MSNBC anchor Rachel Maddow publicly defended the cable news network’s rebrand during an appearance on the Pivot podcast with tech journalist Kara Swisher.
“In this case, we can apply our own instincts, our own queries, our own priorities, to getting stuff that we need from reporters and correspondents … and so it’s gonna be better,” Maddow said.
Mark Lazarus, who will lead Versant, a company consisting of MS NOW and other cable assets, officially announced the cable news network’s new name, which is short for My Source News Opinion World. The network will also drop the iconic NBC peacock symbol from its logo, replacing it with a blue background with a red-and-white striped flag.
“If there was ever a time for us to change our name, this is it — because we’re not just separating from NBC News in corporate terms, we’re competing with them now. So I think the distinction is going to be good for us,” Maddow said. “While I will admit to having no idea how to pronounce ‘MS NOW’ (and I’m still not all that sure about pronouncing ‘VERSANT,’ either), we’re at least dropping our syllable count from five to three! An efficiency gain!”
Lazarus had previously claimed that MSNBC would keep its name when it was eventually spun off by Comcast during a meeting with staffers in January.
“I know there was some discussion with the MSNBC name, so you can take that off of your worry list on things,” Lazarus said at the time.
CNBC, on the other hand, will keep its name, which is short for Consumer News and Business Channel, but is expected to also get a new logo without the NBC peacock. Other Comcast channels such as Golf Channel, GolfNow and SportsEngine are also expected to be rebranded amid the spinoff.
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, initially called SpinCo, while NBC News, NBC Sports, Telemundo, Bravo and the streaming service Peacock would all remain under the NBCUniversal umbrella last November.
“Everyone is in a panic because everything is up in the air,” a source told the New York Post at the time.
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