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MSNBC
MSNBC is an American cable news channel owned by the NBCUniversal News Group division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. Launched on July 15, 1996, and headquartered at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in Manhattan, the channel primarily broadcasts rolling news coverage and liberal-leaning political commentary. The channel operated as part of the NBCUniversal News Group alongside sister channel CNBC and the NBC News division.
MSNBC was established as part of a joint venture between NBC News and Microsoft (its name is a portmanteau of MSN and NBC), encompassing the channel and the news portal MSNBC.com. Microsoft divested its stake in the channel in 2005, followed by the website in 2012; the website was subsequently rebranded as NBCNews.com, and MSNBC.com was later taken over by the cable channel's editorial staff.
MSNBC initially focused on rolling news coverage, including long-form reports, interactive programs, and stories contributed by the local news departments of NBC's affiliates. By the late 2000s, MSNBC shifted to primarily airing opinion-based programming featuring liberal commentators such as Keith Olbermann, Chris Matthews, David Gregory, Ed Schultz, and Rachel Maddow; in 2010, MSNBC surpassed CNN in primetime and overall viewership for the first time since 2001. In the mid-2010s, amid a decline in viewership, MSNBC concentrated on hard news coverage, and added programs incorporating NBC News personalities. Under new leadership in the 2020s, and ahead of a planned spin-off of NBCUniversal's cable networks to a new Comcast-controlled company known as Versant, MSNBC began to gradually decrease its reliance on NBC News personalities and resources, and announced that it would rebrand as "MS NOW" on November 15, 2025, to signify its separation from NBCUniversal.
In the second quarter of 2025, MSNBC was the second most-watched cable news network, averaging 596,000 total day viewers, behind rival Fox News, which averaged 1.632 million viewers, and ahead of CNN, which averaged 406,000 viewers. In the key Adult 24-54 demographic, MSNBC averaged 57,000 total day viewers, behind rival networks Fox News, which averaged 202,000 viewers, and CNN, which averaged 71,000 viewers. In that same quarter, MSNBC's The Rachel Maddow Show was the only non-Fox News show to appear in the quarter's top 15 cable news programs, both by total viewers and the A24-54 demo.
MSNBC was established in 1996 under a strategic partnership between NBC and Microsoft. NBC executive Tom Rogers was instrumental in developing the partnership. James Kinsella, a Microsoft executive, served as president of the online component, MSNBC.com, and represented the technology company in the joint venture. Microsoft invested $221 million for a 50 percent share of the cable channel. MSNBC and Microsoft shared the cost of a $200 million newsroom in Secaucus, New Jersey, for msnbc.com. The network took over the channel space of NBC's two-year-old America's Talking (AT) network, although in most cases cable carriage had to be negotiated with providers who had never carried AT.[citation needed]
MSNBC was launched on July 15, 1996. The first show was anchored by Jodi Applegate and included news, interviews, and commentary. During the day, rolling news coverage continued with The Contributors, a show that featured Ann Coulter and Laura Ingraham, as well as interactive programming coordinated by Applegate, John Gibson, and John Seigenthaler. Stories were generally longer and more detailed than the stories CNN was running. NBC also highlighted their broadcast connections by airing stories directly from NBC's network affiliates, along with breaking news coverage from the same sources.
MSNBC gradually increased its emphasis on politics. After completing its seven-year survey of cable channels, the Project for Excellence in Journalism said in 2007 that "MSNBC is moving to make politics a brand, with a large dose of opinion and personality."
In January 2001, Mike Barnicle's MSNBC show started, but it was canceled in June 2001 because of high production costs. In June, Microsoft chief executive officer Steve Ballmer said that he would not have started MSNBC had he foreseen the difficulty of attracting viewers.
MSNBC
MSNBC is an American cable news channel owned by the NBCUniversal News Group division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. Launched on July 15, 1996, and headquartered at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in Manhattan, the channel primarily broadcasts rolling news coverage and liberal-leaning political commentary. The channel operated as part of the NBCUniversal News Group alongside sister channel CNBC and the NBC News division.
MSNBC was established as part of a joint venture between NBC News and Microsoft (its name is a portmanteau of MSN and NBC), encompassing the channel and the news portal MSNBC.com. Microsoft divested its stake in the channel in 2005, followed by the website in 2012; the website was subsequently rebranded as NBCNews.com, and MSNBC.com was later taken over by the cable channel's editorial staff.
MSNBC initially focused on rolling news coverage, including long-form reports, interactive programs, and stories contributed by the local news departments of NBC's affiliates. By the late 2000s, MSNBC shifted to primarily airing opinion-based programming featuring liberal commentators such as Keith Olbermann, Chris Matthews, David Gregory, Ed Schultz, and Rachel Maddow; in 2010, MSNBC surpassed CNN in primetime and overall viewership for the first time since 2001. In the mid-2010s, amid a decline in viewership, MSNBC concentrated on hard news coverage, and added programs incorporating NBC News personalities. Under new leadership in the 2020s, and ahead of a planned spin-off of NBCUniversal's cable networks to a new Comcast-controlled company known as Versant, MSNBC began to gradually decrease its reliance on NBC News personalities and resources, and announced that it would rebrand as "MS NOW" on November 15, 2025, to signify its separation from NBCUniversal.
In the second quarter of 2025, MSNBC was the second most-watched cable news network, averaging 596,000 total day viewers, behind rival Fox News, which averaged 1.632 million viewers, and ahead of CNN, which averaged 406,000 viewers. In the key Adult 24-54 demographic, MSNBC averaged 57,000 total day viewers, behind rival networks Fox News, which averaged 202,000 viewers, and CNN, which averaged 71,000 viewers. In that same quarter, MSNBC's The Rachel Maddow Show was the only non-Fox News show to appear in the quarter's top 15 cable news programs, both by total viewers and the A24-54 demo.
MSNBC was established in 1996 under a strategic partnership between NBC and Microsoft. NBC executive Tom Rogers was instrumental in developing the partnership. James Kinsella, a Microsoft executive, served as president of the online component, MSNBC.com, and represented the technology company in the joint venture. Microsoft invested $221 million for a 50 percent share of the cable channel. MSNBC and Microsoft shared the cost of a $200 million newsroom in Secaucus, New Jersey, for msnbc.com. The network took over the channel space of NBC's two-year-old America's Talking (AT) network, although in most cases cable carriage had to be negotiated with providers who had never carried AT.[citation needed]
MSNBC was launched on July 15, 1996. The first show was anchored by Jodi Applegate and included news, interviews, and commentary. During the day, rolling news coverage continued with The Contributors, a show that featured Ann Coulter and Laura Ingraham, as well as interactive programming coordinated by Applegate, John Gibson, and John Seigenthaler. Stories were generally longer and more detailed than the stories CNN was running. NBC also highlighted their broadcast connections by airing stories directly from NBC's network affiliates, along with breaking news coverage from the same sources.
MSNBC gradually increased its emphasis on politics. After completing its seven-year survey of cable channels, the Project for Excellence in Journalism said in 2007 that "MSNBC is moving to make politics a brand, with a large dose of opinion and personality."
In January 2001, Mike Barnicle's MSNBC show started, but it was canceled in June 2001 because of high production costs. In June, Microsoft chief executive officer Steve Ballmer said that he would not have started MSNBC had he foreseen the difficulty of attracting viewers.