Rashida Jones is stepping down as president of MSNBC, marking a significant transition just days before President-elect Donald Trump returns to the White House.
USA Today reports that she will remain in an advisory role until March. Rebecca Kutler, a Jones recruit from CNN and MSNBC’s senior vice president of content strategy, will serve as the interim president.
“I came to this decision over the holidays while reflecting on our remarkable journey and the many successes we’ve achieved together as a team,” Jones shared in an internal memo to staff, per USA Today. “This has been the most rewarding chapter of my professional career and I am immensely proud of what we have accomplished, which has been made possible only by you.”
Jones was the first Black woman to head a major television news network when appointed in December 2020, AFROTECH™ previously reported.
She succeeded Phil Griffin, officially stepping into the role in Feb. 1, 2021.
Jones previously served as senior vice president for NBC News and MSNBC as well as managing editor at MSNBC for several years, after starting her career with the network in 2013.
In 2020, she took charge of MSNBC’s daytime and weekend news schedule.
NBCUniversal News Group Chairman Cesar Conde noted that Jones was instrumental in MSNBC’s coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic, the social unrest and protests following the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis, MN, police in June 2020, and the 2020 presidential debates, according to NBC News. She also worked on the influential network series “Justice for All” and “Climate in Crisis” and helped prepare NBC News White House correspondent Kristen Welker to moderate the final 2020 presidential debate.
However, USA Today reports that MSNBC’s prime-time ratings have dropped by 58% since Trump’s election in November 2024.
Jones’ announcement also follows news that Comcast plans to separate most of its cable TV networks, including MSNBC, from NBC News, forming a new company called SpinCo.
Mark Lazarus, chairman of NBCUniversal Media Group, who will oversee the spinoff company, said MSNBC is “well-positioned” for the future and expressed gratitude for Jones’ decision to continue supporting the company during the transition.
“Rashida has expertly navigated MSNBC through a years-long, unrelenting, and unprecedented news cycle, all while driving the network to record viewership and making investments in nonlinear businesses,” Lazarus said.
According to the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ), Jones is a two-time Emmy Award winner, a three-time Murrow Award winner, and the RTDNA 2022 First Amendment Award recipient.
NABJ President Ken Lemon praised Jones for leaving her mark on the news industry. He emphasized that she inspires “future generations of journalists and communicators to take on challenging roles that will enable them to make a difference in how stories are told globally.”