Sunday Night with Megyn Kelly

{{Infobox television

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| genre = Newsmagazine

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| presenter = Megyn Kelly

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| country = United States

| num_seasons = 1

| num_episodes = 8

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| executive_producer = David Corvo
Liz Cole

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| runtime = 60 minutes

| company = NBC News

| network = NBC

| first_aired = {{Start date|2017|06|04}}

| last_aired = {{End date|2017|07|30}}

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Sunday Night with Megyn Kelly was an American television newsmagazine hosted by journalist and former attorney Megyn Kelly.

The series premiered on NBC on June 4, 2017, as Kelly's first NBC News program since her departure to the division from Fox News. It initially ran over the summer.{{cite news|last1=Hayes|first1=Dade|title=NBC Sets Premiere Date for Megyn Kelly's New Sunday Magazine Show|url=https://deadline.com/2017/05/megyn-kellys-new-sunday-show-set-for-june-4-debut-at-7-pm-1202099437/|access-date=May 25, 2017|website=Deadline Hollywood|date=May 21, 2017}} The series was announced in 2018 as returning sporadically until the beginning of NFL season, as opposed to being weekly but never returned.{{Cite news|url=https://variety.com/2018/tv/news/megyn-kelly-vladimir-putin-sunday-night-newsmagazine-1202719154/|title=NBC News' 'Sunday Night With Megyn Kelly' Returns for Spring and Summer Run|last=Littleton|first=Cynthia|date=March 6, 2018|work=Variety|access-date=March 12, 2018}}

Kelly terminated her contract with NBC in January 2019.{{cite web|url=https://tvline.com/2019/01/07/today-show-third-hour-hosts-megyn-kelly-replacement/|title=Today Reveals Cohosts for Post-Megyn Kelly Third Hour – Who's Taking Over?|website=TVLine|first=Rebecca|last=Iannucci|date=January 7, 2019|access-date=January 12, 2019}}{{cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/11/media/megyn-kelly-leaves-nbc/index.html|title=Megyn Kelly leaves NBC with all of her $69 million contract intact|publisher=CNN|first1=Tom|last1=Kludt|first2=Brian|last2=Stelter|date=January 11, 2019|access-date=January 12, 2019}}

Host and correspondents

;Host

Megyn Kelly (2017)

;Correspondents

Cynthia McFadden (2017)
Keith Morrison (2017)
Harry Smith (2017)
Kate Snow (2017)
Jacob Soboroff (2017)
Katy Tur (2017)
Craig Melvin (2017)

Reception

=Critical reaction=

The series received a 30% approval rating from Rotten Tomatoes based on 10 reviews with an average of 0/10. Its consensus states "Sunday Night with Megyn Kelly finds its talented anchor attempting to move outside her comfort zone – and flailing through the largely unimpressive results."{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/sunday_night_with_megyn_kelly/s01/|title=Sunday Night with Megyn Kelly|work=Rotten Tomatoes|publisher=Flixster|access-date=July 28, 2017}}

Early reviews were mostly negative. Reviewing Kelly's interview with Russian president Vladimir Putin, Lorraine Ali of Los Angeles Times wrote that Kelly "tried to deliver something substantive in under 10 minutes, and it wound up making her coming-out party more of a fizzle than a bang."{{cite web|url=http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/tv/la-et-st-sundays-with-megyn-kelly-review-20170604-story.html|title=Review Megyn Kelly gets outmaneuvered by Vladimir Putin on her NBC premiere 'Sunday Night'|last=Ali|first=Lorraine|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=June 4, 2017|access-date=July 28, 2017}} Variety television critic Maureen Ryan concluded that "Kelly herself was, as she has always been, poised on camera. But the show will have to go much further in matters of quality, urgency and coherence to justify the investment in the anchor. In interviews, Kelly sounds as if she's been eager to prove herself outside the narrow confines of her former perch. That process still appears to be a work in progress, at best."{{cite magazine|last=Ryan|first=Maureen|url=https://variety.com/2017/tv/features/sunday-night-with-megyn-kelly-review-nbc-1202453701/|title=TV Review: 'Sunday Night With Megyn Kelly'|magazine=Variety|date=June 4, 2017|access-date=July 28, 2017}}

Kelly's interview of Alex Jones drew favorable praise.{{cite news|last=Barr|first=Jeremy|title=Megyn Kelly's Interview of Alex Jones Draws Mostly Favorable Reviews|url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/megyn-kellys-interview-alex-jones-draws-favorable-reviews-1014559|work=The Hollywood Reporter|date=June 18, 2017|access-date=July 28, 2017}} The Hollywood Reporter concluded that "the segment covered all the right bases, albeit frustratingly briefly. But it needed to be far more hard-hitting."{{cite news|last=Scheck|first=Frank|title=Critic's Notebook: Megyn Kelly Works Hard Not to Sully Herself With Alex Jones Interview|url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/critics-notebook-megyn-kelly-works-hard-not-sully-alex-jones-interview-1014558|work=The Hollywood Reporter|date=June 18, 2017|access-date=July 28, 2017}}

=Viewership=

Sunday Night with Megyn Kelly debuted with 6.1 million viewers (with a 0.2 rating in the 25–54 demographic).{{cite magazine|title=TV Ratings: 'Sunday Night With Megyn Kelly' Opens Decently, NBA Finals Game 2 Ticks Up|last=Otterman|first=Joe|magazine=Variety|url=https://variety.com/2017/tv/news/sunday-night-with-megyn-kelly-ratings-nba-finals-game-2-1202453893/|date=June 5, 2017|access-date=July 28, 2017}}

