MSNBC Rebrand to MS NOW Mocked Online

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Jesus is a Newsweek reporter based in New York. Originally from Bogotá, Colombia, his focus is reporting on politics, current affairs and trending news. He has covered current affairs, healthcare, pop culture, and sports. Jesus joined Newsweek’s U.S. bureau in 2024, and has previously worked for The Financial Times and served as an international reporter and newsletter editor for El Espectador in Colombia. He graduated with an M.A. in Journalism and Digital Innovation from New York University. Languages: English, Spanish. You can get in touch with Jesus by emailing j.mosquera@newsweek.com

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MSNBC will change its name to MS NOW later this year as part of its split from NBC News, prompting criticism and mockery across social media.

The rebranding — which stands for My Source for News, Opinion, and the World — comes as Comcast spins off several of its cable networks into a new company called Versant. The change will drop both the NBC name and the peacock logo from MSNBC‘s branding.

Online reaction to the new name has been both surprising and negative.

“MSNBC changing its name to MS NOW is one of the worst branding disasters in media history,” political commentator Russell Drew wrote on X. “The logo looks like it belongs on a discount computer from 1998, not a serious news network.”

Former MSNBC host Keith Olbermann also criticized the decision, writing, “MSNBC to change name to MS NOW no I’m not kidding.”

Why It Matters

The name change is partly the result of NBCUniversal’s decision to retain the NBC name and peacock branding for its own purposes.

While sister channel CNBC will retain its name due to its global licensing deals, MSNBC was forced to devise a new brand as it separates from NBC News under the Versant banner.

What To Know

The name change follows years of internal debate over MSNBC’s identity, particularly as its opinion programming has increasingly diverged from NBC News reporting.

The cable channel, launched in 1996 as a joint venture between Microsoft and NBC, retained the “MS” in its name even after Microsoft exited the partnership years ago.

In an internal memo, MSNBC President Rebecca Kutler said the rebrand “allows us to set our own course and assert our independence as we continue to build a modern newsgathering operation.”

Yet the new name has not been well received by some media users, who mocked the decision. One post read, “Liza Minnelli has outlived MSNBC’s name,” referencing a popular meme format.

Others tied the rebrand to politics, with one account writing: “President Trump completely destroyed them. They will never recover.”

Despite criticism, MSNBC leadership has emphasized that the network’s mission will remain the same. “While our name will be changing, who we are and what we do will not,” Kutler said. “Our commitment to our work and our audiences will not waver from what the brand promise has been for three decades.”

Kutler acknowledged that name changes carry inherent risks and that many employees find it difficult to imagine the network under a new identity. “This was not a decision that was made quickly or without significant debate,” she wrote in the memo.

The rebrand comes alongside a major newsroom expansion. Dozens of journalists have been hired recently, with more expected as the network builds a newsroom independent of NBC News.

Versant CEO Mark Lazarus confirmed that logos across spinoff channels are being redesigned. CNBC will retain its name, partly due to licensing deals outside the U.S., while other channels, such as Golf Channel, are also dropping NBC branding.

What People Are Saying

Versant CEO Mark Lazarus wrote in a company-wide memo Monday morning: “The peacock is synonymous with NBCUniversal, and it is a symbol they have decided to keep within the NBCU family.”

MSNBC host Rachel Maddow, speaking on a recent episode of Pivot, commented on the rebranding: “In this case, we can apply our own instincts, our own questions, our own priorities, to getting what we need from reporters and correspondents.”

What Happens Next

The MS NOW name and new logo will roll out fully once MSNBC officially joins Versant. No specific launch date has been announced, but the transition is expected before the end of 2025.

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