During an interview at Business Insider's IGNITION conference in New York on Wednesday, NBC News' Megyn Kelly reflected on her past controversial remarks including a statement she made about Santa Claus' ethnicity on Fox News that made headlines in 2013. Following is a transcript of the video.
Alyson Shontell: You know when you’re constantly speaking your mind, you’re going to say things that don’t always resonate or people don’t agree with. I think one notable one is ‘Santa is white’ on Fox as a moment.
(FOX News clip starts)
Megyn Kelly: In Slate, they have a piece on dotcom, “Santa Claus should not be a white man anymore.” And when I saw this headline I kind of laughed and I said “this is so ridiculous. Yet another person claiming it’s racist to have a white Santa,” you know. And by the way for all you kids watching at home, Santa just is white. But this person is arguing that maybe we should also have a black Santa. But Santa is what he is and just so you know, we’re just debating this because someone wrote about it, kids.
(FOX News clip ends)
Shontell: The first week of your show, there were a few statements that rubbed people the wrong way about Jane Fonda and plastic surgery and things like that. Upon further reflection, do you regret anything you said out there and is Santa still white?
Kelly: I regret a lot of what I've said. I mean you're going to be on the air several hours a week live television, you’re going to say stupid shit. That's just the reality you know, so yeah there's a lot I'd like to go back and say differently.
All I can tell you is I think the lens is a truth-teller and people who watch you day after day will see who you are without the caricature of you that's put out there by websites and so on looming over you. You know one of my great struggles at Fox was I felt everything I did was viewed through a negative prism by those who didn't like Fox or what it stands for and I hated that. You know I think there's a lot of people over there who are good people and solid journalists who I love who struggle with that. And I'm sure people at other stations have the same things, you know, people have a worldview about certain journalists or their organizations.
And I really hope that in my new position people will just see me for who I am and not through that not through that prism you know. So far I feel like it's happening, but I feel like time will tell. You'll see me and you'll see you'll figure out who I am and then people will accept or not accept based on what they see. And that's all that's all I can ask from anybody.
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