MSNBC

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MSNBC (a portmanteau of MSN and NBC) is the name of two largely separate operations with a shared history: a 24-hour cable news channel in the United States, and one of the most popular news Web sites.

MSNBC was founded in 1996 by Microsoft and General Electric's NBC unit, which is now NBC Universal. Although Microsoft and NBC shared operations of the venture at its founding, it was announced on December 23, 2005, that NBC Universal will purchase a majority stake in the television network, leaving Microsoft with 18%.

MSNBC.com, MSNBC's popular online component, remains half-owned by each partner, with its headquarters on Microsoft's campus in Redmond, Washington. It has consistently been rated as the top news Web site in page views, according to Nielsen Media Research.

MSNBC cable is currently America's third most-watched cable news channel [January Numbers…], Inside Cable News blog, January 31st, 2006, after Fox News, and CNN, but ahead of CNBC and CNN Headline News. It is available in 86.2 million households in the U.S. and broadcasts primarily out of its studios in Secaucus, New Jersey.

MSNBC, like sister channel CNBC, shares the NBC logo of a rainbow peacock.

History

Development

Microsoft and NBC announced on December 14, 1995 that they would be creating MSNBC. The stated purpose was to combine the resources and reputation of NBC News with the technology of Microsoft to bring an integrated news service on the Microsoft Network and cable television. Microsoft would invest $220 million for a 50% share of the cable network, while MSNBC and Microsoft would share the cost of a $200 million newsroom based in Redmond, Washington. NBC would supply the space from the 18 month old America's Talking network. Interestingly, Roger Ailes, then president of America's Talking, was passed over when NBC executives were looking for someone to run their new cable news operation. Ailes subsequently joined News Corporation as president of the newly-formed CNN rival, Fox News Channel.

MSNBC utilized America's Talking's subscriber base of 20 million cable households. NBC was concerned about competition in the cable news field from the other established networks: CBS was considering partnering with CNN, and ABC was creating their own news channel. Furthermore, NBC felt that their expansion could be accomplished without a significant increase in costs. Partnering with Microsoft made sense for NBC, since they already had a smaller-scale agreement for NBC News to provide some news content to the Microsoft Network.

Launch

MSNBC was launched on July 15, 1996 at 9AM EDT from studios in Fort Lee, New Jersey. The first show, anchored by Jodi Applegate, broadcast an eclectic lineup of news, interviews, and opinions. 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 Jr. Stories were generally longer and more detailed than the stories running on CNN at the time.

MSNBC originally demonstrated the interactive value of the Internet. The network's first slogan was It's Time to Get Connected. Primetime featured an hour-long interview program called Internight (which showcased the stars of NBC News), followed by the network's flagship newscast, The News with Brian Williams, and The Site, a show about the Internet and computers co-hosted by Soledad O'Brien and a computer-generated character. The first Internight included an interview with President Bill Clinton, who took questions from callers and e-mailers. Other shows that made use of the internet included News Chat featuring Mary Kathleen Flynn, and a look into the past with Time & Again anchored by Jane Pauley. Black Entertainment Television host Ed Gordon also contributed to the new network by hosting the Saturday version of Internight.

The start was a bit rocky due to a series of changes in management and continuing internal squabbles over the direction of the network. In addition, NBC affiliates were concerned that the cross-promotion would divert viewers from their own programs, although that fear abated as the years passed. However, MSNBC was often first to break news. It broke the story of the crash of TWA Flight 800 eight minutes before CNN, ushering in an era of hypercompetitiveness between the news channels that continues today.

The next phase of MSNBC was a new morning centerpiece. MSNBC signed a simulcast agreement with Infinity Broadcasting station WFAN to carry the Imus in the Morning radio show, which began on September 2, 1996. In November 1996, the network moved to the new Secaucus studios.

Not just the Net

The original founder's goals of the network attracting a younger, tech-savvy audience, failed to materialize, however. After its first year, the network had 24,000 households viewing it per night, paling by comparison to the 578,000 of CNN and the 30,000 of Fox News (then four months younger than MSNBC). In September 1997, MSNBC laid off 20% of its staff, and cancelled The Site due to low ratings, causing howls of protest from its viewers, many of whom considered O'Brien a cult figure. Internight was replaced with The Big Show, hosted by Keith Olbermann, in hopes that his irreverent style would spike up ratings. The network began moving away from its Internet roots and began covering fashion and celebrity like the other news channels.

