NBC deletes tweet that appeared to endorse Oprah for president
- NBC took down a tweet that critics said endorsed Oprah Winfrey for president.
- Winfrey is said to be seriously considering a presidential bid in 2020.
NBC deleted a tweet on Monday that appeared to endorse Oprah Winfrey for president.
Shortly after Golden Globes host Seth Meyers joked encouraging the media mogul to seek the presidency in 2020, NBC's primary Twitter account tweeted a GIF of Winfrey along with the caption "Nothing but respect for OUR future president," a riff on a popular meme.
The tweet was quickly criticized by many conservatives and right-leaning media figures who said the tweet was an example of mainstream media bias.
In a tweet on Monday, NBC explained that the tweet was shared by a third-party agency running the account for the awards show, not from someone at the network or the network's primary news arms, NBC News and MSNBC.
"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," NBC said in a statement. "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."
Though Winfrey has repeatedly denied that she is interested in a presidential bid, her electrifying speech on Sunday inspired speculation about her potential presidential aspirations. And on Monday, CNN reported that Winfrey was seriously considering a bid.