MSNBC officially makes Rebecca Kutler president of network

MSNBC is dropping the “interim” part of Rebecca Kutler’s title by officially giving her the title of “president” of the network. 

Kutler was named interim president of the network in January 2025 after Rashida Jones left after four years at the helm. 

This puts her in charge during what is likely to be a pivotal year for the network.

First, it’s still battling with lower ratings that began dipping after the 2024 election. One of the bright spots on the schedule, Rachel Maddow returning to appear five nights a week, is slated to end after the first 100 days of Donald Trump’s second administration, when “Alex Wagner Tonight” is expected to return to air Tuesday through Friday, with “The Rachel Maddow Show” airing Mondays.

That schedule, however, typically wasn’t able to deliver Maddow’s ratings, which are among the network’s highest. 

In addition to the Maddow challenge, Kutler will also likely need to make the decision about who will replace Andrea Mitchell in the noon timeslot that she vacated Feb. 7, 2025. Mitchell has remained with NBC News and fill-in anchors are currently keep the anchor chair warm.

Kutler will also presumably be in charge during and after the planned spinoff of MSNBC and most other NBCUniversal-owned cable networks to a separate entity, currently being referred to as “SpinCo.” 

While no official decision has been announced, Kutler appeared to suggest that MSNBC may also need to build its own newsgathering department after the restructuring. Speaking to staffers Feb. 12, 2025, after her role was announced, she referred to building “a new news organization — one that is built for us, for our needs first, to be part of a new company that is standing itself up…”

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It hasn’t been made clear yet whether NBC News would continue to share its editorial team and product with MSNBC after the spinoff. In theory, the two networks could have some sort of agreement where MSNBC pays NBC for the use of its resources.

However, that could make it more difficult for SpinCo to be sold, as Comcast has hinted might be a possibility, since the new owners would likely either have to continue paying NBC for its editorial services or build a new newsroom. By creating a separate news division ahead of any potential sale, MSNBC could potentially provide a clearer picture of how its financials might look without the resources of NBC News.s