The MSNBC web site remained relatively successful, regularly leading the rankings of the most-used online news site in 1997, 1998, and 1999. MSNBC multiplied its ratings by tenfold during the impeachment of Bill Clinton, following a new covering the Big Story format that provided saturation coverage for the top stories. However, in November 1998, Keith Olbermann left over MSNBC's continuing focus on the impeachment. He was replaced by John Hockenberry, who achieved some success. His Edgewise program focused on newsmakers and made use of Hockenberry's documentary skills.

The ratings began to drop after the impeachment trial was completed. MSNBC's experiment with John McLaughlin in February 1999 lasted only a couple of months. Fox was beating MSNBC in numbers of viewers per 24 hours, which was more impressive considering MSNBC's distribution advantage. NBC News stars began shunning the network. Low-rated chat shows such as Watch It, and Equal Time, a Crossfire knockoff, filled out the schedule. Hockenberry was replaced after only six months by a rebroadcast of Hardball from CNBC. That show was replaced by Headliners and Legends, a biography program that has been a weekend staple on the network ever since. Also in 1999, the management of MSNBC replaced midday news coverage with a delayed broadcast of NBC News Today called Today on MSNBC and repackaged Dateline NBC stories into MSNBC Investigates, a decision that angered NBC affiliates. On the other hand, 1999 saw a partnership with the Washington Post that permitted more integrated coverage on the web site.

In 2000, a three woman anchored show named Home Page hosted by Ashleigh Banfield, Gina Gaston, and Mika Brzezinski began. Along with Home Page, MSNBC tried to gather radio fans by signing a deal with Detroit radio station WJR to simulcast the first two hours of The Mitch Albom Show. While the pairing was a ratings winner, both shows would eventually be cancelled: Home Page due to sinking ratings; and The Mitch Albom Show due to its constant pre-emptions and some disagreements with the MSNBC management. 2000 also saw the cancellation of Equal Time and the departure of John Gibson, one of the original MSNBC hosts, whose confrontational tenure as the host of the Feedback primetime program foreshadowed his controversial opinion program on the Fox News Channel. MSNBC continued to repackage NBC News programs (Special Edition and Crime Files), and during the 2000 presidential election cycle, reporters and interviews were cycled constantly between broadcast NBC and the cable news channel. MSNBC also commissioned original documentaries similar to The Discovery Channel for use as filler on weekends. Later in the year, Lester Holt received kudos for his daily coverage of the Florida election controversy, allowing MSNBC to beat Fox News during November 2000.

Ratings freefall

2001 began with MSNBC sinking in ratings by 75%. The channel reverted to Headliners & Legends and MSNBC Investigates, eschewing the aggressive talking head format of the Fox News Channel. With MSNBC floundering, MSNBC reversed its stance and tried to copy the Fox News Channel's emphasis on opinion hosts. In January, Mike Barnicle got a show on MSNBC, but it was quickly cancelled. In June, as a sign of the continuing trouble of MSNBC, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said that he wouldn't have started MSNBC knowing what he knew now. After the September 11, 2001 attacks, MSNBC did prove useful as an outlet for NBC News to provide up-to-the-minute coverage, in contrast to broadcast NBC's longer stories. CNBC and CNBC Europe, with little financial news to report, ran MSNBC for many hours of the day following the attacks. The year also boosted the profile of Ashleigh Banfield, who had escaped injury while covering the World Trade Center on September 11. Her Region In Conflict program capitalized on her newfound celebrity and showcased exclusive interviews from Afghanistan. Also, CNN.com surpassed MSNBC.com as the most-used online news site.

