Radar Online
MSNBC boss Rashida Jones announced that Alex Wagner will replace Rachel Maddow at the network four nights a week, and although many anchors are happy about the news, Radar has learned that others are angry about the new shake-up.
As RadarOnline.com reported on Monday, Jones officially announced that Wagner – who was working at the network as a senior political analyst and guest anchor – will be taking over for Maddow Tuesday through Friday at 9 PM starting on August 16.
While Jones – who took over as president of the popular news network in February 2021 – had a number of anchors she could have chosen to replace Maddow, she revealed in her announcement on Monday that she found Wagner to be the best pick.
“She pulls in perspective. She brings in some of the context throughout her discussion,” Jones said. “She knows politics. She knows everything from foreign policy to culture.”
“This is not a show where our hair is on fire and we’re yelling past each other, and we’re creating these manufactured moments of tension,” Jones said in another interview after the official announcement. “I really want the takeaway from this show to be a better understanding of what’s happening in the world.”
Although Jones also revealed that she did not consult with Maddow about who would be named as Maddow’s successor, the 49-year-old The Rachel Maddow Show host said Wagner’s promotion was “great news.”
Wagner expressed her gratitude for the promotion, and said it was an “honor” being named as Maddow’s successor and for the opportunity to take over the most important 9 PM news timeslot.
“I’m honored to be anchoring a key hour of television in such a critical time for American democracy,” she said in a statement further confirming her promotion. “In many ways, the stakes have never been higher, and there’s no better place to explore this moment than MSNBC. I’m thrilled to be coming home.”
But despite the excitement and support Wagner received from Jones, Maddow and her other soon-to-be fellow MSNBC hosts, other anchors at the network were not so quick to congratulate Wagner for her important and big win.
As RadarOnline.com also previously reported, Wagner’s promotion to the 9 PM timeslot comes amid a number of other shake-ups at the network – including Chuck Todd being removed from the cable news network altogether and sent to the network’s streaming platform.
“NBC News is the leader in streaming news,” NBC News President Noah Oppenheim said in May while announcing Todd’s move from cable to streaming. “Since our launch, we’ve been committed to delivering the best of NBC News’ journalism, free, to streaming audiences everywhere.”
“Chuck was one of the first broadcast anchors to see the massive potential of streaming and bringing Meet the Press’s daily franchise to NBC News NOW reinforces the platform’s status as the destination for news on streaming,” Oppenheim added.
MSNBC has also hired new talent in recent weeks, including Symone Sanders – who previously served as Vice President Kamala Harris’ chief spokesperson and senior advisor, and Jen Psaki – who previously worked as President Joe Biden’s White House press secretary.
Other MSNBC anchors who seemingly feel slighted by Wagner’s take over of The Rachel Maddow Show four nights a week include Stephanie Ruhle, who was named as Brian Williams’ successor for The 11th Hour just one month before Maddow announced her departure and the network started looking for a permanent replacement.
