Report: MSNBC Staffers In A Panic Over Hard News

MSNBC staffers are panicking over the direction of the left-leaning news network under newly-minted President Rashida Jones, fearing that she’s gearing up for a costly and potentially disastrous battle with CNN, reports The NY Post.

Staffers say recent meetings with Jones and her boss, NBCUniversal news chief Cesar Conde, have focused on hard news — with the execs boasting of ratings wins over CNN on breaking stories, such as this summer’s congressional hearings on the Jan. 6 attack on the US Capitol.

Rashida Jones

That makes some employees nervous that MSNBC isn’t adequately focused on shoring up its primetime lineup of opinion-focused shows that draw in the most loyal viewers. The issue burst into the open last month when news leaked that Rachel Maddow, the network’s star, had been negotiating a new contract and had threatened to leave.

“Rashida’s love is in hard news,” an insider said, pointing to the exec’s past roles guiding MSNBC’s daytime news coverage and NBC News’ coverage. “She doesn’t really get what primetime does.”

Maddow ended up inking a broader deal that was worth a whopping $30 million a year through 2024, according to the Daily Beast, which cited anonymous sources. It will let her develop projects across the network and also allow her to step aside from hosting her 9 p.m. primetime show within the next year.

Still, that leaves the big question of who will fill Maddow’s shoes. Network insiders told The Post they worried that the hard-news focused Jones doesn’t have the contacts or the drive needed to find someone to replace Maddow — and fill out the rest of MSNBC’s schedule.

“Rashida has a lot of good qualities, but I don’t think she is someone who corrals big talent,” said an MSNBC insider. “She isn’t creative — and that concerns me.”

Insiders described Jones, who succeeded longtime MSNBC President Phil Griffin in February, as “buttoned-up,” “young” and “lacking a creative vision” for the network, which is known for news analysis from talking heads like Maddow, Lawrence O’Donnell and Brian Williams.