2002 continued MSNBC's focus on opinion journalism. Alan Keyes is Making Sense debuted in January, featuring the conservative one-time candidate for the Republican Presidential nomination. Jerry Nachman joined MSNBC as its editor-in-chief and host of a news analysis program in May, and liberal talk-show pioneer Phil Donahue began hosting an evening talk show in July. The News with Brian Williams was relegated to CNBC, leaving MSNBC with primarily opinion shows in the evening. Afternoons replaced the rolling news coverage with talk shows featuring Curtis Sliwa, Ron Kuby, Bill Press, and Pat Buchanan. For a time, MSNBC featured a show hosted by right-wing shock-jock Michael Savage, which turned out to have been an embarrassing move when Savage snapped at a prank caller on his show, calling him a "pig" and a "sodomite," telling him that he "should get AIDS and die" and "go eat a sausage and choke on it." Savage was immediately fired.

Somewhat counter-intuitively, MSNBC also rebranded itself as America's NewsChannel, with a patriotic theme proclaiming MSNBC to be fiercely independent. MSNBC's president claimed that Americans wanted to hear more analysis, amid fears from some MSNBC employees that the news channel would close altogether and become a home for NBC entertainment reruns.

The experiment did not last long. Keyes was gone by July. Sliwa and Kuby were removed in October. Donahue's ratings plunged spectacularly, from 660,000 households his first week to just 136,000 households his sixth week, a drop of 80%. The network was regularly beaten in the ratings by CNN Headline News. Overall, ratings dropped 60% from the previous year. MSNBC publicly proclaimed support for Donahue and moved some shows around to try to stabilize his ratings, which helped increase his viewership to 376,000 households. Nevertheless, the cancellation of his show would stick in the craw of some left-leaning viewers for years. They saw it as an indication that executives had no faith in liberal viewpoints. A new show, Countdown, debuted. Originally it was focused on the war in Iraq, but eventually, it became a vehicle for Keith Olbermann to return his irreverent style to the network after his self-imposed exile from news. Olbermann became a sharp and consistent critic of President George W. Bush. On the other hand, the web site was still holding its own with CNN, and CNN and MSNBC were trading the No. 1 and 2 positions as most-viewed online news.

In 2005, Rita Cosby left the Fox News Channel, where she hosted the weekend edition of The Big Story (which frequently focused on tabloid topics) to host a nightly show focusing mostly on big interviews and tabloid topics, including a "expose" about a brothel in Carson City, Nevada. The show initially did well in the ratings but as time went on ratings dropped. Many attribute the drop to a decrease in promotion on MSNBC and NBC, viewers tiring of tabloid news stories such as the Natalee Holloway abduction, and the novelty of the show wearing off. The show has since swapped timeslots with Joe Scarborough's Scarborough Country and later was cancelled and replaced with 'MSNBC Investigates'

To compound the network's ratings woes, CNN Headline News completely revamped its primetime block of programming in 2005, replacing its traditional newswheel format with a long-form newscast, entertainment programs, and opinionated hosts, most notably the polarizing victims' advocate Nancy Grace. This has allowed HLN to vault past MSNBC in the crucial primetime viewing period, with HLN consistently rating higher than MSNBC in terms of total viewers (ages 2+) in the 8-11pm ET timeslot.

On December 23, 2005, it was announced that NBC Universal will acquire an additional 32% share of the television network from Microsoft, solidifying its control over television operations and allowing NBC to further consolidate MSNBC's backroom operations with NBC News and its other cable properties. MSNBC.com will continue to be 50% owned by both NBC and Microsoft, and its operations will be largely unaffected. NBC will have the option to buy the remaining 18% share from Microsoft after two years. Due to Microsoft's declining influence, rumors are currently circulating in the broadcast industry that the network will eventually be rebranded as NBC News Channel, which is currently used for the network's news service to NBC affiliates.

New Leadership

On June 7, 2006, Rick Kaplan resigned as president of MSNBC, after holding the post for two years. [Rick Kaplan Exits: Effective Immediately, President Of MSNBC Steps Down], TVNewser, June 7th, 2006 Following the announcement, it was announced on June 12, 2006, that Dan Abrams, a nine-year veteran of MSNBC and NBC News, had been named General Manager of the NBC News 24-hour cable news channel, effective immediately. NBC News Senior Vice President Phil Griffin, who spent nearly ten years at MSNBC, most recently as vice president of primetime programming, will oversee MSNBC. Griffin will also continue to oversee NBC News’ Today. Abrams will report to Griffin. Dan Abrams will step down from his weekday show "The Abrams Report" but will remain as NBC Chief Legal Correspondent and contribute to NBC and MSNBC news programs.

