MSNBC Makes Its Moves

All is calm at MSNBC today, as numerous members of their pool of on-air talent may strike the word "interim" from their titles. In what will likely come as no surprise to anyone, "Morning Joe" is a go--Joe Scarborough will be the permanent replacement for the ousted Don Imus. A bit more of a surprise is today's news that Dan Abrams will remain an anchor, and "Live With Dan Abrams" will remain a permanent fixture at 9 p.m — and he will be stepping down as MSNBC General Manager. NBC's Phil Griffin, who currently oversees MSNBC and Abrams, "will assume direct management" of the network starting next month.

As the Times notes, Abrams "was initially reluctant" to assume the role of news anchor, but adjusted quite well to the role, and over time, "began to enjoy his presence in prime time." Abrams has been hosting the show for months, changing the name officially in early July even as things remained in that fuzzy "interim" stage. Even so, as ETP pointed out back then, something had to give between running a network and anchoring an hour-long show. As time wore on, it became more obvious that Abrams wasn't leaving the 9pm hour anytime soon. (Ed. Update from Emmys - buzz was that this has been chattered about and all but official for weeks.). Either way, after weeks of the "interim" qualifier, it's high time that MSNBC made all this offical.

And, hey: this means that Keith Olbermann will have even less need to worry about his "interactions" with Abrams. Closure for everyone!

Related:
MSNBC's Abrams to Be Anchor, Not Manager [New York Times]
Changes In Store For MSNBC [TVNewser]

Previously, On Eat The Press:
Morning Joe, Evening Abe: "MSNBC Live With Dan Abrams" Starts Tonight, At Least For Now

Comments

[Ginzaman]

07:12 PM on 09/25/2007

Shuster is no different than Tucker, Matthews or the rest. The "tough" image is just that. All flash and no substance.

[RealBlackGirl]

04:07 PM on 09/25/2007

I hope you are right about Tucker being gone. I think David Shuster should take over the show. I watched Monday, September 24th and he held Rep. Blackburn's feet to the fire on hypocrisy. I haven't seen anything that good in a long time. However, I refuse to get too excited because Tucker is a child of privilege and mommy and daddy's names still carry a lot of weight in the television news community.

[jukesgrrl]

01:14 AM on 09/25/2007

Now, if they could only deep-six Tucker, all would be right with the world (at least until Tweety's next colorful meltdown).

[NewsCorpse]

03:34 AM on 09/25/2007

Tucker may already be gone. His contract expires next month and I haven't seen any announcement of a re-signing. And this is after his air time was cut in half last June.

See my analysis of his ratings: Tucker: A Ratings Black Hole.
http://www.newscorpse.com/ncWP/?p=582