MSNBC, recognized for its mix of political analysis and progressive perspectives, has sacked Joy Reid and removed her from its schedule as part of a significant programming overhaul. Alex Wagner, another network regular, will transition from her 9 p.m. hosting role to working as a contributor.
Joy Reid’s evening news program has been cancelled due to a strategic revamp led by MSNBC’s new president, Rebecca Kutler. Sources have indicated that Reid’s final show will air sometime next week. The network plans to replace her time slot with a new program featuring three hosts—Symone Sanders-Townsend, Alicia Menendez, and Michael Steele—who currently co-host The Weekend Show.
This programming shift marks Kutler’s first major decision since stepping into her role as president earlier this month. She has been rethinking the network’s lineup to boost ratings, which, while ahead of CNN, still trail behind Fox News, the long-time leader in viewership.
The cancellation of Reid’s show, led by one of the network’s most prominent hosts, comes about a month after MSNBC’s former president, Rashida Jones, stepped down from the network to end a nearly four-year tenure.
Kutler, then MSNBC’s senior vice president for content strategy, replaced Jones.
Following Jones’s exit, NBCUniversal Media Group chairman Mark Lazarus told staff, “We have a lot to work on.”
Earlier this year, longtime anchor Chuck Todd announced he was leaving NBC News. Todd, previously the host of Meet the Press, had publicly opposed the network’s decision to hire former RNC chairperson Ronna McDaniel in early 2024.
NBC later removed McDaniel, the RNC leader during Donald Trump’s first term. NBCUniversal News Group chairman Cesar Conde acknowledged receiving “legitimate concerns” from staff across the network regarding the hire.
When McDaniel’s departure was announced, Reid expressed her approval during a conversation with fellow host Rachel Maddow. “I felt strongly about it, and I know you did too,” Reid said. “When someone makes the right call, I think it’s important to acknowledge it just as loudly as we expressed our concerns.” She added, “I’m grateful to Cesar for making the right decision. It was the right move.”
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