On June 29, 2006, Abrams announced a revamp to MSNBC's early-primetime and primetime schedule. Starting July 10th, The Situation with Tucker Carlson will air at 4pm and 6pm ET (taking over Abrams' old timeslot), while Rita Cosby's [[Rita_Cosby:_Live_%26_Direct|Live & Direct]] will be taken off the schedule. Cosby instead will be given the role of primary anchor for "MSNBC Investigates" at 10 and 11pm ET, the new programming set to take over Cosby and Carlson's timeslots. According to the press release, "MSNBC Investigates" promise to "...complement MSNBC's existing programming by building on our library of award winning documentaries." [link]. The move to taped programming during 10 and 11pm is likely a direct result of the success the network saw with their Friday "experiment" by replacing all primetime programming with taped specials.

Broadcasts outside US

MSNBC is not shown outside the Americas on a channel in its own right. However, MSNBC is shown for a few hours a day on Orbit News in Europe and the Middle East. During breaking news MSNBC is also shown occasionally on sister network CNBC Europe.

Online

[MSNBC.com], is the online news outlet for the NBC News family (Today, Nightly News and Dateline). The Web site is currently in a fierce battle with [CNN.com] for the position of top online U.S. news site. MSNBC's website uses video compression technology with Windows Media Player that is not compatible with the Macintosh platform therefore excluding Mac users from taking full advantage of the website.

The site is produced out of newsrooms in Redmond, Washington, and Secaucus, New Jersey.

MSNBC.com consists of news and features from MSNBC, MSNBC.com, NBC News, The Washington Post and Newsweek magazine, among others. MSNBC.com is the news provider for MSN, the portal site and online service operated by Microsoft. MSNBC.com hosts show Web sites for NBC News shows such as Dateline NBC, Today and NBC Nightly News.

Programming

MSNBC's programming is segmented into four distinct segments: early morning, daytime, primetime and weekend (all times Eastern).

Mornings

Early mornings start at 5 a.m. with First Look, anchored by Kristine Johnson.

Mornings continue with Imus in the Morning, a simulcast of nationally syndicated radio personality Don Imus's show from WFAN radio. The program originates from MSNBC studios in New Jersey, the Imus Ranch in Ribera, New Mexico and the WFAN-AM studios in Queens, New York. Imus airs from 6–9 a.m. Satellite radio (only XM currently offers MSNBC) replays First Look, since XM does not have the rights to rebroadcast Imus' radio show.

A repeat of Countdown with Keith Olbermann from the previous evening airs at 9 a.m.

Daytime

MSNBC Live airs from 10am-3pm weekdays featuring the latest news, live coverage, breaking news, weather coverage, and special features.

Anchors and correspondents seen on MSNBC weekdays and weekends include, Chris Jansing, Amy Robach, Melissa Stark, Contessa Brewer, Bill Fitzgerald, Kristine Johnson, Milissa Rehberger, Alex Witt, Dan Kloeffler, Collette Cassidy, Natalie Allen, Donna Gregory, Willow Bay, Norah O'Donnell, Monica Novotny, Monica Crowley, Michael Smerconish and MSNBC.com's Dara Brown. Chief Meteorologist Sean McLaughlin and NBC Weather Plus meteorologists (Bill Karins, Elise Finch, Jeff Ranieri, Jackie Meretsky, and Kristen Cornett) provide weather reports, and CNBC Market Updates air at 30 past the hour.

At 3p.m., The Most with Alison Stewart airs. Alison Stewart has her finger on the pulse of the Internet, entertainment, business, news, technology and health, and she delivers The Most information.

At 4:30 and 5:30pm in place of news break headlines, CNBC Market Wrap airs. These segments are the length of regular news updates, and are usually hosted by Margaret Brennan.

Evening/Primetime

Evening programming begins at 4 p.m. with Tucker, hosted by Tucker Carlson.

At 5 p.m., Hardball with Chris Matthews airs. Hosted by political reporter and author Chris Matthews, Hardball is a mix of political and other news.

The 4-6 p.m. block reairs from 6-8 p.m. Tucker and Hardball are sometimes updated for the later airings when news warrants.

