Rashida Spins Out

Rashida Jones on Tuesday morning stepped down as president of MSNBC, ending her nearly four-year run as the head of the progressive network.

Jones shared the news of her departure, which we first reported, with top MSNBC anchors on Tuesday morning. She then addressed staffers during the network's daily editorial meeting, during which she was greeted with a standing ovation.

“I came to this decision over the holidays while reflecting on our remarkable journey and the many successes we’ve achieved together as a team,” Jones wrote in a memo to MSNBC employees. “This has been the most rewarding chapter of my professional career and I am immensely proud of what we have accomplished, which has been made possible only by you.”

Jones’ exit from MSNBC was largely expected. We first reported in December about the possibility that Jones would exit in early 2025.

But her departure comes at a precarious time for MSNBC. Outside Donald Trump taking back the White House, MSNBC is one of the cable channels that parent company NBCUniversal is spinning off into a separate publicly traded entity called SpinCo. That company is set to be led by Mark Lazarus, a veteran NBCU executive.

During Tuesday morning’s editorial meeting, Lazarus told staffers he had appointed Rebecca Kutler, senior vice president of content strategy, as interim president. Lazarus also shared with staffers that when NBCU’s spinning off of its cable channels is complete, the network will retain its name.

During her time at MSNBC, Jones led the network to ratings highs, though the channel has seen its viewership numbers slip considerably since Trump’s election. Jones, the first Black woman to run a major cable news network, also sought to establish a post-linear future for MSNBC as cable cutting threatens the channel's long term existence, wading into live events and working on building a streamer.