MS NOW

MSNBC is a 24-hour cable news channel. It is the lowest rated of the three major cable news channels.

The channel was started in 1996 as a joint venture between Microsoft and NBC. On December 23, 2005, ending a partnership that soured long before, Microsoft and NBC announced that they would dissolve their joint ownership of the cable news channel, with NBC taking control. NBC completed a deal to assume majority control of the channel, with an 82 percent stake.

MSNBC has received criticism from both liberal and conservative groups regarding the channel's perceived biases. The media watchdog group the Media Research Center argues that MSNBC has a liberal slant, citing shows by Keith Olbermann and Chris Matthews, while the left-wing Media Matters for America has claimed the channel has a slant in favor of conservatives, citing shows hosted by left-libertarian Tucker Carlson and former Republican Congressman Joe Scarbourough. Ironically, on August 16, 2007 Scarborough revealed an incident in which people in the MSNBC newsroom ceaselessly booed President Bush during a State of the Union address.

In the past, MSNBC shows have featured Mitch Albom, Ann Coulter, Phil Donahue, Bill Moyers, Maury Povich, and Michael Savage, among others. That varied programming was gradually reduced as NBC veered more leftist in its point-of-view.

In 2003, in an effort to appear more patriotic, MSNBC fired talk-show host Phil Donahue. An internal memo read, in part, "Donahue represents a difficult public face for NBC in a time of war. At the same time, our competitors are waving the flag at every opportunity."

On November 5, 2007, the New York Times reported that the cable news channel is in serious discussions with Rosie O'Donnell to have a prime-time show on the network. Under one scenario, O'Donnell would be given the 9 p.m. slot where she would compete with Larry King Live on CNN and Hannity & Colmes on the Fox News Channel. Her show would replace Live with Dan Abrams, a low-rated program that only recently replaced Scarborough Country. The deal later fell through as O'Donnell leaked information about the agreement without MSNBC's permission.

Continuing its offensive against the Bush administration and its reposition as a left-wing "news" outlet, in December of 2007, the network premiered a new series titled Bush League Justice with the explicit purpose of attacking the U.S. Justice Department under the presidency of George W. Bush.

External links

• Official Site
• Photos of the MSNBC studio
• MSNBC President Admits: Lineup Tilts Leftward
• Cable Channel Nods to Ratings and Leans Left