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MSNBC Stares Down the Maddow-pocalypse

The broadcast icon’s $30 million-a-year overall deal is a triumph for her (and Ari, and even Shell and Conde). But who will replace her at 9 p.m.? A potential successor has emerged.

Rachel Maddow Speaks At Harvard
Photo by Paul Marotta/Getty Images
Dylan Byers
September 22, 2021

Earlier this summer, Rachel Maddow went fishing—and learned how to tie new knots. During her absence, nearly one-third of her audience stopped watching her program, The Rachel Maddow Show, the cornerstone of MSNBC’s prime-time lineup. Ratings fell to 1.6 million on average, which is what her colleagues hope to get on a good night, but lousy when compared to her peerless performance over the years. Twice, her show even ceded the coveted 25-to-54 year-old demo to CNN’s Chris Cuomo.