The choice of actress Eva Longoria as emcee for day one of the National Democratic Convention that kicked off on Monday evening, and slated to formally nominate former Vice President Joe Biden and his running mate Kamala Harris, has ruffled more than a few feathers on social media.
The gathering has been forced to adopt a novel, predominantly online format due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with Longoria one of four celebrity emcees guiding the viewers from segment to segment and speaker to speaker on each of the four nights.
The other three moderators are Kerry Washington, Tracee Ellis Ross, and Julia Louis-Dreyfuss.
After addressing viewers watching the event from their homes, Longoria went on to conduct remote interviews with Americans. However, the "Desperate Housewives" star was slammed as hardly being the right choice for host.
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Flor., tweeted his sarcasm over a celebrity actress having been picked to discuss "challenges & obstacles faced by everyday Americans".
Podcast host Katie Halper similarly slammed the "formula" of speaking with representatives of a "pandered group".
Journalist Michael Tracey wondered how Longoria was deemed "best positioned" to moderate the convention event.
Writer Matt Taibbi also questioned the choice of emcee.
Commentator Nomiki Konst tweeted to wonder what one might expect at the 2024 Convention.
The Trump campaign and its supporters have levelled scathing criticism at the first night of the 2020 Democratic National Convention, deriding it as a "Hollywood-produced infomercial".
With the event bolstered by a celebrity lineup featuring Eva Longoria, Tracee Ellis Ross, Kerry Washington, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus, the musical squad had stars that included Billie Eilish, Jennifer Hudson, John Legend, and, Billy Porter.
White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany accused the convention speakers of stopping short of addressing any of Joe Biden's policies.
Donald Trump's campaign warned that the "radical socialist leftist takeover of Joe Biden is complete".
"Perhaps it was just an oversight, but the first night of the Democrat convention left out the fact that Joe Biden would raise taxes on more than 80 percent of Americans by at least $4 trillion", Trump campaign national press secretary Hogan Gidley said in a statement Monday night.