WATCH: Lawrence O’Donnell Gets Ice Cold With MSNBC Colleague Who Ended Show 1 Minute Late
MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell turned a minute-long delay into an awkward on-air moment with one of his colleagues on Wednesday.
O’Donnell, who hosts the 10:00 pm ET hour, was apparently kept waiting by MSNBC’s Ayman Mohyeldin, who was hosting the previous hour and went a little long with his final segment. After Mohyeldin wrapped his conversation with his guest at around 10:01, he finally tossed to O’Donnell, who curtly pointed out:
Good evening, Ayman, thanks. We’re about a minute over time with that one. Thank you.
Mohyeldin responded by saying “Sorry about that” — as the camera cut to a miffed-looking O’Donnell as he kicked off The Last Word.
O’Donnell routinely shares cordial, extended tosses with Rachel Maddow — in stark contrast to this moment with Mohyeldin. O’Donnell and Maddow regularly banter for minutes at a time.
Still, in fairness to O’Donnell, cable news shows operate on precise timing. Show rundowns are regularly plotted down to the second, and a full minute-long delay can wreak havoc on a show — forcing producers to scramble to make up a little bit of time in each segment. So O’Donnell’s on-air frustration was likely just a small manifestation of what his control room staff was feeling in the moment.
Watch the video above via MSNBC.