The ruthless new MSNBC boss who gutted Joy Reid just ten days after taking on her new role

Rebecca Kutler has been officially named president of MSNBC, after dropping her interim title following Rashida Jones’ departure last month.

MSNBC announced that Kutler, 45, was officially promoted on Wednesday, February 12.

Mark Lazurus, who is head of the Comcast spinoff company, told staff in a memo earlier this month.

‘In the short time that Rebecca was the interim president, it became clear to me that she has the big-picture strategic view and the right leadership skills to ensure MSNBC delivers on its brand promise and is positioned for growth during a time of industry change,’ Lazarus wrote.

Since taking charge, Kutler has successfully stabilized the network’s ratings following a major post-election decline.

The recovery has been largely attributed to the network’s star anchor Rachel Maddow making regular primetime appearances during Trump’s first 100 days back in office.

Most recently as president, Kutler canceled Joy Reid’s evening show amid the network’s plummeting ratings. 

Also this week, the network axed another three of its stars’ shows after nixing Reid’s program.

Katie Phang, Jonathan Capehart and Ayman Mohyeldin have also been given the boot from their current timeslots. 

Mohyeldin, who hosts Ayman Mohyeldin Reports, will broadcast its final episode on April 20 at 7pm. 

‘Over the past two years, I have had the privilege of learning how all of you do what you do so well, and you’ve been doing it for 28 years, and you’ve built something truly incredible. MSNBC is now one of the most engaged brands in all of television,’ Kutler said in a meeting.

‘We ended 2024 as number one in cable news on both YouTube and TikTok. That is a credit to everyone on this call and everyone who has built this brand into what it has become over the last 28 years,’ she told staff earlier this month.

Most recently as president, she canceled Joy Reid’s evening show amid the network’s plummeting ratings

Katie Phang, Jonathan Capehart and Ayman Mohyeldin have also been given the boot from their current timeslots, according to the New York Post

In the memo to staff, Kutler acknowledged the challenges ahead. 

‘My goal over the years ahead is to build on that success. Especially over the next year, this is going to be a really exciting time but also a challenging time. I think it’s important that we as leaders are honest about that and about the challenges ahead. Our jobs are hard on a normal day, and these are not normal times.’

Kutler takes over from Rashida Jones, who had led the progressive cable network since 2021. 

She joined MSNBC in 2022 after a 12-year stint at CNN, where she climbed from executive producer on shows like Inside Politics with John King to senior vice president.

Kutler was previously at CNN as programming chief for CNN+, the ill-fated streaming service that crashed and burned during AT&T’s handover to Warner Bros. Discovery.