MSNBC Officially Cancels Ed Schultz (Last Show On Friday) And Gives Chuck Todd His Time Slot

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Ed Schultz will air his last show on MSNBC on Friday, and in a few weeks his timeslot will be turned over to Chuck Todd according to MSNBC boss Phil Griffin.

Here is the memo that Griffin sent to MSNBC employees:

I’m writing to share a number of changes we’re making as we build a new daytime lineup with the best live, breaking news coverage on television.

As of this Friday, “The Cycle,” “Now with Alex Wagner” and “The Ed Show” will air their final shows.

Alex Wagner will stay with MSNBC and play a key role in our political coverage as we head into the 2016 election. And Ari Melber will continue in his role as Chief Legal Correspondent. But we will be parting ways with some friends – Ed Schultz, Krystal Ball, Abby Huntsman and Toure will be leaving MSNBC. Please join me in thanking them for their numerous contributions over the past several years, and in wishing them great success.

Beginning in a few weeks, Chuck Todd will bring his unmatched brand of political insight and analysis back to MSNBC with a daily one-hour program. That show will air weekdays at 5pm.

I know you read press reports last week speculating about these changes. I hope you can understand that we were not able to confirm at that point because we had not yet finalized many of the decisions I’m sharing with you today, and we hadn’t yet spoken directly with the people involved.

In the coming weeks, as we complete our plans to create a new look and flow for our dayside programming, our 3pm to 6pm hours will begin the pivot towards live, breaking news coverage – with interim hosts from among our very talented ranks. And then, in September, we’ll unveil a 9am to 5pm schedule driven by dynamic coverage of breaking news events that are shaping the day.

Change can be hard. There’s no doubt it’s been a difficult time, but we have exciting opportunities ahead.

Griffin is replacing The Ed Show with the “insight and analysis” of Chuck Todd. Griffin’s move appears to have come at the request of NBC News president Andrew Lack, who is determined to rebuild the relationship between NBC and MSNBC.

It is laughable that Griffin is trying to convince anyone that the woefully underresourced MSNBC is going to be in a position to compete with CNN on breaking news. The fact that Griffin threw out the term breaking news was code for MSNBC’s move away from the left.

The release also confirmed that Ed Schultz will be leaving MSNBC. Schultz won’t be the last liberal to be let go. It has been reported for months that Al Sharpton, Lawrence O’Donnell, and Chris Hayes are also on the way out.

All might not be lost as it has been reported that NBC News is discussing a potential MSNBC return for Keith Olbermann, but the lean forward network is finished. MSNBC as viewers knew it will cease to exist after Friday.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association