NBC News has provided glowing coverage of Walmart and PepsiCo, two companies for which a top network executive holds board positions. NBCUniversal News Group Chairman Cesar Conde, who oversees NBC News, CNBC, and MSNBC, has been facing intense scrutiny following NBC's hiring – and swift firing – of former RNC chair Ronna McDaniel, who sparked outrage from the network's liberal stars when she was signed.
The AP reported Thursday that Conde's involvement in Walmart and Pepsi 'has raised some ethical concerns,' citing media experts. 'It seemed to me that this was an additional instance of NBC management not understanding the rules by which news leaders are supposed to play,' former NBC News executive vice president Bill Wheatley told the AP.