Over the weekend MSNBC announced that it was shaking up its lineup and a number of hosts would be losing their current shows, as would their production teams. Some of the hosts would be reassigned to other time slots, and the crews would be invited to apply for jobs on these new shows. Hmmmm.

I am a very casual viewer of MSNBC, mostly because I cannot stand the overt Republican cast of the morning and daytime lineups. Hosts who think the poisonously misogynistic John Kasich aren’t going to be high on the lists of places I spend my free time. Still I tend to turn to their group coverage for major political events like State of the Union addresses and political conventions, so I’m familiar with the people who lost their jobs.

I don’t always agree with Joy Reid as I’m not really in tune with her reasoning on issues sometimes, but I don’t see that she did anything egregious enough to lose her time slot. The same thing applies to Alex Wagner and Katie Phang. I was really surprised that they were all being let go or reassigned. Then I read this (from December 2024):

Mark Lazarus would like MSNBC to be on better terms with Republicans.

The SpinCo boss, who will mark one month into his new job on Friday, has indicated to people in private conversations over the past month that he would like the Rashida Jones-led cable news network to work to incorporate more GOP voices on its air, according to people familiar with the matter.

To be clear, Lazarus has signaled that he wants the channel to retain its core progressive identity. There is no indication that top prime time talent, like Rachel Maddow or Lawrence O’Donnell, will be asked to change the editorial makeup of their programs. In fact, Lazarus has conveyed his commitment to the type of perspective and analytical programming that such hosts offer.

At the moment, no formal directive or editorial guidance has been given to MSNBC anchors or producers, I’m told. Lazarus is still holding meetings and familiarizing himself with key personnel at the network.

And then this, from Monday:

“With Comcast moving to spin off MSNBC and its other cable assets into a separate company later this year, the writing was all but on the wall. Mark Lazarus, now overseeing the SpinCo division, has been clear in private conversations about his desire to refine MSNBC’s public perception, as we’ve previously reported. Lazarus has indicated in those conversations that he believes there is a view among some that Republicans cannot get a fair shake from the network — a notion he would like to change. Lazarus’ goal is to do this not by pushing the network rightward, but by making its brand of progressivism more broadly appealing, which I’m told he has discussed with new network boss Rebecca Kutler.

SpinCo, huh? Yeah.

It was an awful decision and the excuse that the people who were fired were too confrontational is clearly a lie. As far as I can tell, their biggest error was being confrontational while being people of color.

And the whole bullshit about how Lazarus wants Republicans to be more comfortable on the network is astounding. Is he seriously “you’ve got to hand it to Hitler”ing the fascist takeover of the US? Why should these monsters feel comfortable spewing their hate-filled talking points and what is supposed to be a progressive (spoiler:  it’s not) network?

The only response the GOP fascists should receive is the reception they are getting in their home districts:

To use language they understand:  fuck their feelings.

This seems right: