MSNBC is going down in flames. The Leftist outlet is operating under pure chaos.
And Civil war breaks out at MSNBC over this unexpected firing.
Rachel Maddow delivered a critique of MSNBC’s recent programming decisions, particularly the network’s handling of Joy Reid’s departure and the treatment of staff amid looming layoffs.
On Monday night, Maddow took time during her show to address the “changes” unfolding at MSNBC. She reminded viewers that “The Rachel Maddow Show” would return to its once-a-week schedule following the conclusion of President Trump’s first 100 days in office. However, not all of her primetime colleagues would remain on the air due to the network’s programming changes.
One of the most significant changes was the cancelation of “The ReidOut” from its 7 p.m. ET slot, signaling Joy Reid’s exit from MSNBC. Maddow did not hold back, calling the move “very, very, very hard to take.”
“I am 51 years old. I have been gainfully employed since I was 12. And I have had so many different kinds of jobs, you wouldn’t believe me if I told you. But 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 stated passionately.
“I love everything about her. I have learned so much from her. I have so much more to learn from her,” she added. “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. It is not my call, and I understand that, but that’s what I think.”
Maddow expressed further concern over the network’s decision to cut shows hosted by “two non-White hosts” in its weekday lineup, pointing to the cancelation of “The Katie Phang Show” on weekends as well. She also noted that “The Alex Wagner Show” would no longer air in her usual 9 p.m. ET slot for the rest of the week, as the time would instead be taken over by “Inside with Jen Psaki.”
“And that feels worse than bad, no matter who replaces them,” Maddow stated. “That feels indefensible, and I do not defend it.”
Rachel Maddow just called MSNBC racist for firing Joy Reid. On MSNBC. Guys, that place is a total dumpster fire. Trump destroyed them all: pic.twitter.com/mgled22I8J
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) February 25, 2025
While Maddow acknowledged that Alex Wagner would stay with the network as a political analyst, she didn’t mention that Reid’s slot would be filled by Symone Sanders-Townsend, Michael Steele, and Alicia Menendez — all three of them are not white — who currently co-host a weekend program together. Katie Phang will also remain with MSNBC as a legal correspondent.
Beyond defending her on-air colleagues, Maddow also stood up for the network’s staffers, many of whom face job insecurity. Few at MSNBC enjoy Maddow’s level of job security — she reportedly secured a $25 million annual salary last year — but she used her platform to highlight the plight of those working behind the scenes.
“Dozens of producers and staffers, including some who are among the most experienced and most talented and most specialist producers in the building, are facing being laid off, they’re being invited to reapply for new jobs,” Maddow revealed.
“That has never happened at this scale in this way before when it comes to programming changes, presumably because it’s not the right way to treat people, and it’s inefficient and it’s unnecessary,” she added. “Maybe all of our folks, including most of the people who are getting this very show on the air right now, maybe they will all get new jobs here, and I hope they do, but in the meantime, being put in this kind of limbo, the anxiety and the discombobulation is off the charts.”
Maddow emphasized that while the news business is inherently tough, the current situation at MSNBC has created an unnecessary level of chaos and stress.
“It is not news for me to tell you that the press and freedom of the press are under attack in a way that is really – it’s a big deal for our country. It’s very visceral for us here,” Maddow said. “But I think I’m safe in saying for all of us anchors who you know through the TV, please know that what pains us the most is not what happens to us. It is what happens to our coworkers on whom we depend.”
She closed with a final message: “Finding good people, good colleagues, doing good work with them and then having their back. That we can do a lot better on. A lot better.”
Maddow has a track record of publicly challenging MSNBC when she disagrees with its decisions. Last year, she fiercely criticized the network’s short-lived hiring of former RNC chair Ronna McDaniel, a move MSNBC swiftly reversed following widespread outrage. She also condemned NBC in 2019 for its handling of the Harvey Weinstein scandal.
As MSNBC braces for more changes — with its parent company NBCUniversal preparing to spin off the network into a standalone entity — the future remains uncertain. Ratings have taken a hit, and the recent programming shake-ups have yet to yield a resurgence in viewers.
Stay tuned to The Federalist Wire.