Countdown with Keith Olbermann is a look at the day's top news, shown each weekday at 8 p.m. Hosted by former ESPN SportsCenter anchor Keith Olbermann, Countdown is styled like a radio music countdown, starting with the day's number five story (usually the top story of the day) progressing to number one. This is the second time Olbermann has hosted a show for the network; he hosted The Big Show from 1997 to 1998 as well as White House in Crisis which aired during that same time period.

Scarborough Country with former Florida representative Joe Scarborough airs at 9 p.m. Monday-Thursday, and focuses on political, social, media and religious issues.

The MSNBC Doc Block airs weekdays from 10pm-12am ET. Two taped documentaries air at this time. MSNBC uses its resource of award winning documentaries in its primetime lineup. Rita Cosby will soon work in developing more documentaries with her newly formed Rita Cosby Specials unit.

Weekends

Weekends consist of news coverage from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Live coverage of the news begins at 8 a.m. with Alex Witt and runs through noon, followed by Contessa Brewer from noon-4 p.m.

Weekend evenings start at 4 p.m. with back-to-back episodes of Headliners and Legends followed by MSNBC Reports, MSNBC Investigates, and other programs. Brief news cut-ins start at the bottom of each hour.

The network cablecasts Meet the Press with Tim Russert each Sunday evening at 10 p.m. and 1 a.m.

Former programming

• Alan Keyes is Making Sense
• Ashleigh Banfield
• The Big Show (Keith Olbermann returned to MSNBC in 2003 and now anchors Countdown)
• Buchanan and Press
• [[Connected: Coast to Coast]]
• [[Countdown:Iraq]]
• Deborah Norville Tonight
• Donahue
• Equal Time
• InterNight
• Lester Holt Live
• Michael Savage
• Morning Line
• MSNBC Reports (Live Broadcast, now consists of Dateline reruns)
• Nachman
• The News with Brian Williams
• Remember This?
• [[Rita Cosby: Live & Direct]]
• Saturday Final
• The Site
• The Situation with Tucker Carlson (renamed Tucker)
• Time and Again
• Weekends with Maury and Connie

Past hosts

MSNBC is derided by broadcasting analysts for its "revolving door" tactics when it comes to talent, i.e. rapidly canceling shows and having its anchors depart after only a couple of years with the network. None of MSNBC's current anchors have been with the network since its conception.

Past MSNBC shows featured hosts such as :

Dan Abrams Mitch Albom Ashleigh Banfield Mike Barnicle Pat Buchanan Connie Chung Rita Cosby Ann Curry Laurie Dhue Phil Donahue

John Gibson John Hockenberry Alan Keyes Ron Kuby Leo Laporte Frank Luntz John McLaughlin Andrea Mitchell Bill Moyers Deborah Norville

Jerry Nachman Soledad O'Brien Lawrence O'Donnell Jane Pauley Stone Phillips Maury Povich Bill Press Ron Reagan Michael Savage Curtis Sliwa

Sharon Tay Jesse Ventura Brian Williams

Past Anchors of MSNBC Live

Lester Holt Forrest Sawyer John Seigenthaler Jr. Laurie Jennings Bob Kur Jeannie Ohm Christy Musumeci Bianca Solorzano

Sam Shane John Elliott (KCBS-TV) Maurice DuBois (formerly of WNBC) Rob Morrison (WNBC) Bud Hedinger (briefly) Cheryl Casone Gregg Jarrett (Fox News Channel)

Virginia Cha Jessica Yellin Lisa Daniels Alexis Glick Natalie Morales Alison Stewart Randy Meier

Satellite radio

MSNBC program audio is also available on XM Satellite Radio. Don Imus' Imus in the Morning is syndicated via Westwood One, which generally does not allow live radio broadcasts via Internet streams or satellite radio, and thus is not currently available on the XM MSNBC channel. In the place of Imus from 6-9 a.m., XM airs six repeats of the 5:30 a.m. half hour of First Look. Primetime programming on Saturday and Sunday nights from 8-11 p.m. are replaced with repeats of the programming from the same time on the previous Thursday and Friday nights, respectively.

References

External links

• [Official Site]
• [MSNBC on XM information page]
• [Photos of the MSNBC studio]

 

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