In the wake of Charlie Kirk’s murder, more attention is being paid to the weight of words. The right-wing activist was gunned down in September, allegedly because of the views he shared on his podcast.
Fox News host Harris Faulkner jumped in during a recent discussion to remind her co-hosts that they “don’t mean” harm on anybody. The reminder came amid a harsh nickname that could be taken the wrong way. Keep reading for all the details.
Fox News Hosts Roast Joy Reid For Calling Beloved Christmas Song Racist
Joy Reid was a fixture on MSNBC until her show, The ReidOut, was canceled in early 2025. She left the network and launched a self-titled news program on social media. Joy Reid sparked controversy earlier this week by sharing a video criticizing a popular Christmas song as having racist origins.
Joy Reid’s video features a man at a plaque in Medford, Massachusetts, celebrating the place where James Lord Pierpont composed “Jingle Bells” in 1850. The video claims that the song, originally titled ” The One Horse Open Sleigh,” was meant to be performed at minstrel shows, which had white actors in blackface to mock Black people.
Fox News had an absolute field day with Joy Reid’s post and the suggestion that “Jingle Bells” is racist. The topic came up on Outnumbered, with Lara Trump stating, “It’s this kind of ridiculous take on things that got her taken right off the air.”
Charles Payne joked, “You mean Killjoy Reid.” The nickname caused the panel to break out laughing. “Killjoy Reid – we’re changing the name. It’s official,” Lara Trump added.
But not everyone was having a great time at Joy Reid’s expense.
Harris Faulkner Steps In: ‘We Don’t Mean Anybody Any Harm’ Amid Nickname
Harris Faulkner attempted to put a stop to the misconception. “Well, I want to say something about that, though, because I know that people will watch this and edit and take it out of context,” she said.
The Fox News anchor continued, “The word ‘Killjoy’ has nothing to do with her – it just has to do with taking away somebody’s joy.” Lara Trump suggested the nickname “Downer Reid” instead.
However, Harris Faulkner continued her point. “I just want to make sure that if people clip this that they understand that we don’t mean anybody any harm. She’s just sucking the fun out of things.”
The host went on to with Joy Reid a “very Merry Christmas.”
While the Fox News host didn’t take the origin of “Jingle Bells” seriously, many people agreed with Joy Reid.
- “America’s identity is racism, not patriotism.”
- “Here’s a DIY experiment. Do a Google search for “The racist history of _____” on any subject, and you will find that almost everything in America is racist.”
- “The more I learn about…. *everything* the more *everything* makes me sick.”
- “now i’m just fed up, what DOESN’T have anti-Black origins in this system?”
- “Honestly- I’m going back to jingle bells Batman smells then”
Tell us in the comments if you think it was dangerous for Fox News to label Joy Reid as “Killjoy.”
Jennifer Havener grew up in a small town in Upstate New York. She earned her B.A in Writing & Literature from Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado. She always knew watching reality TV shows and soap operas, particularly ‘Days of Our Lives’, would come in handy someday. When she’s not writing, she’s playing with her dogs, Lola and Ruger