The MSNBC overhaul recently saw the cancellation of Joy Reid's and other hosts' shows, drawing sharp criticism from Rachel Maddow who condemned the network’s decision calling it “a big mistake”.
Now, a new report claims that MSNBC has told most of the employees who work on Maddow's prime-time opinion show that they are being terminated.
According to the Guardian, the Comcast-owned channel informed Maddow employees that they could either accept a severance payment or reapply for other positions at the network. However, there is no update regarding Maddow.
What would happen to Maddow's employees who are being let go?
Maddow, the most well-known anchor and highly regarded personality on MSNBC, will keep her executive producer Cory Gnazzo and a number of senior producers, as per the Guardian.
The report further states that the remaining members of Maddow team and producers from other recently scrapped shows, such as those hosted by Alex Wagner, Katie Phang, Jonathan Capehart, Ayman Mohyeldin, and José Díaz-Balart, will have to search for new positions either at the network or at another firm.
Despite these guarantees, there are concerns about the way the reforms are being executed, which involves making workers reapply for positions they previously had, the report added.
In the past, MSNBC has been able to reassign employees without entirely eliminating jobs when programs are canceled.
The reorganisation comes as MSNBC, which is being split off from parent company NBCUniversal, is facing deeper financial difficulties.
The network is looking for ways to cost-saving measures in line with CNN's recent decision to fire 200 workers under its new CEO, Mark Thompson, who has been adamantly advocating for a more robust digital strategy.
Rachel Maddow blasts MSNBC over Reid's show cancellation
In her Monday night monologue, Maddow attacked the MSNBC's move, suggesting that her executives were racist for demoting Wagner and Reid.
“I have more respect and affection for no colleague than Joy Reid,” Maddow stated in her monologue.
“I love everything about her. I have learned so much from her. I have so much more to learn from her. I do not want to lose her as a colleague here at MSNBC,” she continued, stressing that “I think it is a bad mistake to let her walk out the door.”