MS NOW studio design mixes architecture with unique LED arrays

MS NOW began broadcasting from new studios at Versant’s Times Square headquarters on Saturday, Nov. 15, concluding a compressed three-month construction period that relocated the network’s production and newsroom operations.

The move followed NBCUniversal’s decision to spin off its cable networks into Versant, requiring MS NOW to leave 30 Rockefeller Plaza, where it had broadcast as MSNBC for nearly two decades.

MS NOW channels its fluttering flag icon in new motion graphics package

The new Versant headquarters occupies three floors at 229 West 43rd St. in a building that previously housed The New York Times and later BuzzFeed News.

“Timing was, of course, a challenge, but we have an incredible team that built a fully functional and state-of-the-art facility in an incredibly short period of time,” said Andy Barsh, senior vice president of creative operations for MS NOW.

The Times Square location serves as a temporary home while Versant searches for a permanent headquarters, with MS NOW expected to remain at 229 West 43rd St. through the 2026 midterm elections.

The facility’s previous use for video production provided existing broadcast infrastructure that supported the accelerated timeline. The buildout includes three studios designated 9A, 9B and 9C, configured to support 120 hours of weekly live programming along with two production control rooms.

Inside the studios of MS NOW

The new studios were designed by Emmett Aiello and Corey Atwood of Clickspring Design, working closely with the MS NOW creative team, along with Marc Greenstein and Margot Silver on the production side.

“We built these state-of-the-art studios to provide our audience with the a seamless viewing experience. The shows will feel exactly like they always have, and viewers and hosts will not see a change in quality or the news we cover, just the graphics and name will be different,” said Barsh.

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“Our spaces were also designed so that our hosts feel comfortable as they report on the biggest stories of the day and have the important conversations that our viewers rely on them for. Our unique designs and sets provide our show teams and reporters with the ability and flexibility that’s required for them to report on news across the world and tell the stories our viewers care about most,” Barsh continued.

Studio 9A features a modern, polished aesthetic, with a wraparound, curved LED display behind the main anchor position. This display flows like a ribbon or a fluttering flag — a nod to the MS NOW logo — intersecting with a trio of pivoting, tracking vertical displays.

Arched architectural frames outline the space, with a repeating grid of dots providing subtle texture behind the display technology. 

These frames provide a secondary zone in the studio for standups and a touchscreen with a unique LED array created from 28 different square and rectangular displays, adding pops of color or content to a segment.

A unique element of Studio 9A is a backlit “bento box,” filled with stars, stripes and cutouts of the White House. While this set piece is already in election mode, one could see how it could easily be changed with new elements filling the boxes. 

Studio 9C features a more city-inspired design, mixing the vibes of an upscale hotel lounge with brick and steel columns.

The space is framed by wide arches, and LED fills multiple sections along with wood for a bit of texture. Green walls with faux plants add a unique layer with panels of diagonally lit wood elements continuing the upscale aesthetic. 

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One of the more unique areas of the studio is a section combining the diagonal elements with backlit panels and layers of LED, creating depth and adding texture.

Desk-wise, Studio 9C features a circular table with integrated monitors and lighting while 9A includes a V-shaped desk with glossy, edge-lit arcylic sides that works in another arch reference.

Overall, while the two main studios are fairly compact, they utilize the footprint to provide multiple distinct areas and integrate LEDs in unique and interesting ways to add visual interest compared to other cable networks. 

Virtual set extensions are still present but have been toned done compared to the previous on-air design used by MSNBC. The new VSEs include more flowing curves and branded MS NOW panels with a smaller newsroom view.

Studio 9B, meanwhile, functions as a virtual production space, with LED on the walls and floor for an immersive experience for talent and viewers. 

The studio is built from 1.6-mm-pixel-pitch panels operating at 240 Hz with real-time slicing and rendering to output four distinct camera feeds

“The technology in this studio — including XR/AR tools — will allow our teams to tell stories in new and innovative ways, including visualizing extreme weather stories, election data, and more,” Barsh said.

MS NOW plans to use Studio 9B for special event coverage, guest interviews, pre-taped segments, digital production and breaking news. The studio is equipped to support virtual, augmented reality and extended reality applications.

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A fourth studio, configured as a 360-degree flash cam set, is positioned within the newsroom area for live shots. Additional flash cam and podcast studios are also located in the facility.

Mystic Custom Fabrication fabricated the sets, with additional elements from Blackwalnut and the Telemundo Scenic Fabrication Shop. Niel Galen and Anna Jones of The Lighting Design Group designed the lighting systems, which total 300 fixtures across the three studios. Planar provided the LED video displays.

Technical infrastructure

The Manhattan facility houses editorial and administrative operations, along with the two editorial control rooms. Studios include Sony cameras, CueScript prompters and Ross Video robotics including CamBot and Artimo systems.

Technical control rooms, audio systems, satellite ingest and master control functions are being handled from CNBC’s facility in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey.

The two locations connect via 100 Gbps symmetric fiber.

The network currently has a broadcast facility in Washington, D.C. at 400 North Capitol with construction underway on a studio at its West Coast office in Los Angeles. 

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MS NOW rebranded from MSNBC, introducing new graphics and a logo while maintaining its programming lineup and content approach.