Category Archives: Melissa Harris-Perry

‘MSNBC Live': The Best Summer TV of 2015

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I appeared on MSNBC Live today (while the segment was produced by the Melissa Harris-Perry team and was in that show’s usual timeslot, it wasn’t actually considered a Melissa Harris-Perry broadcast because of the holiday weekend), talking about the best summer TV shows that too many of you aren’t watching.

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I talked about four of the shows I’ve been writing about, and raving about, all summer: Amazon’s Catastrophe, Lifetime’s UnReal, Comedy Central’s Another Period and USA’s Mr. Robot.

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I think Catastrophe star Rob Delaney really liked what I had to say about his show!

MSNBC didn’t post the segment online, but I uploaded the clip here (I know the audio quality isn’t the best; my apologies).

Long story short: you should start watching all four of those shows, immediately!

‘Melissa Harris-Perry’: ‘Empire,’ ‘Scandal’ and TV & Not TV’s TV debut!

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I returned to Melissa Harris-Perry today — my first ever Saturday appearance on the show — to talk about Empire and my Adweek story about the marketing campaign that helped turn it into a phenomenon, along with the return of Scandal. I always have a great time on the show — and loved being on a panel with Janet Mock and Joy Reid — but for me, the most exciting part was having TV & Not TV make its long-awaited TV debut:

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Woo hoo! Plus, this was also the first time I was credited onscreen as an Adweek contributor.

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Here’s the first segment, which focused on Empire:

And here’s the second segment, where we discussed Scandal before pivoting back to Empire:

TV & Not TV: finally on TV!

Why people are tuning in to watch Empire

The rise of Olivia Pope’s hair

MSNBC: The Best and Worst of TV in 2014

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msnbc tv in 2014

This morning, I appeared on MSNBC to discuss TV’s best and worst of 2014, and was very happy to be alongside Janet Mock for another MSNBC panel about television. While it wasn’t technically a Melissa Harris-Perry show, it aired during her show’s usual time slot and was produced by her team, so it still counts as a MHP appearance in my book. Here’s the video:

The segment was terrific. I only wished they’d mentioned TV & Not TV as they were supposed to (things were a little crazed with breaking news), and that they’d called me the correct name at the end (“Jane Lynch”?). But it was fun to be back on MSNBC, and to discuss the year’s highs and lows one last time.

The best and worst of TV in 2014

‘Melissa Harris-Perry’: Shonda Rhimes, gay characters and hair

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I was very excited to return to MSNBC’s Melissa Harris-Perry today to talk about all things Shonda Rhimes. First we discussed the racy same-sex love scenes in How to Get Away with Murder (which as I point out, is a big improvement over Modern Family’s Mitch and Cam, who barely show any affection onscreen).

We then talked about that sensational scene where Viola Davis removed her makeup and wig — one of this fall’s most memorable images.

Also on the panel: Aisha Moodie-Mills, Danielle Moodie-Mills and my former People colleague Janet Mock.

How Shonda Rhimes is opening doors for gay characters on TV

Shonda Rhimes rewriting rules for black women

‘Melissa Harris-Perry’: The debuts of ‘How to Get Away With Murder’ and ‘Black-ish’

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I was very excited to make my debut on MSNBC’s Melissa Harris-Perry, which is executive produced by one of my best friends, Eric Salzman. I joined Clarence Page and Alicia Quarles to talk with Melissa about fall TV, and the debuts of How to Get Away With Murder, Black-ish and the phenomenal Transparent.

We then spoke about Scandal’s season premiere, and its powerful message about sexual assault.

It was a great appearance and I look forward to returning soon!

Buzzworthy Fall Shows Make Their Debut

How Olivia Pope Schooled Roger Goodell