderful, Joy Reid. It’s about time…no, dammit actually, it’s way past time…to put Alicia Menendez in the anchor’s chair of The 11th Hour. Here’s why:
UN PURO POLITICAL PEDIGREE
The young 38-year-old Menendez is already an experienced television commentator, host, and writer. Menendez is the author of The Likeability Trap: How to Break Free and Succeed as You Are. She is also a contributing editor at Bustle and host of its Latina to Latina podcast. Menendez also worked as a correspondent on PBS’s Amanpour & Company. Additionally, she hosted Come Here and Say That on Fusion TV. She’s also been a host and producer at HuffPost Live. As the daughter of United States Senator Robert Menendez, Alicia has developed and burnished her reporting creds by growing up in the political milieu of Washington DC.
DEM DAMN DEMS IN DISARRAY
One of the more annoying default fall-back tropes used by so-called liberal news anchors to appear fair and balanced on MSNBC and CNN is the “Democrats in Disarray” scenario. It pops up anytime there is friction between the progressive and moderate wings of the Democratic party or when a Democratic bill runs into opposition. Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, is often portrayed as a frustrated leader trying to control a herd of unruly cats. Sinking poll numbers for Democrats are cited as signs of the imminent demise of the party. MSNBC’s Chuck Todd, Stephanie Ruhl and the soon to be dearly departed, Brian Williams, too often make “Dems in Disarray” the theme of their show and frame their questions around that dubious premise.
On the other hand, Alicia Menendez has shown the toughness and revolve to pull the curtain back from that “Chicken Little, the Sky is Falling” notion and pluck that bogus bird bald with facts and razor-sharp Latino logical precision. Menendez did it recently when President Joe Biden’s Infrastructure bill conjured up the Republican boogeyman of runaway inflation. Menendez did a calm and measured segment on what the numbers on the proposed massive infrastructure bill really mean and how it will ultimately positively affect the economy.
SETTING THE TABLE
Today’s corporate news outlets, including MSNBC, are guilty of running stories that reflect mostly conflict, inner turmoil, winners and losers and hand-wringing drama. But we need good, old-fashioned professional journalists, like Alicia Menendez, to write our news stories, no Russian novelists. And we need to see more Latina journalists, like Menendez, sitting in the anchor chair of network and cable news channels and setting the table for future talented, serious Latina journalists to break through the glass ceiling and become high-profile prime time news anchors.
Brian Williams always begins The 11th Hour show by saying, “This is day “so and so” of the Biden administration.” In early 2022 it will be inspiring for all Latino news junkies, like me, to hear, “This is day one of Alicia Menendez reporting the news on The 11th Hour.”
