Howard Kurtz 'disappointed' in Couric and others for call to 'deprogram' Trump backers
FOX News media analyst Howard Kurtz slams former 'Today' host over ‘Trump cult’ remarks.
"Jeopardy!" producers are reportedly concerned about Katie Couric's controversial comments bashing the Republican Party ahead of her planned guest-hosting duties on the long-running game show.
Last week, Couric appeared on "Real Time with Bill Maher" where she spent much of the show trashing President Trump in his final days in office. But what made headlines were her comments about Trump's backers on Capitol Hill who fueled the former president's election challenge.
"It is so shocking. ... Not only are they not conceding, Bill, but their thoughts -- that there might have been some collusion among members of Congress, some are refusing to go through magnetometers ... to check for weapons, they're not wearing masks during this siege," Couric began.
"I mean, it's really bizarre, isn't it, when you think about how AWOL so many of these members of Congress have gotten. But I also think some of them are believing the garbage that they are being fed 24/7 on the internet, by their constituents, and they bought into this big lie. And the question is how are we going to really almost deprogram these people who have signed up for the cult of Trump."
Now, the New York Post's "Page Six" is reporting that folks behind the scenes at "Jeopardy!" were "immediately worried" about her comments.
Page Six reports that, according to a source, the "Jeopardy" audience is "very conservative" and the game show had "always steered clear of politics."
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"Katie’s comments so soon after she was announced as a host are very concerning to the producers. They are worried there will be a backlash against her. There has already been some complaints," the source told Page Six.
"Jeopardy viewers are quite a traditional bunch, and there’s fears she might be too polarizing after this. At the very least, she already appears to have ruled herself out of becoming the permanent host of the show," the source continued.
Sony Pictures and representatives for Couric did not immediately respond to Fox News' requests for comment.
Katie Couric. (Associated Press)
Couric has been facing intense backlash for suggesting that the GOP needs to be "deprogrammed" because of its support for President Trump.
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"This sort of rhetoric from Couric — which comes across as so condescending and elitist — underscores the divide between our media, which primarily resides in New York and Washington, and the rest of the country, which is moderate to center-right, per multiple polls. And it’s why the industry is so mistrusted and frowned upon," The Hill columnist and Fox News contributor Joe Concha told Fox News.
Couric was tapped as one of several celebrity guest hosts to fill in on "Jeopardy!" following the Nov. 8 death of longtime host Alex Trebek. Others set to guest host include "Jeopardy!" champion Ken Jennings, actress Mayim Bialik, and NFL superstar Aaron Rodgers.