Alex Wagner was on Tuesday appointed the prized 9 PM Eastern Weeknight time slot which was earlier moderated by MSNBC’s star anchor Rachel Maddow. Maddow though will still be seen on Monday nights, and the rest of the week will be devoted to ‘Alex Wagner tonight.’
The latest deal comes in the form of a new deal that Maddow has been linked with NBC News that keeps her in work with the network to produce things like podcasts and books while taking a side from the daily grind of a show that began in the year 2008.
“A lot of people watch Rachel Maddow,” Wagner said, “and hopefully many of those same people will come out and watch the rest of the week.” Wagner was having her own set of daytime shows at MSNBC in the early 20210s.
When that deal came to an end Wagner left for CBS News and was involved in Showtime’s Political show, ‘The Circus’ for four seasons. As soon as she joined MSNBC in February this year, network president Rashida Jones chose her for the post.
At the start, Wagner is working with much of Maddow’s staff. She said she hopes Maddow will appear on “Alex Wagner Tonight” if there’s a topic she’s an expert on, and vice versa. She takes inspiration from Maddow’s investigative rigor. Don’t expect lengthy, complex opening monologues, though.
“Rachel is incomparable and woe to anybody who tries to duplicate what she does,” Wagner said. “Because that’s an impossibility. I would never try.” Before Wagner was given the job, there was speculation on whether MSNBC was considering bringing back Keith Olbermann, whose “Countdown” show was a hit on the network in the 2000s.
Olbermann revealed a series of email messages over two years between him and Jeff Shell, CEO of NBCUniversal, about that possibility. Depending on how you read the messages, Shell was either expressing genuine interest in the idea or stringing Olbermann along.
By getting Wagner’s show started now, MSNBC has beaten CNN in settling on its plans for the time slot. CNN still hasn’t named a permanent successor to Chris Cuomo at 9 p.m., since he was fired last December.
It is known to Alex Wagner how unorthodox the arrangements can be for her on MSNBC, but she is on all high and determined to make the most out of this opportunity.