Ed Schultz and The Cycle have cancelled by MSNBC as they clear room for the arrival of lyin’ Brian Williams. Also getting the axe was something called ‘Now with Alex Wagner.’ Bye bye fat Ed! And Toure Niblet? See ya!
| Ed Schultz, The Cycle cancelled by MSNBC |
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For Fake Jake Tapper. He’s upset over the news too.
Really sorry to hear the news about @thecyclemsnbc @edshow and especially @NowWithAlex, my stellar competitor. Best wishes to you all.
— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) July 30, 2015
MSNBC has formally decided to cancel three programs — “The Cycle,” “Now with Alex Wagner” and “The Ed Show” — as part of a larger effort to shift its daytime lineup away from opinion programming, network sources told the On Media blog on Thursday.
Alex Wagner and Ari Melber, a “Cycle” co-host and MSNBC’s chief legal correspondent, will remain with the network. Ed Schultz, the host of “The Ed Show,” will leave the network, as will “Cycle” co-hosts Abby Huntsman, Krystal Ball and Toure. MSNBC President Phil Griffin announced the news in a memo sent shortly after the initial version of this item was published.
The cancellations, which have been expected for some time, come as NBC News chief Andrew Lack moves to refashion the liberal cable channel as a straight-forward news and politics offering, at least in daytime. In September, MSNBC will add a 5 p.m. program hosted by “Meet The Press” moderator Chuck Todd, while Brian Williams, the former “Nightly News” anchor, will serve as the network’s breaking news and special reports anchor.
In his memo to staff, Griffin said MSNBC would “unveil a 9am to 5pm schedule” in September “driven by dynamic coverage of breaking news events that are shaping the day” — a clear indication that daytime will be free from opinion-based programming. Throughout his memo, Griffin referred to MSNBC daytime as a place for “live, breaking news coverage.”