Cable news networks continued their game of musical chairs this week.
Joy Reid, a longtime MSNBC anchor, announced Monday that she would be leaving the network. Her show “The Reid Out,” was cancelled as part of a larger shakeup.
The move, announced by MSNBC president Rebecca Kutler, was seemingly met with some resistance among the network’s top ranks.
Rachel Maddow, one of MSNBC’s biggest stars, reacted with dismay during her Monday night broadcast. “In all of the jobs I have had in all of the years I have been alive there is no colleague for whom I have had more affection and more respect than Joy Reid,” Maddow told audiences. “I love everything about her.
“I have so much more to learn from her. I do not want to lose her as a colleague here at MSNBC, and personally, I think it is a bad mistake to let her walk out the door,” she continued. “It is not my call and I understand that, but that’s what I think.”
Maddow also took aim at what she perceived as a potential for racial bias, calling it “unnerving” that the network was removing both of their nonwhite primetime hosts − Alex Wagner, who anchors another nightly spot, also saw her show canceled this week. But unlike Reid, Wagner will remain with the network as a senior political analyst.
“That feels worse than bad, no matter who replaces them,” she said. “That feels indefensible. And I do not defend it.”
Maddow also took a moment to spotlight the people behind the show − production crew and writers who she says are being asked to reapply for jobs and facing potential layoffs. Calling it “not the right way to treat people,” and “inefficient,” the author and host expressed disappointment at the network for making a difficult time in the news business even more difficult.
USA TODAY has reached out to MSNBC and Maddow for comment. Maddow, whose eponymous show remains highly rated despite the network’s declining viewership, has a seemingly unique position of power at a time when many veteran hosts are on the chopping block. At MSNBC’s sister network NBC, Lester Holt announced plans Monday to step down from “NBC Nightly News” by early summer.
At CNN, Alisyn Camerota, Chris Wallace and Jim Acosta have exited since the 2024 presidential election.