Alec Baldwin MSNBC Buzz Heats Up

Something is very definitely happening between Alec Baldwin and MSNBC.

Late Thursday night, Mediaite, citing a senior source "in the cable news industry," said that Baldwin had signed on to host a weekly show on the network.

For a bit, that was all there was to go on. Nobody would comment about anything.

Then, like clockwork, other websites all started reporting the same thing: that Baldwin was "in talks" with MSNBC for a show. Deadline reported it, citing a "source close to the situation" and cautioning that, despite Mediaite's certainty, nothing was set in stone. The Wrap reported it, citing "insiders with knowledge of the situation." The Hollywood Reporter reported it, citing no one.

Clearly, Baldwin and MSNBC are circling each other, at the very least. And why not? The move makes sense on both sides. For Baldwin, it's a chance to talk politics and secure himself a new weekly television perch, two things that are probably high on his list of goals. For MSNBC, it's a chance at some much-needed buzz, as well as a way to finally program Friday nights with something other than the popular but much-loathed "Lockup" series.

So, watch this space.