Megyn Kelly has faced backlash online after she criticised First Lady Jill Biden over her doctorate of education, calling it a “fake title”.
On 29 January, the former Fox News host threw a fit on Twitter after an announcer at the NFC Championship game spotted Dr Jill Biden in the stands cheering for the Philadelphia Eagles, who will be heading to the Super Bowl after defeating the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.
The NFL announcers referred to her as “Dr Jill Biden,” which prompted Kelly to criticise the first lady over her use of the honorific.
“Announcers for this Eagles-49ers game just spotted the first lady in a box and of course call her ‘Dr Jill Biden,’” she tweeted. “Wonder if she realises what a wannabe she looks like insisting on this fake title. Get a real MD or just work on your self-esteem.”
The conservative commentator was instantly met with backlash from social media users, who defended Jill Biden’s right to use the title after receiving her PhD in educational leadership from the University of Delaware.
“When the worst criticism you can muster of the first lady is her use of a title she legitimately earned,” tweeted lawyer Joyce Vance in response.
“How petty. A doctorate deserves the title of doctor. And every doctor is not a physician,” said writer Mary Beth Schneider.
“You tell someone to work on their self esteem while belittling them. Man you are a piece of work,” someone else added.
Another user pointed out how the “attack fell flat three years ago” when right-wing commentators criticised Dr Biden for her use of the title during President Joe Biden’s 2020 campaign.
Fox News host Tucker Carlson previously downplayed Jill Biden’s education when he compared her doctorate degree to Dr Pepper.
“Jill Biden is not a doctor, no. Maybe in the same sense Dr. Pepper is,” he said in December 2020, adding that “she’s not actually a physician, she’s a doctor of education, which means basically nothing.”
The provocation came three days after a column published in the Wall Street Journal suggested the first lady should remove the “Dr” from her name because she doesn’t have a medical background.
Dr Jill Biden’s spokesperson, Michael LaRosa, called the op-ed “disgusting and sexist” in a statement on Twitter.
