MSNBC played a clip from the fictional television show The West Wing to analyze the relationship between the White House and the press during a Monday afternoon broadcast.
MSNBC anchor Chris Jansing brought two guests on her show to discuss rumors that the Trump administration was considering moving the daily press briefing out of the White House. Members of the Trump transition team have admitted they are looking for ways to update the daily press briefings.
"I want to show you how a fictional White House staffer dealt with that same issue. Of course, this is an episode of The West Wing," Jansing said.
The clip showed fictional White House Deputy Communications Director Sam Seaborn, played by Rob Lowe, discussing a memo with fictional White House Press Secretary C.J. Cregg. Seaborn had sent a memo to Cregg arguing that the administration should move its press briefings out of the White House. Cregg lambasts Seaborn for the idea, arguing that the American people would not approve of putting physical distance between the press and the White House.
"Is that a valid point, fictional character or not?" Jansing asked Bruce LeVell, the executive director of the National Diversity Coalition for Trump.
"I don't believe in that," Levell said, before going on to talk about real-life events.
The West Wing was a long-running show on NBC that focused on the internal workings of the White House during a fictional Democratic administration led by President Josiah Bartlet. It is popular among political elites in Washington, D.C.
During the 2016 election, actors from the show reunited to campaign for Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. Allison Janey, who played Cregg, joined fellow cast members Richard Schiff, Martin Sheen, and Bradley Whitford to stump for Clinton in the swing state of Ohio.
Donald Trump won Ohio by eight points.