Banfield gets NBC's bad news (Ashleigh's been fired)

New York Daily News ^ | 3.26.04 | Lloyd Grove

[mhking]

Onetime cable television star Ashleigh Banfield - a publicity magnet even before she achieved celebrity in the aftermath of 9/11 - is out at NBC News.

The 36-year-old former rock singer - once a fashion icon for her blond tresses and her ever-present on-air glasses, but whose career took a slide after she dyed her hair dark brown - joined the network's MSNBC outlet four years ago, and has been working without a contract since late January.

"Regrettably, we were unable to agree on a new assignment for her," an NBC News spokeswoman told me yesterday. "We thank her for her hard work and wish her well."

The native Canadian was a controversial figure at NBC, where detractors spread rumors of diva-like behavior and sniped at her supposed journalistic deficiencies.

Banfield didn't try to butter up colleagues and supervisors, and instead cast herself as an enemy of the Establishment. She once showed up for anchor duties at MSNBC's Secaucus studios in New Jersey sporting a T-shirt that shouted, in garish glitter: "Starf--r."

But on camera, the message was discreetly concealed by a conservative jacket.

On Sept. 11, 2001, her dramatic reports from Ground Zero won her star status and her own nightly live show from Afghanistan and Pakistan, "A Region in Conflict" (for which she wore a burka and dyed her hair) and, later, "Ashleigh Banfield: On Location."

But in due course, her star dimmed.

Banfield's manager, Alfred Geller, told me: "Since her contract expired, we have been exploring with a variety of NBC components the possibility of future activity that would include cable and network. At the end of these explorations, we were mutually unable to come to an accommodation that was okay with everybody. It didn't work. Life marches on."

Geller said Banfield, who didn't return my calls, is looking at syndication, as well as other network and cable television possibilities. "She will be just fine, thank you very much."

[19th LA Inf]

Didn't Ashleigh get her start on one of the Dallas/Ft Worth stations, or was that another newshoney by the same name? (I always thought that name was made up anyway.)

[Helms]

"Now she can go on a highly paid speaking tour at liberal colleges complaining about the sexist tv news industry. "

She can join Bill Cosby < the Liberals touchstone in all matters of Racial Equality>as well as the touring Clintonistas.

Whoa what a racket the Liberals have put in place.

Rick Kaplan is coming to speak at Chapel Hill. Thomas Freidman comes through here often. Albright is giving the Commencement address at Duke this spring. The SPEW just won't stop.

[Sybeck1]

Blondes do have more fun

[mwl1]

Wish they'd fire Pat Buchanan, because he is routinely propped up as the Republican to defend Bush against Bill Press.

Normally, Buchanan is either limp or off the reservation... publicly disagrees with Bush on most issues -- particularly the economy. And he's no match for Bill Press. Some defender.

[lormand]

How about going back to that Socialist Utopia, Canada.

[Hand em their arse]

I must admit and it will most certaimnly not agreed on here, but she could've been one of the hottest women on T.V when she first started. Her leftist views broke my heart but she is a stunning woman..

JMHO

[lormand]

"Didn't Ashleigh get her start on one of the Dallas/Ft Worth stations, or was that another newshoney by the same name?"

I moved to the D/FW area at the end of 1998, and yes, she was a local reporter for one of the stations...don't remember which one though.

[Willie Green]

The 36-year-old former rock singer - once a fashion icon for her blond tresses and her ever-present on-air glasses, but whose career took a slide after she dyed her hair dark brown -

PMSNBC execs were probably concerned that Ashleigh would try to give her career a boost with a Justin Timberlake "interview".

[Bluntpoint]

I would like to see Pat vs. David Duke.

They could fight over their differences for the first 5 seconds of each show.

[Jim_Curtis]

I never saw this woman until 9/11. Several hours after the towers collapsed I was watching when she came on the air with a live report and she had neat little piles of ashes on her shoulders. I couldn't believe that she wasn't fired but instead they thought they had a star on their hands.

[Belisaurius]

oh, I don't know about Press and Buchanon. Seems like they are both so extremely on the edge of their respective political ideologies, it's more like Trotskyite vs. Peronista then Democrat vs. Republican.

[rod1]

Ashely--"I'd be fascinated by anything Osama ...had to say".


Osama--"Surely you are not one of my 72"

[Sybeck1]

sort of like Julia Roberts right, look but keep the volume down...

[Grampa Dave]

What is the average fee for each of these Rats to spew their SPEW?

Is Scott Ritter still speaking at colleges?

[Grampa Dave]

SCHADENFREUDE indeed, until she hits the speaking tour for Displaced Lunatic Lefties.

[CFC__VRWC]

Unfortunately she'll turn up somewhere else all too soon. The media seems to have plenty of jobs for empty-headed, cookie-cutter Ken and Barbie dolls whose only talent is to look good delivering the DNC propaganda that someone else got off the fax machine.

[finnman69]

[GSWarrior]

But on camera, the message was discreetly concealed by a conservative jacket.

This labeling of all things conservative or liberal has to stop.

[jalisco555]

Is Scott Ritter still speaking at colleges?

Actually he spoke at my son's high school a couple of years ago. A little further down the food chain.