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MSNBC's Joy Reid "Deeply Apologizes" After Using Vulgar Word On Air

"We try to keep this show very PG-13," the MSNBC host said after a hot mic caught the moment.

After being caught using a curse word on-air, MSNBC host Joy Reid quickly apologized to her viewers. On the Monday, Jan. 29 episode of her show, The ReidOut, the news correspondent uttered a vulgar comment as a clip of a speech by Joe Biden played, not realizing that she was on a hot mic. The 55-year-old was immediately alerted what happened, because she apologized later in the show.

RELATED: Fox News Anchor "Deeply Regrets" On-Air Comment: "I Sincerely Apologize."

As reported by USA Today, Reid's comment came during a segment called "Republicans take credit for stuff they voted against." During this part of the show, the anchor said, "Case in point: fixing what they say is a crisis at the border, with congressional negotiators continuing work on a bipartisan deal to tie border policy changes to funding for Ukraine. Over the weekend, President Biden said he's ready to take action if Congress is serious about solving the border issue."

Then The ReidOut played a snippet of a recent Biden speech. According to Mediaite, Biden said in the speech, which was given in South Carolina on Saturday, Jan. 27, "If that bill were the law today, I'd shut down the border now and I'd fix it quickly… And Congress needs to get it done." A live microphone subsequently caught a comment Reid did not attend to be aired: "Starting another [expletive] war," the anchor said.

Joy Reid hosting "The ReidOut" on Monday, Jan. 29
MSNBC / YouTube

It is unclear what war or potential war Reid was referring to. Mediaite notes that Donald Trump has been attempting to stop the border deal with support from House Republicans. According to Axios, he said during a Saturday event in Nevada, "It's not going to happen, and I'll fight it all the way."

Reid apologized for her swearing later in the same episode. "I was chatting during a clip that was playing," she said. "We try to keep this show very PG-13 so I just want to apologize to anyone who was listening to my behind-the-scenes chatter. I deeply, deeply apologize for that."

Reid isn't the first news reporter to be caught saying something not meant to be heard by others on a hot mic. For instance, last year, ABC7 host Ken Rosato was heard calling his co-anchor Shirleen Allicot the c-word "on an open mic," but off-air. For this, he was "immediately let go" from his job after working for the station for 20 years, according to a source who spoke with Page Six.

Also last year, Fox News' Brian Kilmeade called Rep. Don Bacon over footage of Bacon voting for Rep. Kevin McCarthy for Speaker of the House over Rep. Jim Jordan. As reported by The Hill, Kilmeade later said on his radio show, "No one's really upset that I said it. No one said I'm wrong that I said it."

Lia Beck
Lia Beck is a writer living in Richmond, Virginia. In addition to Best Life, she has written for Refinery29, Bustle, Hello Giggles, InStyle, and more. Read more
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