Bad News for MSNBC as Top-Rated Host Vanishes From Airwaves

It is no secret that Fox News continues to dominate the ratings among cable news networks.

MSNBC is usually a distant second, but at least there has been one bright spot for the channel.

Fans of host Rachel Maddow’s have tuned in to watch her far-left rants, making her the network’s most popular personality — but that is changing.

She recently indicated that guest hosts will be filling in during her weeknight time slot as she pursues other projects.

That means the rest of the lineup will be forced to prop up the network’s ratings, which are likely to drop even lower in her absence.

The Daily Wire has more details:

In the meantime, she has plans to work on several projects for NBCUniversal, including a new podcast and a movie based on her book, Bag Man, which delves into the scandal that dogged and eventually forced the resignation of former U.S. Vice President Spiro Agnew. Ben Stiller will reportedly direct the movie, a Focus Features production, and Maddow will executive produce the film.

Maddow will not completely disappear from the network during her break, though. She will return briefly to her show during the next few weeks for MSNBC special events including President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address, which is scheduled for March 1.

The news of Maddow’s break from hosting comes after she signed a new contract with MSNBC in the summer, following reports and rumors that she had considered leaving the network, perhaps to start her own media company.

Fans and critics alike reacted to the news on social media.

Seems the TRUTH finally broke her!

Rachel Maddow to take break from MSNBC to produce film: report https://t.co/5orWwyZD89

— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) February 1, 2022

CNN gets fewer viewers than Twitter feeds of anonymous nobodys like me, Rachel Maddow goes on “hiatus” and a bunch of truckers command more attention than all of Hollywood combined.
They’re not upset that Joe Rogan is spreading disinformation, they are upset that they can’t.

— Rising serpent 🇺🇸 (@rising_serpent) February 1, 2022

I’m not going to lie. I’m going to miss @maddow while she’s on sabbatical. She’s thorough and immensely informative. I do look forward to the outcome of her projects and her return to MSNBC. She’s one of the all time best!#FreshVoices

— Kay Walker (@kwalkc) February 1, 2022

Despite her relatively high ratings, Maddow has faced plenty of backlash during her run on MSNBC.

Of course, conservatives insist that she has misrepresented the facts, spreading lies about the Trump administration and Republicans in general.

Even some on the left were irate after a segment in which she hyped the fact that she had a copy of Donald Trump’s tax returns.

In the end, however, the story was a letdown for Trump critics because it contained no scandalous information at all.

The controversy built up to the point that Maddow was forced to offer an explanation and an attempt to defend herself.

Nevertheless, she has remained at the top of the heap among MSNBC’s low-rated hosts.

As Adweek explained:

The fourth-most-watched show on cable news, The Rachel Maddow Show at 9 p.m. more than doubled its CNN timeslot competition in average total viewers. TRMS ranked No. 2 in the hour for the 12th straight year among total viewers and 4th straight year in A25-54. However, it lost average total viewers from 2020 and 2019 but gained roughly 200% from 2017.

With or without Maddow on the air, Fox News seems poised to continue dominating the cable news ratings with no end in sight.

Tooting its own horn a bit, Fox News recently reported:

Fox News made history to kick off 2022, finishing January as the No. 1 cable news network for the 20th consecutive year among both total day and primetime viewers.

“I am immensely proud of this landmark achievement as it is a testament to the dedicated teams across FOX News Channel, who are the backbone in making us number one for 20 consecutive years with the most loyal and politically diverse audience in cable news,” FOX News Media CEO Suzanne Scott said.

As for the new projects Maddow has in the works, it seems unlikely that anyone outside of her core group of progressive fans will really care that much.

Do you believe Fox News will benefit from the her upcoming absence from MSNBC?