MSNBC is sending a morning anchor to late night in order to expand its biggest A.M. franchise. The NBCUniversal-backed cable news outlet intends to shift Stephanie Ruhle from her mid-morning role t…
The moves are driven by a desire to give MSNBC viewers more of the pillars of the schedule, which at present are three hours of “Joe” and two hours of Nicolle Wallace’s late afternoon program, “Deadline: The White House.” MSNBC is working to figure out a way to replace the linchpin of its primetime lineup, “The Rachel Maddow Show,” as its host is moving on to tackle a broader content production agreement with NBCUniversal and is likely to pull back on her weekday duties.
Like its two main rivals, Fox News Channel and CNN, MSNBC is grappling with shortfalls in viewership in the wake of the 2020 election. MSNBC saw its viewership of people between 25 and 54 slump 38% in 2021, according to Nielsen figures, compared with declines of 40% for CNN and 35% for Fox News.
MSBNC prepares to expand “Joe” as concern has grown about opinion programming taking time away from news at all the cable networks. At Fox News, executives have added an opinion shows at 7 p.m., and bumped Shannon Bream’s late-night news show to make room for Greg Gutfeld’s late-night program, “Gutfeld.