Radar Online
Nicolle Wallace is such a ratings powerhouse at MSNBC that her name is at the top of the list of people to replace Rachel Maddow.
“If Nicolle can score over a million viewers in the afternoon can you imagine what she would get in primetime?” a top MSNBC insider tells Radar.
Wallace has turned her sleepy 4 PM timeslot into a monster hit, beating Joy Reid’s show in primetime and even topping Chris Hayes in the key advertiser 25-54 age demographic.
“With Rachel (Maddow) out of the way, Nicolle has become the new boss of MSNBC. It isn’t clear if she wants to replace Rachel in primetime or continue to dominate in the late afternoon. But what is clear is that it is her decision to make. Nicolle is the new Queen of MSNBC,” our insider added.
We’re told the bosses at MSNBC love Wallace so much that they offered her the 9 PM gig, but she turned it down — making way for Maddox’s replacement Alex Wagner. That doesn’t mean she won’t take over an earlier evening timeslot in the future.
“She passed,” sources tell RadarOnline.com, pointing out that Wallace wants to be present in her children’s lives. “She has kids at school and wants to be home,” they add. “Make no mistake, they offered it NW first.”
The insider also said, “Her 4-6 PM schedule is perfect. She’s home to have dinner with kids and put them to bed.”
As RadarOnline.com exclusively reported, Wagner is set to take over Maddox’s TV spot in August — and Rachel signed off on the switch.
“Several big names that were suggested were rejected by Rachel. She was insisting that a ‘fresh-faced’ woman take over her primetime slot rather than bring in a higher profiled name who presents the past, not the future,” sources told us earlier this month. “Katie Couric and former MSNBC host Keith Olbermann were both names Maddow couldn’t get behind.”
“Representation matters to Rachel. Growing up she never saw an openly gay woman on TV. This is personal to Rachel, and she wasn’t going to let an old white man replace her,” a friend explained. “Alex Wagner isn’t gay, but she also isn’t white. Rachel likes her and let’s be honest, it is Rachel’s team who is producing Wagner’s new show. So basically, Rachel is the boss.”
