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MSNBC staffers are reportedly "in a panic" over the network's uncertain future, the New York Post reports.
Anchors Rachel Maddow, Chris Jansing and Katy Tur were present during a reported meeting led by NBCUniversal chairman Mark Lazarus that was said to be "tense" and even included the suggestion of the network changing its name, sources confirmed to the New York Post. Staffers fearing potential layoffs asked several questions about rebranding for the progressive cable news network amid repots that it would be cut off from the reporting muscle of NBC News.
Lazarus said he was unsure whether the network would change its identity or relocate, according to he sources.
“Everyone is in a panic because everything is up in the air,” one source told the New York Post.
“People don’t really know what’s going on. They had the election, holidays are coming up. People are tired and just trying to get through," another source said.
Comcast Corp, NBCUniversal's parent company, said MSNBC would be joining CNBC, Oxygen, E! Syfy and the Golf Channel as part of a new company called SpinCo, while NBC News, NBC Sports, Telemundo, Bravo and the streaming service Peacock would all remain under the NBCUniversal umbrella. The spinoff is expected to take place in about a year.
“I don’t think anyone knows anything,” a source said. “I think they have a year to figure this out.”