As RedState reported on earlier today (see Kayleigh McEnany Mic Drops Fox Reporter Over White Supremacy Question), Fox News’ John Roberts had an absolute meltdown on live TV in response to him supposedly receiving criticism on Twitter. What this involved was his ridiculous badgering at Kayleigh McEnany’s presser that Trump denounce white supremacy.

In reality, McEnany had just listed multiple examples of Trump doing just that, despite him having no connections to such groups which would demand it. Further, and somewhat humorously, Roberts’ own wife had just reported the day before that Trump had directly condemned white supremacy.

Here’s Roberts’ on-air explosion for context.

Fox News' John Roberts just had a meltdown after being criticized for repeatedly asking @PressSec to denounce white supremacy:

"For all of you on Twitter who are hammering me for asking the question, I don’t care… Stop deflecting. Stop blaming the media. I’m tired of it." pic.twitter.com/kqxBxhh5be

— Caleb Hull (@CalebJHull) October 1, 2020

All of this stemmed from Tuesday’s debate in which Chris Wallace, who carried himself as an absolute hack, pressed Trump to condemn white supremacy, despite there being no reason to do so (see Watch: Damning Thread Illustrates Chris Wallace’s Worst Debate Moments). Meanwhile, Antifa and BLM groups have been burning cities and perpetrating violence. Wallace did not press or demand that Biden condemn their actions.

Roberts picked up that mantle and tried to needle McEnany at the presser. She handled herself well, as per usual. But it was Roberts’ outburst on Fox News later that really stood out. It was the kind of thing you’d expect to see from someone as unprofessional as CNN’s Jim Acosta. Instead, this was happening on a network that was supposedly “fair and balanced.”

To put it lightly, this was a bad, bad look for Fox News. While one’s audience should not slant a news organization’s coverage, it should be a consideration in keeping thin-skinned, partisan outbursts like Roberts’ at bay. How is insulting most of the people who watch your network helping anybody? What used to set Fox News apart wasn’t that they were just conservative in prime time. It was that they gave each side a fair shake and didn’t stoop the level of the MSNBCs of the world. Is this the new normal for them?

Regardless, Roberts’ anger was not justified anyway. There was no logical reason to keep pressing the white supremacy issue, when McEnany and Trump had already answered it multiple times in just the past 24 hours. The only reason you keep asking that question is to press a narrative and give the impression that Trump is connected to groups he has no connection with. That was Roberts’ goal. If he doesn’t like taking criticism for that, perhaps he should find a new line of work?

(Please follow me on Twitter! @bonchieredstate)