‘Maddow’ returning to five shows per week during Trump’s second first 100 days

By Michael P. Hill January 13, 2025

Subscribe to NewscastStudio for the latest news, project case studies and product announcements in broadcast technology, creative design and engineering delivered to your inbox.

One of MSNBC’s biggest stars will return to broadcast five nights a week — at least for the first 100 days Donald Trump is in office.

Rachel Maddow will return to host the eponymous show every weekday starting Jan. 20, 2025. Maddow will also serve as lead anchor for the network’s coverage of the inauguration that day.

The return of “The Rachel Maddow Show” five nights a week means that “Alex Wagner Tonight,” which took its place in 2022 on Tuesday through Friday nights, will be displaced temporarily, with anchor Alex Wagner being sent on special assignment to cover the new administration, according to the network.

Maddow emphasized that there would be a “hard stop” on the format come April 2025 when the first 100 days of the new administration are done, with both shows returning to their regular schedules.

“TRMS” debuted Sept. 8, 2008, in the key 9 p.m. timeslot and quickly became one of the network’s most popular shows. It became known for its detailed breakdowns of key events in the news along with interviews and analysis.

In 2022, Maddow took an extended leave from the show. When she returned in May, the show switched to a weekly format airing only on Mondays. At first, “MSNBC Prime” filled the 9 p.m. slot the other four nights, but Wagner was eventually named to take over the period.

The arrangement was part of an unusual deal between Maddow and MSNBC. Maddow had been expressing interest in working on other projects, including films and podcasting, and hinted she might leave the network to seek a less demanding schedule. MSNBC executives eventually relented and made an agreement for Maddow to only host one night per week while also increasing her salary. The deal also called for Maddow to lead live coverage of major news events for the network, such as election nights and debates, even if those did not fall on Mondays.

Maddow has also been called in to help on other nights to lead major breaking news coverage from time to time.

Advertisement

The move comes as MSNBC has seen a massive ratings dip after the 2024 election, a shift that has been widely attributed to its left-leaning audience being fed up with watching the news after Trump beat Vice President Kamala Harris.

Many MSNBC hosts, including Maddow, are vocal critics of Trump and the MAGA movement and, for a while, the network seemed to have carved out a niche in serving as the opposite of the conservative commentary channel owned by Fox. However, that trend didn’t hold up well after Harris’ stunning loss.

It’s hard not to see MSNBC’s shift to bringing Maddow back five nights a week as a way to draw in more viewers during the key 100 first days and, hopefully, revive their interest in the network even after the schedules revert back. As an analysis show, MSNBC will likely look for ways to focus “TRMS” on topics that will resonate well with its core viewership, though it may face the challenge of finding ways to not focus too much on what its progressive viewers might grow tired of in terms of the new administration, though no determination about this has been announced.

“Wagner” has never performed as strongly as “Maddow,” which has proven an especially sore spot for the network’s already shrinking ratings. 

It’s not uncommon for TV networks to focus coverage on the first 100 days of new administrations, which are often full of transitional drama, sometimes creating temporary shows around the topic or assigning correspondents to cover the beat during that time.

Subscribe to NewscastStudio for the latest news, project case studies and product announcements in broadcast technology, creative design and engineering delivered to your inbox.