MSNBC was known for its opinions. MS NOW has paid extra attention to news
The cable channel known as MSNBC until Saturday morning has long been known for its popular news coverage. Now it puts some emphasis on reporters’ news breaks.
Yes, that was MSNBC in September touting a report from reporters Carol Leonnig and Ken Dilanian, who discovered that in 2024, the FBI allegedly recorded current White House border czar Tom Homan accepting a paper bag containing $50,000 in cash from undercover agents posing as corporate executives. However, after President Trump took office, the investigation was halted, they reported. Suddenly, instead of addressing it later in the evening, MSNBC had started a news cycle.
The network, which just changed its name to MS NOW when it split from NBC News and NBCUniversal, has gotten some attention lately, but isn’t necessarily always tied to the latest rhetorical zingers from Lawrence O’Donnell, insights from Rachel Maddow or inside-the-government analysis from Jen Psaki or Nicolle Wallace. Where the network once depended entirely on the journalistic apparatus of NBC News to inform its programming, it now has dozens of its own journalists trying to break stories about the White House, the Justice Department, maybe even Taylor Swift if it’s something viewers care about. The network was the first to secure Senator Alex Padilla for a live interview in June after he was forcibly removed from a Department of Homeland Security press conference. The network has even gotten appearances from newsmakers who don’t normally appear on MSNBC, including U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune.
Ambitious plans are in place for a newly formed journalistic team. “We plan to have our reporters talk to individuals in communities to understand their views, what America looks like now, and it will be, you know, fair,” said Joey Cole, who joined MS NOW as vice president of planning after working as a producer for NBC News. “We’re going to be raw.”
Could the influx of homegrown journalism dilute some of MS NOW’s blue leanings? After all, facts can sometimes get in the way of a good primetime monologue. And what if some of the findings from MS NOW’s news staff clash with what the network’s partisan die-hards want to hear in primetime?
“I think it’s important to note that we are a news department. And in our jobs, the news and the facts are going to bring us to whatever conclusion – the facts are going to get us into the story. And that’s what we have to do here, what we focus on.”[saysScottMatthewsseniorvicepresidentnewsgatheringforMSNOW”Weneverreallyworriedaboutwhowilllikethestoryandwhowillnotlikethestory”headdsErisandanexpectationthathisstaff’sworkwillappearinbothMSNOW’sopinionprogramandindaytimenewshoursalsoontvendigital[saysScottMatthewsseniorvicepresidentofnewsgatheringforMSNOW“Weneverreallyworryatallaboutyouknowwhoisgoingtolikethestoryandwhoisgoingtonotlikethestory”headdsThereisanexpectationthattheworkofhisstaffwillappearonbothMSNOW’sopinionprogramaswellasitsdaytimenewshoursandacrossTVanddigitalaswell[zegtScottMatthewsseniorvice-presidentnieuwsgaringvoorMSNOW”Wemakenonsnooitechtzorgenoverwiehetverhaalleukzalvindenenwiehetverhaalnietleukzalvinden”voegthijeraantoeEriseenverwachtingdathetwerkvanzijnpersoneelzalverschijneninzowelhetopinieprogrammavanMSNOWalsindenieuwsurenoverdagenookoptvendigitaal[saysScottMatthewsseniorvicepresidentofnewsgatheringforMSNOW“Weneverreallyworryatallaboutyouknowwhoisgoingtolikethestoryandwhoisgoingtonotlikethestory”headdsThereisanexpectationthattheworkofhisstaffwillappearonbothMSNOW’sopinionprogramaswellasitsdaytimenewshoursandacrossTVanddigitalaswell
Under Rebecca Kutler, who was named president in February, the network has touted new editorial staff such as David Rohde, Jacob Soboroff and Leonnig and Dilanian, as well as newsgathering alliances with AccuWeather and Sky News. It has also parted ways with some of its more vocal left-wing personalities, including Joy Reid and Katie Phang.
Yet no one running MS NOW sees a purple tint. “I think our hosts are as aggressive in their thoughts about what they think about the news as they’ve ever been,” Kutler said. “I am incredibly proud of the line-up we have.”
There’s a good reason for MS NOW to take a shock from the headlines. While the network draws a larger audience overall than CNN, it lags behind both CNN and Fox News Channel among the viewers advertisers most want in news programs, people between the ages of 25 and 54. In Q3 2025, MS NOW’s viewership among that demographic fell 59% across the programming day, while CNN’s fell 45% and Fox News fell 26%.
CNN has already started ramping up its daily news gathering. The Warner Bros. Discovery outlet recently launched a new ‘All Access’ subscription streaming service that brings down-to-earth reporting from around the world. MS NOW, which wants to offer its viewers news about the world in addition to opinion news, will have to compete.
In addition, MS NOW is one of the biggest assets in the portfolio of the new parent company Versant, which will be spun off from Comcast and NBC in the coming weeks. The new company faces continued declines in key revenue lines, according to a recent research report from Craig Moffett, an analyst at MoffettNathanson.
According to the analyst’s research, affiliate fees associated with Versant’s networks fell 6.6% in 2024, while advertising revenue fell 7.2%. MS NOW is expected to see ad sales fall 11% to $653.9 million in 2025, according to Kagan, a market research unit of S&P Global Intelligence.
But a revival is predicted for MS NOW in 2026, when the network will be preparing for crucial national midterm elections in the long term. There are already signs that viewers are taking new interest. On election night, with Democrats winning crucial seats in an off-year election cycle. MSNBC’s coverage attracted an audience almost comparable to that of Fox News Channel, which typically dominates cable news audiences.
The newly convened newsgathering staff aims to reach both inside and outside the Beltway, along with Sudeep Reddy, the new Washington Bureau chief, who is organizing teams covering the White House, Congress, national security, legal affairs and more. Meanwhile, other parts of the team want to delve into scenes across the country to demonstrate the effects of national policies. During the government shutdown, some reporters were sent to talk to people online at food banks, to show what the end of SNAP benefits meant for citizens who depend on them. “We take all these things that are decided in Washington, and we show the impact in the real world,” said Erin Zimmerman, vice president of news gathering. “And it’s not just our linear viewer, but it’s our digital viewers. We’re doing a lot of digital packages, a lot of TikToks, trying to cover the whole realm.
They do it all without much time for idle thoughts. Most of the team has been assembled in recent months, with many coming from NBC News. And while MS-Old and MS-New are obviously driven by the news cycle, more headlines will be generated in the coming days by a team that continues to coalesce. No pressure, people!
