MSNBC to Launch New Sunday Program Led by Former White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki

Brian Steinberg
·3 min read
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Jen Psaki is about to test whether MSNBC viewers are ready to embrace another political aide who hopes to make a jump from the White House to their house.

MSNBC plans to launch “Inside With Jen Psaki,” a new program led by the former White House Press Secretary, on Sundays at noon, starting on March 19. The program will stream on the NBCUniversal Peacock hub a day later. Psaki is also developing “a new original streaming and social show, both set to launch this spring,” MSNBC said in a statement Monday. Psaki’s program will replace an hour that has long been anchored by weekend veteran Alex Witt, who will continue to hold forth Saturdays from noon to 2 p.m. and Sundays between 1 p.m. and 2 p.m.

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In “Inside,” Psaki will use her inside knowledge of how public policy discussions are shaped to break down big issues. She will also devote a new recurring segment, “Weekend Routine,” to coverage of the lives of notable lawmakers and thought leaders, shadowing the subject of her report as that person moves through their regular activities.

Psaki’s hire is emblematic of big changes taking place at MSNBC, which for the past few years had portrayed itself as a place where viewers might get breaking-news coverage across the day and even into the evening when warranted, while being served opinion programming from a progressive lens in primetime. Increasingly, however, the network is ceding more hours to opinion programming — “Morning Joe” was recently expanded to four hours and MSNBC has hired analysts and opinion hosts like Katie Phang and Ayman Mohyeldin — and has shrunk the number of programs devoted to straight news.

Many of these shifts take place as the advent of streaming video pushes NBCUniversal to shake up how it operates its news assets. Traditional news coverage has increasingly become the province of streaming-video products from NBC News, including the broadband outlet NBC News Now, as well as a streaming feed from the company’s venerable “Today” program.

Psaki is the second former Democratic political operative hired by MSNBC in recent months. Symone Sanders, a former adviser to campaigns run by President Joe Biden and Senator Bernie Sanders, is now hosting a weekend show that also appears for streamers during part of the week. Psaki and Sanders are represented by United Talent Agency.

Psaki will continue to appear across MSNBC’s regular and special coverage programming, including election coverage, to provide an inside look at Washington politics as the 2024 presidential race takes shape. She will also contribute regularly to NBC News’ “Today” and ” Meet the Press.”
as well as Election Night programming. 

Psaki served as White House Press Secretary for the first 16 months of the Biden administration. She previously served during the Obama administration as White House Communications Director and spokeswoman at the State Department. She has also worked on John Kerry’s presidential campaign, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and President Obama’s 2008 and 2012 campaigns..

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