Rebecca Kutler wants to spin MS NOW into the post-cable future

One twelvemonth ago, Rebecca Kutler was promoted to president of the cablegram quality web past known arsenic MSNBC.

Taking the helm astatine a large quality enactment is the pinnacle of a journalist’s career. But a batch changed aft Kutler landed the job.

In August, MSNBC announced it was dropping its sanction of astir 30 years to go MS NOW — arsenic its now-former proprietor NBCUniversal wanted a cleanable interruption from the channel, which was spun disconnected to beryllium portion of a caller media institution called Versant.

The spin-off, which NBCU genitor Comcast initiated due to the fact that its cablegram networks are considered slow-dying properties that weighed down its banal price, was hardly a ballot of assurance successful the business. Losing the moniker that had decades of marque equity among its politically progressive viewers was not going to help.

At a caller luncheon adjacent her Washington office, Kutler acknowledged the circumstances were little than ideal. But with much than 20 years successful the TV quality concern wherever she began arsenic a accumulation adjunct astatine CNN, she understood the audience’s transportation to her transmission begins with the radical on-screen, and not the logo.

“I was beauteous assured the assemblage wouldn’t truly blink due to the fact that erstwhile they crook connected the their television, they spot Rachel Maddow, they spot Jen Psaki, they spot Joe Scarborough,” Kutler said. “The information that 2 letters alteration does not alteration immoderate of those assemblage habits.”

Still determination was enactment to beryllium done. Kutler nary longer had the resources of NBC News astatine her disposal. Instead of paying $60 cardinal annually for its newsgathering services, she chose to person MS NOW physique its ain newsrooms successful Washington and New York. The cognition was tested Tuesday arsenic President Trump’s State of the Union code was the archetypal large lawsuit MS NOW covered arsenic a freestanding entity.

Kutler has immoderate large nonrecreational challenges, but nary arsenic daunting arsenic the 1 that emerged successful October erstwhile she was diagnosed with bosom cancer. Kutler recovered herself watching the recently rechristened MS NOW connected a TV successful a infirmary country arsenic she received chemotherapy treatments each fewer weeks.

“If thing it conscionable made maine admit and emotion what I bash adjacent more,” Kutler said.

As she works done her recovery, Kutler’s spirits person been buoyed by information that beryllium her constituent astir MS NOW’s assemblage loyalty. From Nov. 18 — the day of the rebrand — done Feb. 14, MS NOW’s mean regular assemblage has grown to 613,000, up 25% compared to the aforesaid play a twelvemonth ago, according to Nielsen. Weeknight premier clip is up 27% to 1.2 cardinal viewers, inactive a distant 2nd to conservative-leaning Fox News but good up of CNN.

There was an assemblage exodus from MSNBC successful the months pursuing President Trump’s predetermination successful 2024 arsenic viewers unhappy with the results typically tune retired aft a statesmanlike campaign. But anxiousness implicit the activities of the second-term Trump White House sent them backmost into the acquainted structure to perceive Maddow, Lawrence O’Donnell, Ari Melber and others measurement in.

Lawrence O’Donnell and Rachel Maddow astatine an MSNBC instrumentality festival successful New York City successful October 2025.

(MSNBC)

When the sanction alteration to MS NOW was announced successful October, the network’s interior probe showed 31% of viewers recovered the thought somewhat unappealing oregon precise unappealing, a informing airy for what mightiness beryllium ahead. Two months later, that fig dropped to 17%, portion the percent of viewers who recovered it precise appealing oregon somewhat appealing jumped from 30% to 44%.

A $20-million promotional run that focused connected the network’s personalities helped. “We made definite the assemblage knew that it was conscionable a sanction change, not a strategy change,” Versant Chief Executive Mark Lazarus said.

Programming moves Kutler implemented up of the power helped. Longtime evening big Joy Reid was replaced with an ensemble programme “The Weeknight,” with Simone Sanders-Townsend, Michael Steele and Alicia Menendez, and the assemblage level roseate by 30% successful January compared to a twelvemonth ago.

Kutler moved Psaki, the erstwhile property caput to President Biden, to the 9 p.m. Eastern slot Tuesday done Friday, wherever viewership is up 41%.

At CNN, Kutler had a beardown estimation arsenic a shaper and successful endowment development. She was being groomed for a apical occupation astatine the web earlier jumping to MSNBC arsenic an enforcement vice president successful 2022. Agents person been impressed with her swift decision-making.

“They person exceeded expectations successful an particularly challenged environment,” said Bradley Singer, a spouse astatine William Morris Endeavor whose clients see Sanders-Townsend and “The Weekend” co-host Eugene Daniels. “And I would reason that Rebecca is the close person for this infinitesimal due to the fact that she’s consenting to determination rapidly to effort caller things. And the concern doesn’t truly person clip to spare.”

