Source:
Patrick
Randak
/
MSNBC
In
a
surprising
announcement,
MSNBC
has
canceled
journalist
Mehdi
Hasan’s
show
as
part
of
a
new
weekend
lineup
change.
Fans
of
veteran
journalist
Mehdi
Hasan
got
some
bad
news
as
it
was
reported
that
MSNBC
has
ended
his
show
as
part
of
a
broader
lineup
change
for
its
weekend
programming.
His
one-hour
show
which
aired
on
Sundays
will
be
taken
over
by
fellow
journalist
Ayman
Mohyeldin,
whose
own
show
will
extend
from
one
hour
to
two.
Hasan
will
stay
on
with
MSNBC
as
an
analyst
and
a
fill-in
host
when
the
occasion
arises.
Other
changes
include
Jonathan
Capehart’s
time
slot
on
the
weekends
being
moved
to
6
P.M.,
and
analyst
and
lawyer
Katie
Phang’s
show
being
moved
to
noon
on
Saturdays.
MSNBC
President
Rashida
Jones
announced
the
changes
in
an
internal
memo
sent
out
on
Thursday
(November
30),
saying
the
moves
“will
evolve
our
weekend
programming
to
better
position
ourselves
as
we
head
into
the
presidential
election.”
The
news
of
Hasan’s
show
ending
was
met
with
dismay,
considering
that
he
was
one
of
the
journalists
who
had
been
asking
hard
questions
of
the
Israeli
government
as
their
war
against
Hamas began
on
October
7,
with
an
interview
with
senior
adviser
Mark
Regev.
One
prominent
figure
voicing
their
dismay
is
Democratic
Representative
Ro
Khanna
of
California,
who
called
the
decision
“bad
optics”
for
MSNBC.
“As
a
strong
supporter
of
free
speech,
MSNBC
owes
the
public
an
explanation
for
this
decision.
Why
would
they
choose
to
do
this
now?”,
he
wrote
in
a
post
on
X,
formerly
Twitter.
The
major
component
of
the
shakeup
is
the
debut
of
The
Weekend,
a
new
show
that
will
be
hosted
by
MSNBC
anchors
Alicia
Menendez,
Symone
Sanders-Townsend,
and
Michael
Steele.
The
Weekend
will
air
from
Washington
D.C.
from
8
to
10
AM
on
Saturdays
and
Sundays
beginning
January
13.
Menendez
joined
MSNBC
in
2019
and
had
her
program
on
Saturdays
and
Sundays
before
the
move.
Sanders-Townsend
also
had
her
own
MSNBC
show,
SYMONE
which
aired
on
Peacock
as
well
after
joining
the
network
in
2022
after
serving
as
Senior
Advisor
and
Chief
Spokesperson
to
Vice
President
Kamala
Harris.
A
former
lieutenant
governor
of
Maryland
and
RNC
Chairman,
Steele
has
been
a
frequent
guest
and
fill-in
host
on
MSNBC.
