the kicker

On MSNBC: "It’s Come To This"

Contessa Brewer on MSNBC this morning: “Hillary Clinton had a new look when she showed up for a big speech* in the Senate yesterday.” And what do you think the remainder of Brewer’s report was about? (No, cable news neophyte, no further information on that “big speech.”) BREWER: You may not notice it at first […]

July 16, 2008

Contessa Brewer on MSNBC this morning: “Hillary Clinton had a new look when she showed up for a big speech* in the Senate yesterday.”

And what do you think the remainder of Brewer’s report was about? (No, cable news neophyte, no further information on that “big speech.”)

BREWER: You may not notice it at first but she’s changed her hair. It’s shorter than it was on the campaign trail. And she shifted her part from the left side to the right side. Remember this is Hillary’s part that has shifted. Not her political position.

An hour later, Monica Novotny again reported on Sen. Clinton’s “new look” when she “showed up for a big speech in the Senate yesterday” and shared this exchange with MSNBC’s Congressional correspondent Mike Viqueira:

NOVOTNY: [Clinton’s] hair is shorter than it used to be and she’s shifted her part from the left side to the right side. Live from Capitol Hill, Congressional correspondent, Mike Viqueira.

VIQUEIRA (laughing): It has come to this.

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NOVOTNY: It has.

VIQUEIRA : It’s come to this.

NOVOTNY: Welcome to mid-July. So it’s Hillary’s part that’s shifted to the right, not her political position…

VIQUEIRA: (groaning) Streeetch. Monica, all I can say is I’m not really crazy about standing here talking about a senator’s hair, especially Senator Clinton’s hair. But I’ll just say this: when it comes to senatorial hair, she’s way ahead of the game. I mean we’ve got some comb-overs that are engineering marvels, modern engineering marvels, I tell you. And look, the price of Grecian Formula these days, I could use a raise for that, and some Rogaine…

NOVOTNY: Are we just leaving it at that?

VIQUEIRA: That’s it. That’s all I’ve got for you.

NOVOTNY: I’m just going to say this. There have been some other reports where people were focused on other things. So I say better the coif than the cleavage. That’s just me…

In short (rim shot!), MSNBC called on its Congressional correspondent, reporting live from Capitol Hill, solely for his take on changes to a senator’s hairstyle (which, I guess, makes sense if the standard for political reporting on MSNBC is hey, at least we’re not talking about a senator’s cleavage.)

Hairshirts for everyone (well, at least for the deciders — producers? — at MSNBC.)

* If you want to know what Clinton was actually talking about in that “big speech”– overriding a presidential veto on something to do with Medicare, ho-hum — see it here (bonus: it’s video, so you can see The New ‘Do, too).

Liz Cox Barrett is a writer at CJR.