Jen Psaki is the big of MS NOW’s “The Briefing.”

(MS NOW)

Psaki credits Kutler for guiding her modulation into TV news. “I wasn’t hired due to the fact that I spent 20 years arsenic a section quality anchor, right?” Psaki said successful a caller telephone interview. “I could larn those skills, but Rebecca helped maine truly commencement the task of figuring retired however to inquire the questions that needed to beryllium asked, portion besides sharing my unsocial position arsenic idiosyncratic who’s worked successful authorities and politics.”

MS NOW did person to capable a large spread erstwhile governmental information guru Steve Kornacki chose to instrumentality with NBC aft the spin-off. Kutler tapped Ali Velshi, the network’s versatile main correspondent, to instrumentality implicit the number-crunching during predetermination nights and different large events.

While Kutler tin constituent to ratings increases, she is alert of the semipermanent doomsday script that faces the cablegram TV manufacture arsenic much viewers crook to streaming. The radical who inactive person cablegram similar MS NOW a batch — the web has 4 times arsenic galore viewers contiguous arsenic it did 20 years agone erstwhile determination were acold much pay-TV subscribers. But Versant needs to go little babelike connected accepted TV arsenic subscriber numbers are sliding each year.

Wall Street volition get its archetypal look astatine Versant’s fiscal show erstwhile the caller institution delivers an net study adjacent week, expecting to amusement $6.6 cardinal successful gross past year. While determination person been declines successful revenues due to the fact that of cord-cutting, the company, which includes USA Network, Sci-Fi, CNBC, Golf Channel, E! and Oxygen, says it inactive delivers double-digit nett margins.

MS NOW President Rebecca Kutler astatine Vesant’s capitalist time successful New York connected Dec. 4.

(MS NOW)

By aboriginal fall, MS NOW volition motorboat a direct-to-consumer subscription streaming merchandise aimed astatine radical who don’t person a pay-TV package. CNN launched specified a work past year, portion Fox News, the perennial ratings person successful cable, is disposable arsenic portion of Fox One, which besides offers Fox Corporation’s broadcast web and sports channels.

Kutler said MS NOW‘s streaming work volition beryllium portion of a broader integer offering that tin service arsenic a assemblage for progressives. She describes subscriptions arsenic “memberships.”

“We’re trying to physique a merchandise that meets the needs of radical who emotion news, attraction astir ideology and privation to travel unneurotic successful a shared space,” she said.

MS NOW already has a beardown beingness connected YouTube. In January, the web had 339 cardinal views of its content, 2nd lone to Fox News (466 million) among TV quality outlets.

Mika Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough connected the acceptable of MS NOW’s “Morning Joe.”

(MS NOW)

MS NOW besides stepped up its podcast business, scoring 130 cardinal downloads past year. The long-form interrogation programme “The Best People with Nicolle Wallace” has been a apical download onApple Podcasts, and a caller entry, “Clock It” with Sanders-Townsend and Daniels, launched this month.

Kutler besides is looking astatine extracurricular podcast companies to proviso programming. Last week, MS NOW announced a woody with Crooked Media to nutrient a play compilation of its podcasts, including “Pod Save America,” which volition aerial Saturdays astatine 9 p.m. Eastern.

“If there’s contented our assemblage is funny in, we should find a mode to bring it to them,” she said.

Overall, the moves astatine MS NOW amusement a willingness to put successful increasing the business, a concern that did not beryllium nether NBCU, which has been focused connected gathering its Peacock streaming platform. “Liberating america from that was portion of the strategy of the full rotation due to the fact that we present request to bash each of those things successful bid to make a maturation company,” Lazarus said.

Kutler adjacent had the greenish airy to participate talks with Anderson Cooper — 1 of the highest-paid on-air talents successful TV quality — astir joining MS NOW earlier helium decided to re-sign with CNN.

Kutler had her last chemo league past Friday, and doctors accidental her wellness prognosis is good. She draws inspiration from her mother, a Philadelphia-area lawyer who raised Kutler arsenic a azygous genitor and successfully battled the illness successful her 60s.

“My hardest time would person been my mom’s easiest day,” said Kutler, who is joined with 3 teenaged children. “I was calved watching idiosyncratic powerfulness done stuff. The thought of doing a occupation that’s engaged and demanding and loving your kids and making them a precedence is the lone happening I ever knew.”

It wasn’t casual to spell into Lazarus’ bureau to interruption the quality astir her information aft conscionable six months connected the occupation and a monolithic task ahead. But Kutler said helium didn’t flinch, and the caller institution has been “1,000%” supportive.

“She’s a tremendous person and an illustration of resilience and strength,” Lazarus said.