The June 18 episode, which featured an interview with Jones, drew 3.5 million viewers (with a 0.5 rating in the 18–49 demographic), ranking fourth during its timeslot. The airing was topped behind reruns of 60 Minutes (which also received the same demographic rating) and America's Funniest Home Videos, and the U.S Golf Open Championship.{{cite magazine|title=TV Ratings: Megyn Kelly's Alex Jones Interview Sees No Lift on Sunday Night|url=https://variety.com/2017/tv/news/tv-ratings-megyn-kellys-alex-jones-interview-nbc-1202470161/|magazine=Variety|date=June 19, 2017|access-date=July 28, 2017}}

By mid-July 2017, the show's viewership had declined every week from each episode. The July 16 episode averaged 3.1 million viewers (with a 0.4 rating in the 18–49 demographic) marking the show's lowest viewer turnout since its debut.{{cite news|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/megyn-kelly-ratings_us_596e7078e4b00db3d0f3c5e3|title=Megyn Kelly's NBC Show Is Stuck in a Bad Pattern|first=Lydia|last=O'Conner|work=HuffPost|date=July 18, 2017|access-date=July 28, 2017}}

= Alex Jones controversy =

At the end of the June 11 episode, Kelly previewed an interview with conspiracy theorist and radio talk show host Alex Jones.{{cite news|title=Megyn Kelly previews Alex Jones interview|url=https://thehill.com/homenews/media/337358-megyn-kelly-previews-alex-jones-interview/|last=Master|first=Cyra|newspaper=The Hill|date=June 11, 2017|access-date=July 28, 2017}} The interview drew an immediate backlash from the families of victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting massacre on social media; most of whom protested to giving a platform to Jones, who has previously asserted that the massacre that claimed twenty-six lives was faked by the government. Also, the interview was criticized as being in poor taste as it coincided with Father's Day. On June 12, JPMorgan Chase announced that it would pull its advertising from the show and all NBC programming until after the interview aired. Kristin Lemkau, chief marketing officer of JPMorgan Chase, tweeted "As an advertiser, I'm repulsed that @megynkelly would give a second of airtime to someone who says Sandy Hook and Aurora are hoaxes."{{cite news|title=J.P. Morgan Removes NBC News Ads Over Megyn Kelly Interview With Alex Jones|last=Vranica|first=Suzanne|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/j-p-morgan-removes-nbc-news-ads-over-megyn-kelly-interview-with-alex-jones-1497311738|newspaper=The Wall Street Journal|date=June 11, 2017|access-date=July 28, 2017}}

On June 13, 2017, Kelly was dropped from hosting the Promise Champions Gala, an annual event for the Sandy Hook Promise Foundation. In a statement, Nicole Hockley issued "Sandy Hook Promise cannot support the decision by Megyn or NBC to give any form of voice or platform to Alex Jones and have asked Megyn Kelly to step down as our Promise Champion Gala host."{{cite news|title=Megyn Kelly dropped as host for Sandy Hook group's gala over Alex Jones interview|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/06/13/megyn-kelly-dropped-as-host-for-sandy-hook-groups-gala-over-alex-jones-interview/|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=June 13, 2017|access-date=July 28, 2017}} In reaction, Kelly defended the interview issuing a tweet that "Our goal in sitting down with him was to shine a light – as journalist are supposed to do – on this influential figure, and yes, to discuss the considerable falsehoods he has promoted to near impunity." Kelly also asserted that Jones has received praise from President Donald Trump, who has appeared on his show and granted Infowars White House press credentials.{{cite news|last=Ortiz|first=Erik|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/megyn-kelly-defends-interview-infowars-host-alex-jones-n771516|title=Megyn Kelly Defends Interview With Infowars Host Alex Jones|date=June 13, 2017|access-date=July 28, 2017|publisher=NBC News}}

Additionally, Jones wanted NBC to retract the interview claiming it was deceptively edited.{{cite news|title=Alex Jones says he agrees with Sandy Hook families, wants NBC interview pulled|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/alex-jones-agrees-newtown-families-interview-pulled-article-1.3242069|last=Brennan|first=Christopher|work=Daily News|location=New York|date=June 12, 2017|access-date=July 28, 2017}} In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Jones stated "Don't air the piece, because from the promos NBC has run, Megyn is distorting me. It has all the markings of a PR stunt. The minute she put that promo out there, there were groups calling for boycotts. It was basically instantaneous."{{cite interview|title=Alex Jones Responds to Megyn Kelly Interview Uproar: "It's a Bunch of PR"|url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/alex-jones-responds-megyn-kelly-interview-uproar-a-bunch-pr-1013049|subject=Paul Bond|interviewer=Paul Bond|work=The Hollywood Reporter|date=June 14, 2017|accessdate=July 28, 2017}} Despite the criticism, NBC announced that they intended to move forward with the interview.{{cite news|last=Byers|first=Dylan|url=https://money.cnn.com/2017/06/12/media/megyn-kelly-alex-jones-pushback/index.html|title=NBC Exec defends Megyn Kelly's Alex Jones interview|publisher=CNN|date=June 12, 2017|access-date=July 28, 2017}}

NBC's owned and operated station in Hartford, Connecticut, WVIT (channel 30), refused to carry that night's program after feedback from viewers and Sandy Hook families against doing so, and referred viewers to alternate next-day streaming venues if they wanted to watch the interview.{{Cite news|url=https://variety.com/2017/tv/news/connecticut-nbcmegyn-kelly-alex-jones-interview-1202469317/|title=Connecticut NBC Station Will Not Air Megyn Kelly's Alex Jones Interview|last=Otterson|first=Joe|date=June 16, 2017|work=Variety|access-date=June 22, 2017}}