Ari Melber: The Message

“My message is ‘the truth still matters’,” Ari Melber tells Ebro Darden on the latest episode of The Message. “We live in a world, sometimes, where a lot of people seem to be telling you it doesn't matter, or they have their own truth. And I don't even mean it super politically, I just mean at a larger level, are you dealing with people who can accept truth and that there's a way to try to find it—however imperfect—or not? What I'm doing with my time and energy is still about the truth.” As a journalist, attorney and host of MSNBC’s The Beat, Melber is hyper-aware of the kinds of mental gymnastics people conduct when considering the actions of their political heroes. But Melber’s role in the way they process these kinds of events will always be based on facts. “My job is not to prejudge any person, and I take that seriously,” Melber says. “So, if there is a trial of Donald Trump, I don't begin assuming he’s guilty. I begin following the evidence. I could tell you there’s a lot of evidence to convict him of election-related crimes. But I don't begin prejudging. A citizen can decide what they want to decide and have their view and speak on it. But in my role, I'm not assuming anything.” Of his The Message playlist, which includes selections from JAY-Z, 2 Chainz, DJ Khaled, Pharoahe Monch and Nipsey Hussle, Melber says he adhered to a single guiding principle: It’s “what slaps”.