UPDATE: NBC has removed the controversial tweet and posted a statement blaming a third party agency. The network posted a follow-up tweet on Monday afternoon pointing out the original tweet was "in reference to a joke" and "not meant to be a political statement."
Yesterday a tweet about the Golden Globes and Oprah Winfrey was sent by a third party agency for NBC Entertainment in real time during the broadcast. It is in reference to a joke made during the monologue and not meant to be a political statement. We have since removed the tweet.
NBC is facing some backlash for a tweet the media company sent out during the 2018 Golden Globes, in which they called Oprah Winfrey "our future president."
The tweet read "Nothing but respect for OUR future president. #GoldenGlobes" and was sent out long before Oprah's stirring acceptance speech for the Cecil B DeMille Lifetime Achievement Award, and was in reference to a joke during Seth Meyer's opening monologue.
Meyer's joked that Donald Trump decided to run for president because of his jokes during the 2011 White House Correspondents Dinner, and then took a joking shot at Oprah to convince her to run in 2020:
In 2011, I told some jokes about our current president at the White House Correspondents Dinner. Jokes about how he was unqualified to be president. Some have said that night convinced him to run. So if that’s true, I just want to say: Oprah, you will never be president! You do not have what it takes!
What may have been a tongue-in-cheek joke and tweet, turned into something more later in the night when Oprah took the stage to accept the Cecil B DeMille Lifetime Achievement Award. Oprah gave a rousing speech which has increased speculation and hope that Oprah will actually run against Trump in 2020.
But, not everybody was excited, and many people took to Twitter to mock NBC for their tweet. Byron York, chief political correspondent for the Washington Examiner, wondered "When NBC tweeted Oprah pic with 'Nothing but respect for OUR future president,' did it mean she should be president of NBC? Of the United States? Of something else? All-caps OUR kind of confusing..."
Eli Lake had similar thoughts:
Oprah taking over the reigns at NBC would be a smart idea as the network is reeling from accusations it allowed Matt Lauer and other executives to get away years of sexually harassing women.
Others saw the tweet as another example of anti-Trump media bias. Former White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer pointed out "This tweet puts every reporter at NBC in a bad spot. Foolish thing for them to do. But at least now they are open about their bias."
Conservative talk show host Joe Pags was quick to point out her affiliation with shamed mogul Harvey Weinstein, tweeting a photo of Oprah kissing him on the cheek:
The question is will Oprah take on President Trump in 2020? Despite the rave reviews from her speech, Oprah has said in the past she is not interested in running for president. But, new reports saw the media titan is considering her options. Her longtime partner Stedman Graham seems to support the idea that she will run saying "she would absolutely do it."