Key Points
- MSNBC is rebranding to MS NOW on November 15, executives confirmed on Monday
- The channel is one of several that is being spun out of NBC Universal into Versant.
- We’re getting MS NOW before GTA 6.
Cable news outlet MSNBC is ready to shed the Peacock identity.
Starting November 15, the channel will formally adopt its new name, MS NOW — an initialism for “My Source for News, Opinion and the World — which will effectively mark the end of nearly three decades of operation under NBC News.
MSNBC stopped using NBC’s on-air resources earlier this month in favor of a global news partnership with Comcast’s Sky News. The channel is one of several that Comcast is spinning out of NBC Universal into a separate company called Versant, which is expected to launch next year.
In a memo to staff Monday, MSNBC President Rebecca Kutler confirmed the network will change its name on November 15 under the tagline “Same Mission. New Name.”
Starting this week, MSNBC will begin running spots to educate viewers about the name change. A 15-second spot that debuted on Monday features its top talent, Rachel Maddow, educating viewers about the brand evolution while promising that MS NOW will continue to offer the same news and analysis programming fans have come to expect.
Notably, Maddow didn’t say the name “MS NOW” in the new spot. When the name was revealed months ago, she joked that she didn’t know how to pronounce the channel’s new name.
Despite widespread criticism and jokes over the new brand, executives are sticking with it.
“This moment comes after months of meticulous planning and thoughtful collaboration across every corner of our organization,” Kutler wrote on Monday. “We are facing it head-on, and our success in the months and years ahead will depend on our innovation and entrepreneurial approach.”
“This new name underscores the brand’s mission to serve as the destination for domestic and international breaking news and the best-in-class opinion journalism,” Mark Lazarus, the CEO of Versant, said earlier this year. “Most importantly, while the name will be different, the brand’s commitment to its audience will not change.”
CNBC is also part of the Versant spin-off, and the channel is moving on from the resources of NBC News. But CNBC — which launched as the “Consumer News & Business Channel” — is keeping its name while dropping NBC’s Peacock logo.
